Tristania – “Ashes”
So, there I was, at the corner of State and Gorham, enjoying a slice of pizza, pondering this album, when two people, a man and woman, walked by with matching Tristania shirts on. After that, Satan appeared to me and said: “Go home and write the review.” “Right now?!?…I’m eating pizza, you big goof!,” I responded, annoyed with Jack. “Fine. Finish the pizza. Dang, what a cranky bastard”, said the Horned One, and I did not keep arguing. It’s probably a bad idea to get into an argument with that guy. So, I was thinking long and hard (boasting again, as Lemmy would say) and it seems to me that what this band does is very difficult: to combine growled vocals and heavy guitars with high, female vocals–to do that–and not make it sound stupid or corny is difficult. This is not heavy on the keyboards, but centered on crunchy guitars and growled and clean vocals. The songs alternate between melodic, midpaced black/death and lighter numbers. Classy, memorable stuff.