Mindrot came from sunny California, but it didn't bother them for being one of the most credible bands in presenting true tedious emotions in their music. At first, this album was partly extremely inviting yet partly extremely forbidding. It was clear, that this music came from hearts of these five men. It wasn't an instant hit and I never got their second and last album 'Soul' (1998) or other stuff. And now it all is so bloody hard to be found...
During these eight years I've grown to the album. More you see in your life, more you feel. I guess I've had tedious periods in my life, but it is easy to believe I haven't seen anything truly bad when listening to 'Dawning'. The music is about depressive and stressful emotions; hate, fear, anguish, loss, yearning, loneliness, crumbling expectations. I can relate to all of them nowadays. Mindrot's metal is as varying as are the emotions in it. Funeral doom, melancholic movements and brutal death metal are the band's feelings conjured into music. Some of the music is beautiful, but not truly warm, as it shouldn't be anyways for what it pictures. Some of the music is angry, some truly clausrophobic, some off-putting. This can bring me to tears or make me bang my head violently or drown me into my thoughts. The music is wonderfully composed. It builds up like real life situations. It slowly lingers into something truly foul, it attacks violently without a warning, it goes on and on, like you really could forget something but you never will. The songs are linked with samples or sound effects, giving an impression of being one course of life.
The performance is simply perfect. It is not polished, but it has to be this way. The band is like one huge, Lovercraftian entity. Every person is one of the entity's essential organ. Vocalist Adrian Leroux portraits every emotion well. He growls, shouts and screams venomously or fearfully. Sometimes he sings about, for example, loss in brink of losing it and reminds me of David Bowie and Tom Waits. His band mates handle some backing vocals and it makes this awesome, as shouting, screaming and growling can be heard at the same time. Guitarists John Flood (also some synths) and Dan Kaufman play fragile acoustics, distorted tapestry, ripping yet thick riffing, whatever thing is suitable for any point. Bassist Matt Fisher does the same with his instrument, sometimes calmly, sometimes with distortion. Drummer Evan Kilbourne play anything from a solid rhythm to primitive, soulful beats and windchimes. The Jim Barnes production together with the band is heavy, organic and rich with a truly wide soundscape. This must be one of the heaviest album I have, both production- and emotionwise. Graphically, this utilizes an usual doom metal motif, which is cherubs accompanying a woman (three times used in these covers!), probably photographed from a tombstone or something. It is kept simple, so the music is the most important thing here. Lyrics are printed.
At first, 'Dawning' felt "partly great, partly bad", but now it has become a classic. This is one rare occasion, where the music portraits emotions perfectly. It can be heard, that 'Dawning' came from the souls of these five men, known as Mindrot. Doom and death metal utilized as they should be utilized. Such a total experience.
Rating: 9 (out of 10) ratings explained
Reviewed by Lane
12/10/2003 20:46
