Tiamat - Clouds (1992)^{Release ID: 880}

Tiamat's evolution began as a straightforward death metal band, then moved through to soft death doom metal, and finally onto the goth pop that they currently release to the masses. Clouds is certainly a transitional album between the rather average death metal of the early days and the more doomy, atmospheric period of Wildhoney. If there's one word I can use for this album straight off, I would say intriguing. There are some beautiful melodies, catchy choruses and a variety of styles within almost every track. Keyboards are used sparingly and quite well too, adding to the atmosphere of it all. But probably due to its transitional nature, Clouds often comes across as awkward and at times downright cringeworthy.

It probably doesn't help that I first came to Tiamat through Wildhoney, which is an exquisite album that manages to mix atmospheric, tender sections with doomy riffs and growls with ease. Clouds doesn't manage this mix as well, with below average vocals (Johan Edlund's clean vocals are just not very good at this stage and his accent comes across as just humorous at times) and some very mediocre sections mixed in with all the above-mentioned creativity. All of this adds up to an inconsistent, yet somehow entertaining experience. In a Dream, The Sleeping Beauty and Undressed are the better tracks on the album, but all the remaining tunes have their moments.

Final Note: I'm a bit baffled as to why so many RYM users keep labelling this as Death Metal. Don't be fooled into thinking this sounds anything like Obituary or Deicide etc. It's Death Doom Metal mixed with Gothic Metal. At the most, Death Metal might be listed as a secondary genre but that's even a stretch.

Swedish metal stalwarts Taimat have gone through a number of musical transformations over the years & it depends on your musical taste & background as to which you prefer. Personally, I’ve always favoured Tiamat’s mid-90’s gothic releases with 1994’s “Wildhoney” being their clear pièce de résistance. Their 1997 fifth album “A Deeper Kind of Slumber” saw them moving away from metal altogether with most of that record favouring a progressive goth rock sound over the band’s more sinister roots but it was still a very strong release in its own right. Tiamat’s pre-“Wildhoney” albums tend to be a little more divisive though & not without justification either.

Tiamat’s 1990 debut album “Sumerian Cry” took more of a death metal direction which didn’t do much for me to be honest but its follow-up “The Astral Sleep” was a doomier affair that was where the band started to becoming interesting to me with 1992’s third album “Clouds” seeing Taimat moving even further down that rabbit hole. Ben & I owned “Clouds” on CD back in the day & I remember quite liking it but it wasn’t a release that I’ve returned to all that often which is likely more of a reflection on just how strong Tiamat’s next two albums would turn out to be than anything else. It’s been decades since I last investigated “Clouds” though so I was looking forward to refreshing my memory a bit this week.

Although “Clouds” is generally touted as being a doom/death release, I’ve never agreed with that sentiment. As a death metal musician myself, I can tell you that there’s bugger-all genuine death metal on the album. Even the vocals of rhythm guitarist Johan Edlund don’t come close to anything particularly deathly, instead taking the form of an awkward hybrid of clean & growly styles. There’s not much that resembles death metal in the instrumentation either other than some sporadic up-tempo parts that seem to have been haphazardly inserted into the tracklisting at random intervals, a feature that I regard as the clear weakness of “Clouds” as an album. Actually, I’d go so far as to say that the best moments on “Clouds” are when Tiamat completely leave their past behind & forge ahead with their newer influences which results in an attractive brand of gothic doom metal that offers a lot more crossover appeal than the band’s earlier works.

The production job & instrumental performances are very good for the time with the riffs possessing a thick, tight & completely unified tone that takes a great deal of influence from classic Celtic Frost. The lead guitar work of Thomas Petersson is of a high quality & shows him to not only possess some pretty reasonable chops but also to have a good ear for melody. Edlund’s vocals are the clear talking point for those that dislike “Clouds” though & it’s not hard to see why as he’s not the most talented front man you’ve ever heard but I find that I can accept him for what he is & get on with enjoying the album most of the time.

The eight-song tracklisting is pretty consistent with only the very ordinary “Smell of Incense” failing to maintain my interest. Doomy closer “Undressed” is the clear highlight for me personally as it possesses a wonderful atmosphere that engulfs the listener &, in doing so, has gone on to become a genuine classic from my teenage years. Opener “In A Dream” & the one-two punch of “A Caress of Stars” & “The Sleeping Beauty” are also very solid with only those annoying accelerated bursts I mentioned earlier managing to taint Tiamat’s good work. I really enjoy the use of keyboards which provide further melodic support for the heavy riffs & give the album a dreamy feel that would foresee the direction the band would take on their next record.

Much like “The Astral Sleep”, I find “Clouds” to be a generally entertaining listen but I can’t say that I feel like returning to it all that often. It certainly contains some pretty solid material to sift through for inclusion in your weekend playlist (particularly if you’re into bands like Paradise Lost, Katatonia & Lake of Tears) but it lacks enough genuine highlights to see it becoming a regular fixture when I feel like reaching for Tiamat as the next two albums simply feel superior. Now that I’m discussing all these old records though, it’s made me realise that I haven’t heard anything Tiamat have released since “A Deeper Kind of Slumber” so perhaps I should rectify that at some stage.

Finally, I get around to Tiamat after several decades of somehow missing (or simply not remembering) them. Picking them up when firmly in their death/doom phase on Clouds I find an album that should – on paper at least – appeal to me. Hearing those gloomy riffs and b-movie horror synthesisers on opening track In A Dream certainly seems to indicate that I will enjoy this and…WAIT, WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?? That voice, is that Stephen Hawking saying, “in a dream”? That can’t be planned right? The tape has gotten mixed up with an audiobook somewhere on the production line surely.

Joking aside, after a few listens at least, the odd vocal delivery of the chorus line on the opening track retains some quirky value at least. If I am honest, the whole of Clouds has some vocal challenges for me in the sense that I find Johan Edlund to be a lazy sounding vocalist. I get that he is supposed to sound full of despair and hopelessness, but I find that he just sounds like he cannot be bothered in all honesty. His vocals appear to be an afterthought on most tracks, like they somehow forgot to record them with everything else and then had to track them at the last minute.

Luckily, there are some merits to the instrumentation to note that manage to detract away from Edlund’s half-hearted efforts. The guitars have a suitably mournful tone to them, and the use of keyboards is applied well to tracks to give a real depth to that gloomy atmosphere. It is not difficult upon hearing Clouds to understand how Tiamat moved onto their more gothic climes in latter years. The melancholic elements on the record lack any grandiosity overall but certainly hark to a more emotional performance than a mere death/doom vibe.

A Caress of Stars might be the better of the tracks on offer here with its patient and enveloping growth, torturing the listener by offering no real crescendo in the end albeit that the promise of such is hinted at in the song structure. If you can cope with Edlunds vocals, then Clouds is an album that rewards you for sticking with it as it continually delivers on a dank level of comforting consistency as it slopes its way over eight tracks. The drums are really striking throughout the album and have a chunky edge to them that gives them a real strong presence in proceedings. There isn’t anything particularly standout about them in terms of technicality, they just hit the spot consistently well.

The mood of the album is its ultimate triumph. To be able to provide something – anything – to distract from those vocals is a tall order to deliver, and Tiamat thankfully could rely on their musicianship to save what would otherwise have been a real struggle for this pair of ears to get through.