CoC : Ablaze My Sorrow - The Plague : Review

Ablaze My Sorrow - _The Plague_
(No Fashion, 1998)
by: Drew Snow (6 out of 10)

Ablaze My Sorrow are finally back with a new album, but, unfortunately, I can't say that it has been worth the wait at all. Their debut album, _If Emotions Still Burn_, was promising; a solid album of a bit harsher variety of Swedish melodic death, but it suffered from poor vocals and some loose playing. This time around, the playing is a little tighter, but as a whole the album isn't any sizable improvement over _IESB_; in fact, I'd say it's of a somewhat lower quality. The melody is still there, though in lowered amounts, but it seems as if the band has forsaken the unique melodic approach heard on the first album for a more traditional Swedish sound. Luckily, the band's distinctive penchant to switch tempos and/or riffs every ten seconds or so remains intact, definitely keeping the listener on his or her toes, but that's nowhere near enough to salvage _The Plague_ from mediocrity. I was hoping that Ablaze My Sorrow would try to elevate themselves above the other faceless No Fashion bands, but although they remain unique in some respects, their music is just not unique enough to be considered anything fantastic, and when added to the fact that it's simply not great on any sort of musical level anyway, this makes it another average release.

(article published 10/3/1998)

ALBUMS
10/11/1996	D Schinzel	7	Ablaze My Sorrow - If Emotions Still Burn