Style: Progressive Metal (clean vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Evergrey, Insomnium, Swallow the Sun
Review by: Francesco
Country: Finland
Release date: 08 September, 2023
Finnish progressive metal outfit Damnation Plan takes a notable departure from their previous works with The New Horizon, their third full-length album, which is defined by the exclusive use of clean vocals. While the band’s decision to explore this vocal style may be a daring move, the album falls short of delivering the depth and diversity that fans of the genre might expect.
One of the most striking issues with The New Horizon is its lack of sonic variety. Throughout the entire album, the listener is trapped in a continuous, melancholic soundscape that rarely deviates in tempo or intensity. This unvarying approach creates a peculiar sense of monotony, leaving you struggling to differentiate one track from the next. This uniformity and deliberately applied atmosphere becomes problematic when applied to the entire release.
Ostensibly a concept album, The New Horizon‘s dedication to a consistent and deliberately applied atmosphere throughout is commendable, but can be controversial when uniformity takes precedence over more inventive instrumentation as the quintet plays it safe throughout the album, seldom venturing into innovative or memorable musical territories. While there are sporadic moments of melodic riffing and intense double-kick drumming, they sometimes fail to leave a lasting impression, making it challenging for listeners to recall anything significant from the album. In a genre that thrives on its intricate instrumental prowess, the lack of memorable hooks or stand-out moments is a significant drawback – although the solo work is melodic as hell and does contain explosive moments of technicality, I wish the overall riffing had followed suit. There is also heavy atmospheric keyboard use which I find to be the MVP in the emotional worldbuilding with its heavily reverberant string patches layering ethereal minor or diminished chords over rather basic, staccato open-string riffing. Turns out they were session players.
Despite these criticisms, The New Horizon does have its merits. The clean vocals delivered by Asim Searah are undoubtedly a highlight, showcasing a range of emotions that fit well with the melancholic mood. His vocal melodies evoke a Middle-Eastern sensibility and I compare his timbre somewhat to Myrath’s vocalist Zaher. The lyrics are poetic, esoteric in nature, and creative in delivery, and display a range of emotionality that does well to impart a sense of forlorn as most of the album speaks of loneliness, abandonment, mourning, and facing new realities after some apparent astral or planetary cataclysm. The production delivers a mix that follows this new modern metal trend of hyper-clean instrument separation that allows each treble instrument to shine individually but buries the low end. I wish I could have heard the bass a little better as I find they can often do interesting things in this genre but not so much on this release. The songs flow well between one another, and although the album can feel a bit tonally droning, tracks like “Under the Veil of the Sea” and “Emotional Trials” are absolutely standout. They contain the most dynamic range, including probably the only harsh vocal phrase on the album, and are a real showcase of their songwriting ability.
Damnation Plan‘s The New Horizon is an album that shows ambition in its exploration of clean vocals but in some regards falls short in terms of diversity and innovation. While the consistent gloomy ambiance might resonate with some listeners, the album’s lack of variation and inventive instrumentation can make it a challenging listen for those seeking a more dynamic progressive metal experience. However, Damnation Plan‘s dedication to this new direction is commendable, and it will be interesting to see how they push it in the next release.
Recommended tracks: Under the Veil of Sea, Emotional Trials, The New Horizon
You may also like: Mindflow, Riverwood, Inner Vitriol
Final verdict: 7/10
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Official Website | YouTube | Facebook | Metal-Archives page
Label: Inverse Records
Band in question is:
– Asim Searah (vocals)
– Antti Lauri (lead guitars)
– Jaakko Nikko (bass)
– Jarkko Lunnas (drums)
– Kalle Niininen (rhythm guitars)
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