{"id":51222,"date":"2016-02-11T07:52:50","date_gmt":"2016-02-11T12:52:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=51222"},"modified":"2016-02-11T07:52:50","modified_gmt":"2016-02-11T12:52:50","slug":"beseech-my-darkness-darkness-cd-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2016\/beseech-my-darkness-darkness-cd-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Beseech | My Darkness, Darkness<\/em>"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Joe Mis<\/span>
\n– Sr. Columnist —<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"beseech_darkness_500\"After a significant break, pioneering Gothic Rockers Beseech have reunited and put the finishing touches on their latest dark and melancholic release entitled My Darkness, Darkness<\/em>. If the title doesn’t give you a clue, the band hails from the legendary birthplace of the darker Metal genres, Gothenburg, Sweden (well, actually Bor\u00e5s, which is very near to Gothenburg). The newly revitalized act does their home town proud, delivering a moody and doom-laden sound that is right at home in the Gothic genre.<\/p>\n

For those not familiar with the band, Beseech was founded back in 1992 by current vocalist Klas Bohlin and a few friends. They released a demo called A Lesser Kind of Evil<\/em> in November 1992. After some lineup changes (most notably the addition of guitarist and songwriter Robert Vintervind) the band released a second demo, Last Chapter<\/em> in 1994. In 1995 Beseech recorded another demo, Tears<\/em>, which led to a 1996 record deal. Despite having completed their debut album \u2026From a Bleeding Heart<\/em> in 1996, it was not officially released until 1998 due to record company problems. They released album number two, Black Emotions<\/em>, in mid-2000, followed by Souls Highway<\/em> in 2002. Bohlin left the band in 2003 but Beseech continued on, releasing Drama<\/em> in 2004, and Sunless Days<\/em> in 2005 before calling it quits. Beseech reunited in 2012 with core members Bohlin (now on vocals), guitarists Vintervind and Manne Engstr\u00f6m being joined by new members Johan \u00d6rnborg (bass), Angelina Sahlgren S\u00f6der (vocals), and H\u00e5kan Carlsson (drums). The \u201cnew\u201d Beseech has focused on strong singing with more space for harmony vocals \u2013 producing classic Gothic Rock.<\/p>\n

Beseech’s My Darkness, Darkness<\/em> is about as pure Gothic as can be. It has a modern feel to the music, but a lushness and warmth in the sound recording that gives the music an almost classic rock sound. In the band’s own words, the album \u201c…can be described as a theme of stories from a desolated borderland, where we live in symbiosis with the darkness and the light. Constantly we want to be reminded of our good deeds and bright memories, while we are silent about the diseases, tragedies and losses.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

The albums opens with a strong track, \u201cBeating Pulse,\u201d mixing acoustic and electric instrumentation over well done duet vocals. Bohlin adopts a very low-key, almost whispered delivery that comes across well during the acoustic passages but gets somewhat buried once the electrics kick in. \u201cThe Shimmering\u201d is another low key track built around the fine bass and drums of \u00d6rnborg and Carlsson. \u201cBloodline Fever\u201d is slightly more up tempo at the start, but features mellow vocal harmonies and very fluid rhythms as Bohlin trades notes with S\u00f6der. \u201cMr. Uninvited\u201d opens with a spoken passage followed by Bolhin’s somewhat plodding vocal line that contrasts nicely with light keyboard phrasings and S\u00f6der’s harmony vocals. \u201cMy Darkness, Darkness\u201d starts with twangy, brassy (almost C&W) guitars before morphing into a light and mellow rocker \u2013 one of the first tracks where Bohlin breaks out of his whisper delivery. \u201cAtmosphere\u201d is a bit murky and dark, with an almost Alternative Rock groove to it.<\/p>\n

\u201cHighwayman\u201d has a heavier feel to it thanks to a fine bass line, and the tempo finally takes an up turn on the mid-paced \u201cThe Ingredients\u201d – a track that displays S\u00f6der’s voice well. \u201cOne Last Call\u201d is a confusing song, with Goth themes and lyrics delivered over a hard rock rhythm line and alternative rock tuned bass & drums \u2013 but that mix of styles makes it the most memorable song on the album. \u201cDarksome\u201d has an old-school rock sound thanks to mixed acoustics and electrics, and a neat synth line. \u201cThe Symbol\u201d is a mid-tempo rocker that ties the album up neatlly.<\/p>\n

My Darkness, Darkness<\/em> will appeal to fans of the Gothic genres. It is a well done, polished release that puts the musical talents and ambitions of Beseech on full display. However, fans looking for something more upbeat or lively will likely be worn out by Bohlin’s near vampiric whispered vocals, the overall sluggish tempo of the tracks, and the overriding black mood. While the album holds itself together very well and presents a truly cohesive sound, a bit more variety in at least tempo would have been welcome \u2013 and more mic time for Angelina Sahlgren S\u00f6der would have spiced things up and broadened the album’s appeal.<\/p>\n

Beseech’s My Darkness, Darkness<\/em> is recommended for fans of Gothic Rock, but its appeal will not reach very far beyond the Gothic core.<\/p>\n

Genre: Gothic Rock<\/p>\n

Band:
\nKlas Bohlin (vocals)
\nAngelina Sahlgren S\u00f6der (vocals)
\nRobert Vintervind (guitar)
\nManne Engstr\u00f6m (guitar)
\nJohan \u00d6rnborg (bass)
\nH\u00e5kan Carlsson (drums)<\/p>\n

Track Listing:
\n1.\tBeating Pulse
\n2.\tThe Shimmering
\n3.\tBloodline Fever
\n4.\tMr. Uninvited
\n5.\tMy Darkness, Darkness
\n6.\tAtmosphere
\n7.\tHighwayman
\n8.\tThe Ingredients
\n9.\tOne Last Call
\n10.\tDarksome
\n11.\tThe Symbol<\/p>\n

Label: Despotz Records<\/p>\n

Website: www.beseech.se<\/a><\/p>\n

Hardrock Haven rating: 7\/10<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Joe Mis – Sr. Columnist — After a significant break, pioneering Gothic Rockers Beseech have reunited and put the finishing touches on their latest dark and melancholic release entitled My Darkness, Darkness. If the […]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":51227,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13652],"tags":[12065,2317,12067,9635,12066],"class_list":{"0":"post-51222","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arcrvws2016","8":"tag-beseech","9":"tag-cd-review","10":"tag-despotz-records","11":"tag-gothic-rock","12":"tag-my-darkness-darkness"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51222","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51222"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51222\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/51227"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51222"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51222"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51222"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}