Live 4 Metal

GASP!!! Keyboards in death metal?! Yep - there's no mistaking those crystalline sprinkles and quirky jabs of the ol' ivories. Mellow, cushion-y vocals juxtaposed with menacing DM growls...?! Yep, those too. And the arrangements… There's space! Textures! Contrasts of mood, style and pace! And despite its sporadic aggression, this platter is really quite …bright. Warm. And, dare I say it, invigorating! Should, therefore, 'death metal' even be mentioned in the same sentence as 'Elenium', let alone serve as a classification for them? Well… broadly - VERY broadly - speaking, yes. This Finnish quintet may owe more allegiance to Prog than Death, but their debut offering - tracks such as 'Subcreator' and 'Under The Mug' in particular - is really a cornucopia for any musician. From butterfly-like acoustics to quirky lounge jazz - often played against a backbone of dissonant riffery - variety and experimentation are the keys to Elenium's sound. In fact, they may well have achieved the nigh-impossible: the invention of a new sub-genre. Melodic Progressive Bright Death metal, we'll call it. A contradiction in terms? Perhaps. But let's face it: an alternative to the two massively over-plundered areas of the genre - Brutal American DM and Melodic Swedish Thrash-Death - is long overdue. But then does the label really matter? Music is music; there are no rules. What really matters is whether it sounds right.The overriding Prog influence initially lends 'For Giving…' a nostalgic feel. But with each successive airing, its true potential begins to emerge - and hypocritical as it may seem, Elenium's debut gradually begins to appear fresh, vital... and a template of things to come?

Jo