SUBROSA – “For This We Fought The Battle Of Ages”
Experimental sludge doom metal from Salt Lake City? Okay, here we go!
Three female singers, two violins – SUBROSA is special to the core.
Six tracks might sound like nothing. But remember – we are in the genre of doom metal! So “For This We Fought The Battle Of Ages” is more than 60 minutes long. ‘Despair Is A Siren’ combines the voices of the three singers to a beautiful melody. The length of the songs gives them the chance to breathe and to develop. The band creates beautiful melodies, sometimes with a strong tension within the sound.
The production could have been better. The sound makes it tricky sometimes to fully enjoy the songs. But I really like the combination between long slow parts and growls to break up the song. You could compare SUBROSA to one of my favorite bands: LONG DISTANCE CALLING. One song could be divided into many, many parts, but put together, they are a beautiful piece of art.
Violins as the special detail.
I am not a big fan of violins – I prefer cellos. For SUBROSA, the violins are a benefit. The high tones are a great contrast to the low voices of the singers. Second contrast: the vocals aren’t clean and clear, they are rough and distinctive. Sometimes it’s like a duet between the vocals and the violins. The band also knows how to do ballads – proof of this is the shortest song on the album ‘Il Cappio’.
“For This We Fought The Battle Of Ages” is a very heavy album with long dark parts and some bright moments created by the vocals and violins. The music is very special. You might like it or not. For me, I’ll keep it in mind for special moments and when I want to hear music that uses voice more like an instrument than to transport lyrics. With this album, you can just lay back and lose your mind, floating in dreamscapes, dark and beautiful. If you like LONG DISTANCE CALLING, TODTGELICHTER or OPETH, you might also like SUBROSA!
“For This We Fought The Battle Of Ages” – Tracklist:
01. Despair is a siren
02. Wound of the warden
03. Black majesty
04. Il Cappio
05. Killing rapture
06. Troubles cells
Do you like heavy music like SUBROSA? Or do you prefer something with more energy, catchy and easily? Let us know in the comments!