The Dutch Progressive Rock Page album review of ‘The Failing Light’ (2003 demo), November 2004
[View the article on The Dutch Progressive Rock Page's website here]
[The Dutch Progressive Rock Page]
Despite pretty much inventing gothic metal in the early 90's, the UK's contribution to the recently burgeoning female-fronted variation of the genre has been pretty much non-existent, which makes the appearance on the scene of Season's End a welcome one.
Musically, whilst there are the expected echoes of bands like Within Temptation in Season's End's sound, the influence of British forebears such as (early) Anathema, My Dying Bride and, in particular, Paradise Lost are also heavily in evidence. Whilst Season's End are not a particularly heavy outfit, the riffs and sinewy lead work from guitarist David Stanton tend to lead the sound, with Dave Smith's keys providing (in the main) a symphonic backwash. Front woman Becki Clark also provides some cello and viola to add further texture to the sound. Vocally, Clark has an impressive delivery - whilst not quite in the Floor Jansen school of operatic vocal acrobatics, she nonetheless gives a commanding yet versatile performance which is mostly pitched in the mid to high range. Stanton also provides vocals; refreshingly he eschews the "death grunt" style that male vocalists usually provide in this genre, instead having a strong clean vocal style which works well both as both a foil for, and on occasions in tandem with, Clark's voice.
On the song front, Season's End have come up with some quality pieces here. The highlight of the album for me is the opening Touch, a lengthy, multi-faceted piece which has a convincing momentum and features melodic and vocal hooks a'plenty. A Ghost In My Emotion is an up-tempo, more straightforward track with a strong chorus, whilst One Sadness brings to mind Paradise Lost circa the Icon album, and features what is arguably Clark's strongest vocal performance. Final piece Celestia meanwhile, manages to show the band at both their most ornate and bombastic, and at their heaviest.
I would say that, on this evidence at least, Season's End aren't quite yet the finished article. A couple of the songs could certainly have done with some editing and tightening of the arrangements, whilst Innocence is a rather stodgy ballad which has a definite air of filler about it. The sound, meanwhile, is a bit rough round the edges, betraying the fact that the album was obviously recorded on a tight budget. However, in conclusion this is undoubtedly a promising debut album from the band. With some time to hone their song writing skills, plus a bigger recording budget, Season's End should definitely be in with a chance of making a name for themselves in this increasingly popular genre.
7 out of 10
Tom De Val of The Dutch Progressive Rock Page
http://www.dprp.net
