Okay, let’s get this off my chest right off the bat. When the news about Dan Lancaster being the producer of the new SWALLOW THE SUN album first caught my attention, I honestly did not know what to think of it. I mean, it took me quite a long time to get my head around the new sound of, say, BRING ME THE HORIZON, to which he made a hefty contribution production-wise. Here, we weren’t talking about MUSE or BLINK-182 but the grand masters of Finnish death-doom, for fuck’s sake! Yeah, sure, the band has been expanding their sound into lighter and somewhat more Gothic realms for quite some time already and the results have been poignantly impressive with each new installment. Still, when the first single, “Innocence Was Long Forgotten,” was released ahead of the album, in the summer, I must admit to having approached it with extra caution. While the song turned out to be a majestic beast, featuring all the signature quirks of these gloomsters, the use of AutoTune, for example, filled me with a subtle sense of foreboding. I’m not categorically against the idea of bands refining their signature sound but, frankly, I wasn’t really sure that going for the mainstreamish pop-metal aesthetic would suit this band particularly well. So, when the band’s ninth studio album, “Shining,” came out on October 18th, 2024, via Century Media, I approached it with even more caution. What if this endeavor would turn out to be the first-ever SWALLOW THE SUN outing to disappoint me?! That would be something completely unheard of, considering what a gut punch of an album the previous effort, “Moonflowers,” (2021) was, let alone the fact that this band boasts one hell of a flawless back catalog.
The first summer single opens the album with an almost schlager-like mood, albeit one that’s remarkably dark and Gothic. The first thing that made me prick my ears when the single came out was the somewhat slicker and more polished overall sound. The melodies do resonate with the familiar SWALLOW THE SUN aura and the mood is very similar to the lighter tracks on their 2019 album “When a Shadow is Forced into the Light.” Still, the production – the AutoTuned vocals in the chorus, in particular – felt a bit strange, at first, to be honest. Now, having conditioned myself to the new sound, the initial shock has worn off and the song has grown onto me rather nicely. The song has a good pinch of KATATONIA infused in its wistful melodies, a bit like “This Cut is the Deepest” had on their 2012 album “Emerald Forest and the Black Bird.”
The album opener is followed by the next single, “What Have I Become,” and I guess it was placed as the second track – as well as released as the second single – because it features some harsh vocals and heavier riffs almost as if to remind us that – no! – SWALLOW THE SUN isn’t going pop all the way! Peculiarly enough, the chorus is one of the catchiest on the album, and the more I listen to it, the more convinced I become that this is one of the tightest bangers in this selection. The balance between the catchy choruses and heavier stuff is just pristine. It sure helps that, in the growled vocal department, vocalist Mikko Kotamäki is one of the most impressive metal vocalists around.
Next, released as the third single, “MelancHoly” gears up on the pop aesthetic even more. The atmospheric verses traverse familiar waters and, yet, there is a glimmer of hope, both in the melodies and the lyrics, that shines perhaps a few notches brighter than what we have been accustomed to when it comes to this death-doom squad. Upon the release of this album, I came across some YouTube reaction videos in which people claimed that it was next to impossible to listen through those earlier albums in one go because the heaviness is so opaque, whereas this new endeavor is much less challenging in this respect. Well, I’ve never had that problem but, then again, I’m a Finn. During the first couple of spins, I must admit that I slightly missed that impenetrable heaviness now and then but, to give credit where it is due, this new lighter aesthetic does suit the band rather well. The songcraft hasn’t changed that much – the melodies still resonate thick with the band’s signature aura and the balance between the light and the dark works wonders.
Perhaps a little disclaimer is in order here – old-school fans need not fear that the band has gone awry altogether. At its lightest, this new album showcases the band reaching such lightness that we haven’t experienced before despite all the lighter tracks on those previous albums. The heavier stuff might not come off just as heavy as the band used to be – not at first, at least – but there are plenty of heavy riffs and growls, too. “Charcoal Sky,” for one, nods toward the black-metal aesthetic rather remarkably, almost as if to drive the point home that SWALLOW THE SUN still aren’t pulling any punches.
I heard that the band calls their new endeavor “the Black Album of Death Doom” and they could be right on the money – their new sound is remarkably more radio-friendly and will probably lure a wealth of new fans while rubbing some of the older fans the wrong way, just like that colossal METALLICA offering did back in 1991. I sure wish that SWALLOW THE SUN‘s new effort will prove just as influential and successful because, let’s be frank here, after the initial shock, this new, softer approach actually sounds pretty damn good. I guess it speaks volumes about the band’s songcraft.
Written by Jani Lehtinen
Tracklist
- Innocence Was Long Forgotten
- What Have I Become
- MelancHoly
- Under the Moon & Sun
- Kold
- November Dust
- Velvet Chains
- Tonight Pain Believes
- Charcoal Sky
Lineup
Juha Raivio – guitars, keyboards, backing vocals
Mikko Kotamäki – vocals
Matti Honkonen – bass
Juuso Raatikainen – drums
Juho Räihä – guitars
Label
Century Media
