ALBUM REVIEWS

To Cast A Shadow ALL ALONE INDIE DIST AND PLASTICHEAD Out Now @www.vanguard-online.co.uk Ambient doom metal!? That’s the best way I would describe ‘All Alone’ by To Cast A Shadow, it has all the atmosphere and power of their contemporaries but it with a hint of mellowness that’s gives it an almost Sunday afternoon fell rather than Saturday night. This is in no way a criticism but adds another strand to a well established genre, I should know, being a Yorkshireman, we take our misery very seriously indeed. It’s not surprising that the band hail from Norway, where music takes on a darker edge, Gunnhild Huser vocals are backed perfectly by bands moody riffs. The album kicks off with ‘Erzsebet’, a haunting melodic track that has a big chunk of Paradise Lost influence mixed with almost operatic female lead vocals. The album maintains this approach throughout the remaining tracks with track ‘All Alone’ and ‘Beast Within’ being the best on show for me but the entire album doesn’t slip from these high standards throughout. The band has managed to create a record that captures in audible form, the stark physical beauty of their homeland. I like it, it’s powerful, deep, dark and brooding and deserves its genre of Metal/Goth/Rock as it takes its lead from all three but mixes them in such a way to create something quite unique and rather good indeed. Simon Mulholland www.myspace.com/tocastashadow Email Links & Comments to the editor Check the latest album releases