CoC : Enthral - The Mirror's Opposite End : Review

Enthral - _The Mirror's Opposite End_
(Hot Records, 1998)
by: Adrian Bromley (6 out of 10)

Within a few listens, it becomes evident that Enthral's music is as eloquent, powerful and majestic as Emperor's and as dark and sadistically eerie as Dimmu Borgir's -- just check out numbers "In Passion Swept" and "Salvation Mother". Good for them to attain that momentum, but in the long run what they are really doing is playing all the right cliche sounds/styles to make this sound as good as those two aforementioned outfits. Enthral's music, as expected, is chock-full of witch-like chants, softened choir-like vocals and atmospheric keyboard, with black metal rummaging painting the backdrop to this musical canvas. With the drumming and rhythm section of the band's material offering the most diversity and uniqueness, I found myself losing grasp of Enthral's style after a listen or two. As mentioned, it's all cliche styles that we have grown accustomed to with forerunners like Emperor, Dimmu Borgir and Hecate Enthroned, who do it much better. Regardless, Enthral are an interesting outfit, albeit one that lucked out for the most part and didn't come up with enough of their own ideas to make them truly unique.

Contact: Hot Records, Pb 8805 Youngstorget, 0028 Oslo, Norway

(article published 8/7/1998)

ALBUMS
6/23/2003	X Hoose	7.5	Enthral - Subterranean Movement
6/7/1998	P Azevedo	5	Enthral - Prophecies of the Dying