Year: 2021
Total Time: 52:28
Label: Napalm Records
For someone who started listening to MOONSPELL in 1995, when the Portuguese released the now classic “Wolfheart”, BLACK SABBATH had about 25 years as a band. I remember myself then considering all these bands of the 70s and 80s as “dinosaurs”. As incredible as it may seem, MOONSPELL will celebrate next year their 30th anniversary! And yet, I don’t consider them old. But Fernando Ribeiro and co have a different opinion. In the press release of their new album, they declare they know that they are entering the last years of their career – The acceptance of the inevitable. So how do they deal with that? With absolute honesty, of course.
A few years before the world plunged into isolation, in 2017 Ribeiro began writing “Hermitage” (a concept of “turning our back to the conventions of modernity”) influenced by the story of Manfred Gnadinger, a German hermit living in isolation in the village of Camelle, Spain. In the same year, Ribeiro will visit his uncle, who gave him a leather bag full of records of bands such as PINK FLOYD and BLACK SABBATH. It was as if fate were showing the way to the 13th release of the Portuguese.
For a band that hasn’t been afraid of musical progress, the time has come to finally release its most prog album. Not in the sense of skills and odd times signatures of course, but in a sense of atmosphere and different soundscapes. As it was taught that is, by the masters of the genre, PINK FLOYD, whose spirit is diffused throughout “Hermitage”, from the opening bass lines of “The Greatest Good”, to the Gilmour-ian solos of “All or Nothing” and from there to the vocal melodies of “Without Rule”. Listening to the album you will still encounter several influences: TOOL, QUEENSRYCHE and even the dark prog style of KATATONIA. Basing the songs on dynamics alternating the calm, atmospheric parts with heavy ones, could even recall the mighty SOEN.
So sincere with themselves, their intentions, and their abilities as they have been shaped by time, MOONSPELL distance themselves from the dramatic flamboyance of their Gothic Metal past and turn their attention to a low-key self-reflection. They remove what they consider unnecessary and focus on telling their story and getting close to the listener as simply as they can. “Hermitage” is the most stripped down and direct work of the Portuguese. It’s not multi-layered or overproduced like some of their previous efforts. Vocals follow a clean and melodic approach while guitars exchange volume and tension with clean passages, sound plays and emotional solos. Of course, there are still heavy parts and Ribeiro’s harsh vocals. The awesome title track and “The Hermit Saints” are great examples of that side of MOONSPELL and I personally consider them the best tracks of the album.
Despite the immediacy of the album, this different venture takes needs some time to get used to. “Hermitage” does not provide entertainment. It’s a record to have a personal relationship with. It’s a mature work, from a grown-up band that, according to Ribeiro, is probably aimed at a more mature audience of certain age. Quite a bold move we could say, which once again shows the honest intentions of the group.
A bold move with enough risks though I could add. MOONSPELL chose to travel to the uncharted waters of a new genre for them. If we replaced Ribeiro’s characteristic vocals with someone else’s, the result wouldn’t be so reminiscent of the Portuguese band. Of course, there are times when you understand at once what you are listening to, such as the wonderfully melodic chorus of “Entitlement” that takes you back a few years to the remarkable “Extinct”.
The album has too many good ideas but unfortunately, they don’t always work as they should. The riff of “Common Prayers” is addictive but is buried in the chorus under a heavy layer of keys. In “Entitlement” we meet one of the best riffs of the record exactly at the end of the song. The low/high dynamics work a little dissuasively. Sometimes you land abruptly to a calm part that follows a heavy outburst and other times that outburst simply takes ages to come (“Apophthegmata”). Finally, the 2 instrumental pieces, “Solitarian” and “City Quitter”, however beautiful, seem to have been included just to fill the time.
Listening to “Hermitage” repeatedly, I feel like I miss this familiar darkness of their previous releases. I miss the dramatic exaggeration that characterized them so much. I miss their tension and provocative persona – I don’t know if it is due to Arellano’s restrained production (PRIMORDIAL, PARADISE LOST, GHOST). But you can’t help but marvel at how comfortable the band is with this decision. In an interview, Ribeiro described their new work as a mood-specific album, and I can see why. MOONSPELL returned with another quality record, which if it hits you at the right mood it has a lot to tell you. But for the rest of the time, I honestly don’t know how often I’m going to go back to it.
Rating: 6.5/10
Editor: Dimitris Benetatos
Related Link: MOONSPELL – Official Page
