Sacramentum - Far Away From the Sun (1996)^{Release ID: 2691}

Fills the gap left by Dissection's absence but doesn't match the quality or consistency of the Swedish legends.

It’s almost impossible not to make comparisons to Dissection when discussing Sacramentum. The way the band mix melodic yet frosty tremolo riffs, raspy black metal vocals and death metal drumming is straight out of the book that Jon Nödtveidt and co. wrote some three years earlier. The only thing missing from Sacramentum’s sound that would complete the replication is the acoustic interludes that were found throughout The Somberlain and as bookends to the classic Storm of the Light’s Bane. The suggestion that the band merely copied an already successful template is not helped by the fact that vocalist Nisse Karlén sounds almost the same as Mr Nödtveidt. All this being said, I’m a firm believer that you can’t get too much of a good thing, and with Dissection not able to produce anything of note after those first two albums (due to incarceration, then commercialisation and then suicide), Sacramentum taking over the reins seems if anything to be extraordinarily good timing. The question that remains of course is whether Far Away from the Sun can match the heights of its obvious influence.

Many fans out there are adamant that the answer to the question above is yes, with many suggesting that it in fact surpasses it. I don’t agree, but that’s not to say that it doesn’t have a lot to offer to fans of melodic black metal. There’s no doubt that this album has some seriously great music and the spirit is where it needs to be from start to finish, but there are a few areas where it doesn’t quite keep up the high standard, making Far Away From the Sun just as far away from Storm of the Light’s Bane. On the positive side, the riffs are absolutely gold throughout the album. It takes a little while for them to sink in (my first couple of listens where a bit underwhelming) but Karlén is a master craftsman of dark, atmospheric melodies and once they get under your skin they refuse to let go. The album doesn’t mess around at all, being a purely metal affair that’s gloriously malevolent and brutal. It undoubtedly succeeds in creating the majestic atmosphere that black metal bands of this style are aiming for.

On the negative side, the drumming is noticeably average at times. When Nicklas Rudolfsson blasts away it’s all perfectly adequate, but whenever he drops the speed his style is distractingly mediocre. It reminds me of Vinterland’s Welcome My Last Chapter for this reason more than any other, as that melodic black metal album also has great death metal style blast beats that are let down by strangely off beats at regular intervals. I also feel that the album doesn’t really take off until the cracking fifth track Cries from a Restless Soul. The first few tracks are decent enough, but the middle section onwards has a consistently excellent quality leaving the album somewhat bottom heavy. Yet while Far from the Sun can’t quite match the polish and consistency of the already-mentioned-too-many-times album above, it’s one that admirably fills the gap left by Dissection’s absence, and I’ll give it a spin every now and then for sure. Highlight tracks are Cries from a Restless Soul, Obsolete Tears and Beyond All Horizons.

Aggressive. That's all I could think of when listening to this album. I guess there is an underlying melody as well and that helps from keeping the onslaught to be repetitive and monotonous but after being bombarded throughout my listens as this being a "melodic" black metal record was not on my mind. I'm still a noob to this style and all these new albums I learn more and more about myself and what music can be. I've started my more extreme metal journey from melodic death metal and I don't find much similarities to this and In Flames or Dark Tranquility. However, besides melo-death I did listen to hardcore such as early Thrice and AFI and they did use that melodic style along the aggressiveness. 

This is still pure black metal, yet maybe the most aggressive I've heard. It's dark and foreboding, yet violent. At 46 minutes, this is a quick and headbanging listen. May as well say an "easy" listen considering everything because there is nothing terribly difficult in the sense of crazy time signature changes or a bad production. For a 1996 release the production is quite solid, not to the point of oversaturation and too clean but makes the sound hit the ears as I believe intended. Not drowned out like some early black metal went for either, but one of raw power. 

The quite opposite of the atmospheric style, but one that is appreciated. Although it doesn't have the same vibe, it still feels like your just on a different layer of hell then one of depression and bleakness but one of violence and unease.

In terms of melodic black metal as a sub genre you could probably count the bands included up on one hand or certainly label them as a cross between BM and melodic DM. We aren't talking the symphonic stabbings of Emperor here we are talking about the retention of the bleakness and the harsh coldness of traditional BM but adding accessibility with effective use of melody that although was key to the sound, did not water down the whole too much. This record combines the familiar bleak atmosphere of BM with some marauding melodies, but also contains some sterling instrumentation to boot.

From the off it is clear that "Far Away From The Sun" is different. There's no (mandatory) cold wind or crackling fire in a blizzard intro here, nope opening track "Fog's Kiss" just charges straight in and immediately sets out its stall of structured riffs and progressive melodies as it plods and jars its way through nearly 5 minutes of perfection. Blink and you will miss the move into track 2, "Far Away From The Sun" as the soaring melody from the end of the opening track blends seamlessly to begin the title track. Dripping in dense and unshakeable atmosphere from the beginning to the end the album is all held together by a perfect arrangement of rhythms, laid with such precision and thought it is a pleasure to listen to.

The galloping rush that starts "When Night Surrounds Me" is breathtaking but there is no time for recovery as Nisse's evil voice echoes around you like wraiths whispering in both of your ears at the same time. They tell of a darkness that will be all enclosing, that will spare none from it's path. "When Night Surrounds Me" has the capacity to make you believe 11am is 11pm such is the dark emotion that writhes within its varied and ravaging 6 minutes. Also here you start to notice (well if you have ears you will have already noticed) the superb performance going on at the skins. Nicklas Rudolfsson plays every bit of his kit on "Far Away From The Sun" and plays every possible, fill, blastbeat and pattern whilst he does so. His drumming is the rumbling stomach of a hungry giant, the scaffold poles and posts to the rising structures that unfold on the album but also the furious warrior galloping across the battlefield slaying all in his path.

To be able to balance all that melody alongside the intense rush and sweeping majesty of the furious BM takes talent and it is a very well produced album across all 9 tracks. You never feel any let up in intensity throughout the album and with each listen you pick up something you missed before. It is recorded proof of beauty in dark places, of order in chaos and of variety in rhythmic familiarity.