Katatonia - Dead End Kings
Reviewing a new Katatonia record is never an easy task for yours truly. They are, in my opinion, easily the greatest band of all time, and it seems unfair to rate these Godz among men on any mortal grading system. For me, the Katatonia scale would start at 10, as even a disappointing album from them would be five points higher than a perfect effort from some pedestrian outfit. It’s also a bit of a stretch pretending that anyone who doesn’t already worship at the altar of these Swedes deserves to breathe air, but I digress. It is worth noting that, amazingly, Dead End Kings did not blow me away at first. As is my common ritual for new Katatonia material, I shut everything else down and spent a solid 48 hours just listening on repeat. But nothing stuck! Never in my 18 years of adoration and exaltation —from the Blackened Doom past to the Depressive Rock present— had this occurred, and I began to wonder if this was the katastrophe the Mayans foresaw. Befuddled and concerned, I took a break for a few days. During this period, the grand alchemy of the masters came to fruition. Every morning I’d wake with a different song stuck in my head. At first it was the chorus of “The Parting,” the opener that picks up right where Night Is the New Day left off. Next it was the soothing “eh-he-ay-he-ya” from “The One You Are Looking for Is Not Here,” with guest choral assistance by The Gathering’s Silje Wergeland (the first Katatonia song to feature female vocals, not counting Mikael Akerfeldt). Then the chorus from “The Racing Heart,” then the Great Cold Distance-like “Ambitions” and the Viva Emptiness-reminiscent “First Prayer,” then the swirling Toolisms of “Dead Letters,” and so on. Before long, this entire, flawless body of work had supplanted itself into my subconscious. I will never doubt again. If there’s one minor complaint, it’s the absence of a singular suicidal anthem. No “Departer.” No “Journey Through Pressure.” No “Evidence.” Yet it’s the mournful grace of Jonas Renkse’s beautiful voice and his brilliant patternization of wordplay that carries the album to perfection. Every song is an ingenious exercise in light and shade, quiet and loud, hope and despair. Rest assured, any negative review you see of this subtle masterpiece was hastily submitted by someone who didn’t take the proper time to realize its magnificence. I nearly made the same mistake.
Note: As of press time, I’m still waiting on the $978 deluxe edition —which contains two bonus tracks, 47 10” vinyls, a War & Peace-sized booklet, two lightsabers, a Toro weedeater, and a plaster caste of Anders Nystrom’s scrotum— so the bonus material was not factored in. But who am I kidding? It’s a 10 either way.
(1) Comment(s)
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Chuck said:
This music is embarrassing and weak, you might as well be listening to fucking Shinedown or Nickelback. It is seriously that awful, and this review really puts the credibility of your taste in any metal into question. I don’t give a shit about your response, this album is awful and I hope no one heard me listening to it.
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