Review by Saxy S for Deathwhite - Grey Everlasting (2022)
2024 may have been a really good year for me personally, but musically, the past year has been an enigma. I listened to a ton of new music in the alternative and progressive metal plains, including progressive death metal. As such, I found more than ever that metalcore was always being pushed forward to the top of my listening schedules. And while I doubt 2025 will be any different, my ventures into other genres of metal have become incredibly stale in recent years. So 2025 is going to be different; I am making an effort to explore more Fallen, Pit and North albums. These might not necessarily be new releases (such as today's album), but it would really help to boost up my review numbers in each of these clans. It will also serve as a great opportunity for me to declutter my back catalog!
2025 kicks off with Pittsburgh's Deathwhite. The bands 2022 album, Grey Everlasting, Deathwhite start showing signs that they are developing their own identity instead of just copying early Katatonia. It isn't a complete deviation from the sound, so fans of that 2000s gothic sound will surely find a place at home with this. But these compositions turn out to be rather forgettable. To their credit, Deathwhite does an adequate job of masking the lack of motivic development in their music through alternating sound palettes (i.e. acoustic versus electric guitar phrases). But the progressions of these songs run really flat as the vocals run monotonous, which is to be expected since the instrumentals don't modulate or grow that much at all. A key change or a modulation would have been great for the albums variety.
As for the production, I can't say that it was all for the best. Previous Deathwhite albums have many more faster passages to break up the doom-and-gloom gothic overtones. But on Grey Everlasting, they live up to that title by making that emotional reaction the mainstay. I think I heard only two blast beat grooves in the percussion on this entire forty-eight minute album, and those tracks turned into the albums highlights. Overall, this songwriting decision hurts the albums back half because it becomes very repetitive and songs like "Asunder" pay for it.
Perhaps the progressive nerd in me expected something else, even though the songwriting techniques are drastically different. I would guess that Katatonia fans will find this acceptable, especially since it is much closer to traditional doom metal than Katatonia. But I just found the album tired and frusturating.
Best Songs: Earthtomb, Quietly, Suddenly, Grey Everlasting, Formless