Saturnus
Martyre
Euphonious/Voices Of
Wonder, 2000
Saturnus are a prime example of a band who are
short on originality yet execute their craft at such a high level that the
originality factor becomes a nonpoint. Indeed, their debut album (Paradise
Belongs To You, 1997) sounded as though it could have been written by My
Dying Bride, as it was heavily reminiscent of Turn Loose The Swans.
But so well was the material performed that it really didn't matter. It was a
good debut from a promising band. And now they make their return with the second
full length, Martyre. An album so rich in its delivery, it presents a band who
have just taken it up a notch, ready to stand alongside their mentors rather
than starring up at them from below...
After a haunting choir of sorrowful desperation, "Inflame Thy Heart" shows just
how much this band from Denmark have matured as songwriters and musicians.
Beginning with the familiar dark, melancholic Doom foundation of the debut,
"Inflame Thy Heart" is spiced up with some passionate lead guitar work and
introduces a new vocal approach for Thomas Jensen alongside his deep, guttural
roar and desperately mournful spoken passages, his third and newest approach
being a harsh singing style reminding me at times of Darren White's vocals on
Anathema's Pentecost lll e.p. and at others brings Kirk Windstien of
Crowbar to mind. Of all three of his vocal deliveries I find his spoken word
parts to be most effective, so forlorn and delicate are they that you know he
feels these emotions within. The deep growling voice was something that I was
hoping would be put to rest after the debut, but here it is used more sparingly.
He performs this style very well, sort of like Nick Holmes of Paradise Lost's
earlier work, but a bit deeper. I just feel that it's maybe a bit too deep for
the material on hand, which is not as heavy as the previous album. The second
half of "Inflame Thy Heart" drifts into a serene atmosphere provided by
beautiful lead guitar and acoustic strumming which brings recent Katatonia and
Anathema to mind. "Empty Handed" is easily the most rocking song on the album,
in the tradition of Paradise Lost's "I See Your Face" from Draconian Times
featuring a guitar harmony that would have fit perfectly on Katatonia's
Discouraged Ones album. The best song this band has written comes in the
form of "Noir", containing a great chorus melody (..."nevertheless I'm gone...")
, this would be a great single for the band if such a thing were possible in the
current shallow mainstream market. "Softly On The Path You Fade" is just
beautiful in its utter sadness, as "Thou Art Free" is an all acoustic based song
with Thomas's soft, forlorn spoken word voicing the death of love..."Love is
Dead,/And Thou Art Free/She Doth Live/But Dead To Thee..." Much of the lyrics on
the album deal with these themes of lost love and the tragedy of life and are an
improvement over the debut, written from the heart, honest and open.
Overall, Martyre is much lighter than the debut, not to say this album is
without its heavy moments because it most certainly is not. The band have really
put emphasis on creating mood and atmosphere of forlorn melancholy and they
definitely succeed. Don't let the originality factor mentioned earlier in the
review sway you as though their influences are easily detectable, Saturnus does
inject their own individuality in these songs. Every song on here (12 in all) is
a winner in my opinion and if you own recent albums from Katatonia and Anathema
as well as early My Dying Bride and Paradise Lost efforts and hold them in high
esteem, then you can not go wrong by checking this out. If you've had love turn
its back on you and are on the look for a soundtrack for your broken heart,
Martyre will be your best friend. No doubt these guys have been there and
experienced such a loss. Night music for lovelorn souls.
2000
Tracklisting
1. 7
2. Inflame Thy Heart
3. Empty Handed
4. Noir
5. A Poem (Written In Moonlight)
6. Softly On The Path You Fade
7. Thou Art Free
8. Drown My Sorrow
9. Lost My Way
10. Loss (In Memoriam)
11. Thus My Heart Weepeth For Thee
12. In Your Shining Eyes
Saturnus Discography
Paradise Belongs To You (Euphonious/Voices Of Wonder, 1997)
For The Loveless Lonely Nights (Euphonious/Voices Of Wonder, 1998)
Martyre (Euphonious/Voices Of Wonder, 2000)
Veronika Decides To Die (Firebox, 2006)