Het blijft een neen-/ja-verhaal, de nieuwe songs van Swallow The Sun. De eerste en derde single waren mij véél te braafjes, terwijl de tweede en nu ook deze nieuwe mij wel kunnen bekoren. Charcoal Sky is terug een pak meer 'death' en gaat ook lekker uptempo van start, meteen het hardste nummer van het nieuwe album. Wel krijgen we terug die typische ingetogen momenten. Het probleem voor mij is dat die lichtere stukken de loodzware weemoed en duisternis uit de oudere songs missen en net daar ben ik hen helemaal kwijt. Yep, ik snap de reden waarom en heb dat bij mijn bespreking van What I Have Become uitgelegd. Het is echter met droefheid dat ik Shining aan mij laat voorbijgaan. Of moet ik zeggen met vreugde gezien het sprankeltje licht dat Juha Raivio eindelijk toelaat in zijn leven? Nog even wat die video betreft: prachtig! Dit is het soort animatie en sfeer waar ik het tijdens mijn kinderjaren van in mijn broek deed.
Shining is op 18 oktober 2024 verschenen via Century Media Records.
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Ter Info
Juha Raivio on the new single: "Charcoal Sky is a true anthem for the autumn and the weight of the coming winter. To recognize and face the killing season within, to be reborn again."
Mikko Kotamäki adds on “Charcoal Sky”: “Charcoal Sky is musically the heaviest song of the album. Can’t wait to perform this song live. Great riffs and catchy chorus. Future classic so to speak.”
Over het nieuwe album
Juha Raivio comments on the album release: "It feels almost surreal to release one of our best and bravest album 24 years into the band’s existence. Like an ice dagger through a sleeping heart. Sunrise in the night sky. Horns and Halos. Shining dark."
More than two decades of despair, beauty, and heartache have not only shaped but fueled Finnish melancholy torchbearers, the chart-topping and two-time Finnish Grammy nominated Swallow The Sun. Formed in Jyväskylä in 2000, the quintet has enjoyed numerous fan-lauded music videos (10+ million YouTube views) and streaming dominance (50+ million Spotify plays), while also embarking on a four-continent, 900-show run throughout their 23-year career. The new album, Shining, however, is the group’s first step on the new path to the unknown.
Shining is an exceptional album, not only because of the beauty and sheer power of the songs, but because this time the band searched for something new, something bright, something that will take them to new spheres.
Dan Lancaster, two-time Grammy nominee producer (Bring Me The Horizon, Muse, Don Broco, Blink 182, Enter Shikari, etc.), had the privilege to dive into the new Swallow The Sun material. This unexpected combination, and him producing the album, created something that Swallow The Sun has never experienced before. The leap into the unknown created an album that will blow you away!
Shining the latest album from Swallow the Sun encapsulates the profound duality of the human experience and the band's enduring brilliance. The album explores the intrinsic challenges of being human, contrasting the beauty and purity within individuals with the transformation that occurs when we come together, chasing us away from innocence like rats from Eden. It highlights the struggle and disillusionment in human interactions, dealing with a deep carved fear of life, and how melancholy can slowly turn into your God.
Marking 23 years of their musical progression, Shining also symbolizes the band's pride and resilience, showcasing their brightest and strongest work to date. This album is a testament to Swallow the Sun's artistic legacy, intertwining existential reflections with their characteristic majestic sound. Shining – or the “Black Album” of Death Doom, as the bassist Matti Honkonen calls this album – was produced and mixed by Dan Lancaster, mastered by Tony Lindgren (Fascination Street Studios), and recorded by Juho Räihä at SoundSpiral Audio, except vocals recorded by Dan Lancaster. The artwork is by Rami Mursula.
