It’s been a long and life-changing road for Cadaveria since last album ‘Silence’ in 2014. In fact, ‘Emptiness’ is an album that we are very lucky to have today as the former Opera IX vocalist and self-monikered artist had a long-term battle with breast cancer to contend with putting music and pretty much everything apart from thankful recovery on hold. She described her treatment as throwing her into a “surreal and even mystical dimension” losing hair just being part of it, her body literally on the verge of complete collapse. Naturally this experience has been related in part with new album ‘Emptiness’, her sixth and the single ‘Matryoshcada’ (of which she has released several on the run up to the album) has self-referential lyrics about her ordeal “There was a time when I couldn’t find myself in the mirror Then I looked into my soul and saw many pieces of me Pass by slow like in a procession Layers of me, imperfect shadows They have arrived and gone And’ll never come back home!” It’s the humbling tale of a survivor but it is also one that long term fans and listeners should ultimately rejoice over as despite everything ‘Emptiness’ is far from a glum listening experience.
Reunited with long term drummer Marçelo Santos aka Flegias from Necrodeath and the group’s bassist Peter Drayton we have 12 new songs here and an album running just under an hour. I should mention that these are not the Italian’s real names but are taken from antagonists from David Lynch’s cinematic universe, just in case you were scratching your heads. As she embarks upon this ‘Great Journey’ with rasping snarls and a thrashy backbone, riffs chugging and drums battering it’s like she has never been away. Perhaps this is more violent than earlier Gothic albums such as ‘The Shadows Madame’ but the darkness is about to be lightened. Although hungry and feral sounding there has always been a dichotomy vocally with harmonious clean vocals being as important as the gruff. The singer excels at both meaning that she plays both roles as beauty and beast without any need of accompaniment. After a boisterous and somewhat bruising start, the music varies over the duration and takes in plenty of different facets. The common denominator is that the songs will get in your head with their strong melodies whilst keeping on toes, wondering what is coming next. ‘Shamanic Path’ for instance starts with a doom-laden Sabbathian stomp, the vocal styles flirting with each other and the speed building up with some pummelling drive from the drums. By comparison the title track’s chorus gives it the lilting feel of a folk song and it’s absolutely sublime. For once I could do without the harsh vocals on this and a ‘clean version’ would be welcome but the growls are as much a part of the experience and that is not the modus-operandi here. ‘The Woman Who Fell to Earth’ may well have been conceived during a viewing of a Doctor Who episode when the composer was unable to do much else, it could have ties to Bowie, whatever derived it there’s gothic chugs, a touch of glam and that ever hopeful harmonising lifting it from the surrounding darkness. There’s even a fantastic guitar solo that could have come straight out of a Shining Sweden number and there is no shortage of stuff going on here.
The tracks flow, part gracefully, part tumultuous but all getting under the skin (and that’s without turning to the lyrics, which I feel I would prefer to have in front of me after picking up the actual CD). Thorny black metal guitars and groovy motion are furrowed out over ‘Divination’ and there’s even some licks that would sound natural on a stoner song with the aforementioned ‘Matryoshcada.’ Titles such as ‘The Cure’ and ‘Live After’ speak for themselves but the biggest message one can take from the album is that of determination, Cadaveria has come back from the brink, more determined than ever. The strength of the songs here is the evident response and it’s definitely her “turn to celebrate.” I love the rafter raising vocals and the stalk and slash of the Giallo sounding ‘La casa dell’anima.’ It’s a fist-pumper of a number which is guaranteed to go down fantastically live. I almost get my wish with ‘The Sky That Screams Above Us’ as although the vocals reach for the very stratosphere, they are mainly clean and it’s a song that sends shivers right up and down the spine. If you get the vinyl there’s a cover version Deine Lakaien song ‘Return.’ It actually reminds a bit of Lacuna Coil and I would not have known its origins unless I had been told them. It’s a track I’m glad that was included on my digital copy though and proves a good ending to an album that is not exactly a “horror metal” themed album but confronts the real horror of life in such an honest way. Thankfully it’s a story with a happy ending and hopefully there are plenty more chapters waiting to be written.
(8.5/10 Pete Woods)
Leave a Reply