2023 – A YEAR IN REVIEW(S): THE DISAPPOINTING

(It’s time once again for Andy Synn‘s annual List Week here at NCS)

As always, I want to start off this article with a little explanation of the rationale behind it.

In general, as I’m sure you’re aware, it’s our prerogative here to only write about the bands and albums we actually like.

That doesn’t mean, however, that we shy away from providing constructive criticism when we think it’s warranted (at least, I don’t), as loving something doesn’t mean just ignoring its flaws.

And it’s in that spirit that my annual “Disappointing” article is written, not as an attempt to court clicks or controversy, but as a means of expressing the very simple idea that the bands we love aren’t perfect, and sometimes even the best of them stumble or fail to live up to the hype.

That’s not an excuse for people just to start shitting on bands they don’t like – we just tend to delete those sorts of comments without giving them a second thought – it’s more about providing a communal space to express our disappointment that something we were looking forward to didn’t, for whatever reason, measure up to our expectations and/or hopes.

Obviously there’ll be disagreements (I’m pretty sure that one or two of my selections here will upset a few people, though I need to stress again that I’m not trying to upset or provoke anyone, these are just my honest opinions) but I think that, if we can all remain civil, we’ll get through this together.

A HILL TO DIE UPON – THE BLACK NATIVITY

The new album from A Hill to Die Upon is a perfect example of what I’ve said in the intro, especially since the band are long-time favourites of mine, meaning that this particular entry is especially personal, and the disappointment particularly poignant.

Quite simply, while the idea of the band putting together an album of reinterpreted Christmas carols/hymns is certainly an interesting one, the cover tracks themselves simply don’t hold up over repeat listens, mostly playing it safe by just adding some growls and distortion on top of familiar song structures, and thus never escaping the “gimmicky” feel which soon sets in, while the handful of original tracks occasionally hint at the possibility of something a little more interesting but still come across as largely unfinished and underdeveloped.

Will I still be there for whatever the band do next? Of course! It’s just that The Black Nativity is, ultimately, unlikely to be much more than an outlying oddity in their career when all is said and done.

AHAB – THE CORAL TOMBS

I anticipate this selection being particularly controversial, as I know this has received pretty positive coverage from a number of other outlets.

At the same time, however, I know I am far from alone in feeling that at least some of these write-ups may have been coloured a bit by the heavy expectations surrounding the group’s “come back” and a general unwillingness to criticise a much-loved band whose career, up until now, has been one colossal, doom-laden hit after another.

The truth is, however, that while some of the proggier parts are certainly intriguing (though not all of them by any means), the heavier moments of the album just don’t seem to land with the same sort of weight and substance they used to. Something is missing, that’s for sure, with the end result being that The Coral Tombs is, for the most part, a collection of songs that superficially look and sound like Ahab, but simply don’t feel like the band we know they can be.

ASHEN HORDE – ANTIMONY

This entry is a perfect example of how, for all that it’s probably the most overtly negative thing we publish each year, this column comes from a place of appreciation, not antagonism.

Case in point, we’ve followed Ashen Horde‘s career for some time, and have hosted multiple premieres for them. We like what they do, and want them to keep doing more of it.

In this instance, however, what they’ve done displays some seriously impressive technical talents, but largely lacks the definition (with the songs, most of which proceed at warp-speed, quickly starting to blur together) and memorability (and those bits which do stand out, especially the oddly flat clean vocals, doing so for all the wrong reasons) as their previous work(s).

FLESHVESSEL – YEARNING: PROMETHEAN FATES SEALED

I know, I know. I know what you’re thinking. Hell, I can almost hear the indrawn breaths and grinding teeth from here.

Let me assure you, Fleshvessel‘s debut album isn’t a bad record by any means (few, if any, of the albums here are truly bad) but, in a year which has given us equally strange but significantly superior records from the likes of Asystole, Genevieve, and Zvylpwkua (to name but a few) it’s disappointing that this album – which, let me be clear, hits its peak during the first track, and then struggles to replicate this while throwing ideas at the wall in the hope that at least something will stick – is the one which received so much, somewhat undeserved, hype.

FROZEN SOUL – GLACIAL DOMINATION

Let me make something clear – nothing that I write here is going to hurt Frozen Soul one bit, so you needn’t come galloping to their rescue, nor do I begrudge the band their decision to take full advantage of the current wave of hype they’re riding (I know I’d do the same and I’m pretty sure you would too).

But – and let’s be brutally honest about this – the hype surrounding the release of Glacial Domination was completely over the top, as while it’s not a bad record (I’ll admit it’s enjoyable enough when I’m listening to it, even if I find it hard to recall anything I specifically enjoyed as soon as it’s done) it’s just surprisingly (and disappointingly) bland, and the almost-universal praise it’s received seems a lot more like the result of a general unwillingness to rock the boat than an honest assessment of the album’s actual quality.

L’HOMME ABSURD – STRANGER

L’Homme Absurd‘s previous album, 2020’s Belong, was on the short-list for my Personal Top Ten. That’s how much I enjoyed it (even if it didn’t make the final cut).

But whereas there was an energy and an urgency to that record which helped elevate the band’s particular brand of Post-Black Metal in my eyes (or ears), their latest one was just dull.

That’s about all I can say about it really. The hooks were dull, the melodies were dull, the vocals were dull… and while, at times at least, it felt like the band were at least trying to imbue some of the songs with that same sense of energy and vitality, the final product ultimately fell far, far short of the group’s previous work(s).

OAK PANTHEON – THE ABSENCE

Now this one hurts to write, and I hope the band will forgive me/us.

Make no mistake about it, Oak Pantheon are an incredibly talented bunch, and we’ve lavished praise upon them multiple times over the years (2016’s In Pieces in particular still gets regular rotations at casa de Synn).

But it feels like, on this occasion at least, the band’s undeniable talents are part of the problem, as while the individual performances are top-notch, the songs themselves jump around in style and focus so much that they almost sound like the product of multiple different bands, as if the group themselves couldn’t really decide what direction to direct their abilities, resulting in an album which ultimately feels weirdly disjointed, uneven, and lacking a defined sense of identity.

Which is a damn shame, because not only are we long-time fans of the band but that artwork is absolutely fantastic.

SCAR SYMMETRY – THE SINGULARITY (PHASE II – THE XENOTAPH)

Despite our name (which, as we’ve explained before, is very much a tongue-in-cheek thing) we’ve got a lot of time, and a lot of love, for Scar Symmetry here at NoCleanSinging.

They’re not perfect by any means (and we all have different favourite, and least-favourite, releases) but when they’re firing on all cylinders they’re capable of producing some of the hookiest, catchiest, and shamelessly sing-along (and growl-along) music that the Metal scene has to offer.

Sadly, however, Phase II of the band’s Singularity series doesn’t really offer all that much – the songs, bar one or two, are forgettable, the guitar tone is weirdly “plasticky” and insubstantial, and the vocal melodies largely lack the unashamedly epic (and unapologetically poppy) qualities which mark the band’s best work.