Band's List Ambiant Black Coldworld The Stars Are Dead Now

ColdWorld along with Forest of Fog is one of the first bands that really sparked my interest in the Black Metal scene. Despite knowing and liking a few bands of the genre I would be nowhere near as well versed in the scene as I currently am without the aforementioned bands.

ColdWorld presented me with an approach that I haven't heard before, the Black Metal I heard before was either of the symphonic variety or the Norwegian scene. I hadn't heard less aggressive more atmospherically poignant Black Metal before and ColdWorld opened up a window for me, a window into the Black Metal underground. ColdWorld falls under the atmospheric variety occupied by bands such as Darkspace, Negura Bunget and Wolves in the Throne Room. ColdWorld's sound is characterized by extensive use of atmospheric synths, highly distorted vocals and generally a pleasant and soothing feel. The music of ColdWorld is by no means difficult listening, in fact I personally feel that they're one of the most accessible bands in the Black Metal genre who have stuck closely to the genres baseplate. By that I mean they haven't overly simplified the sound in an attempt to make it more accessible as is the case with bands such as Dimmu Borgir.

The distortion on the guitars is fairly minimal, they are clear and don't muffle any of the other instruments underneath them. The riffs are melodic, especially in the track Hate which has one of the catchiest intros you'll come across in Black Metal. What I admire most about ColdWorld is how the music is cold but at the same time it's also very beautiful. The music is highly atmospheric and succeeds in creating pleasant wintry music that is easy to get lost within.

Cancer shows another side to ColdWorld, taking a darker approach than the two previous songs. The music is much more bleak but the haunting and beautiful atmosphere is still there, this track really reminds me of bands like Burzum and Wigrid as the riffs sound very similar and the synths are done in a similar desolate manner.

Suicide is easily the best song on the album. Starting off with more excellent synth work that is emotionally powerful, the synths create a bleak and desolate sound but when the guitar comes in the track suddenly becomes upbeat and very melodic. The first riff sounds very Blackgaze-y which is a very good thing. Suicide is easily the best track to start off with as it shows the bleak and desolate atmospheres at the beginning with the slightly upbeat and highly melodic edge that has come to define this musical project.

The other two tracks despite not me going into them are certainly good but I don't feel that they deserve as much recognition as the three I have discussed. This Empty Life is a brilliant opener to the album and The Old Ghost in the Well is an interesting ambient ending. All in all this is a really good release, the vocals I will admit are too distorted but they suit the music wonderfully. Unfortunately The Stars Are Dead Now will always be overshadowed by the more well known Melancholie² which is a real shame as the music is wonderfully unique and shows a very promising outlook for this band. As Black Metal seems to be becoming a more commercial genre ColdWorld can proudly keep the Black Metal flag waving high.