CoC : Gothic - Touch of Eternity : Review

Gothic - _Touch of Eternity_
(Bestial, 1997)
by: Brian Meloon (6 out of 10)

Although their name is Gothic, these guys don't play goth; they play semi-melodic doom. I can't say that I find their style very interesting, my main complaint being that it's just not dynamic enough. The clean vocals are one of the main weaknesses: he's way flat at times, and doesn't have enough range. As a result, the vocal lines tend to be very monotonous, which coupled with the slow-moving music makes it very monotonous. They also use shouted/grunted vocals, which are much more effective. The production could be better, as it's muddy, adding to the music's monotonous sound. The playing is good: while the music isn't very technically demanding, they handle it competently. The guitar solos (especially Emil's) are very good: they are tasteful and appropriate, even adding some flash here and there. Most of the music is very slow, with only a handful of mid-paced sections. I think that a few more fast sections could have helped to give the songs a better sense of purpose. Most of it is also very simple, and while some of these sections are effective and memorable, they tend to repeat them too much. It's almost as if these guys aren't really sure if they want to be heavy or melodic, and ended up not quite getting enough of either. Overall, this isn't a bad release; I just don't find it very satisfying.

(article published 19/11/1998)

ALBUMS
16/1/1999	D Rocher	8.5	Gothic - Prelude to Killing