Veni Domine - Material Sanctuary


Year of Release: 1995
Label: Thunderload/Massacre Records
Catalog Number: n/a
Format: CD
Total Time: 65:42:00

While this review is mainly about the previous release Fall Babylon Fall, Larry also comments on this release:

I am not a big fan of doom metal ........ however, I'll make exceptions once in awhile when it comes to Veni Domine or Solitude Aeturnus ......... One of the bigger disc hunts I've gone on is Veni Domine's Fall Babylon Fall....... it took me months to find a second-hand copy, and wouldn't you know that 3 months later, they re-release it, and even add a bonus track to the disc ........ this is always my luck, spending months on end tracking down hard-to-find discs, and then seeing it re-appear months later re-mastered, extra tracks, or something nicer than what I got .........

However, I am very happy to have ended up with their Fall Babylon Fall disc before they re-released it, because it is one hell of a disc ....here is why:

THE STYLE:

Fall Babylon Fall - melodic semi-doom metal ........ while the band is typically considered doom metal, Fall is actually some heavy, melodic power metal that sounds like doom metal because of the sometimes slow, plodding riffs, but Material Sanctuary is the disc that gives them their true moniker of doom, but its also one hell of a progressive disc as well ....... Fall is my favorite of the two because it is much warmer and accessible and moves along at a faster pace ...... Material plods along very slow, plodding and much heavier than Fall ........... Material Sanctuary has some huge, open, epic sounds with choruses, chants, etc while Fall concentrates on equally long songs, but the melodies are the stand out here versus the added doomy attractions of Material ..........

THE BAND:

A 4-piece standard, consisting of guitar, bass, drums and singer ...... the heavy guitar dominates the sound, with its slow, plodding, raw sound mixed in with some eerie backing synths that really make you want to turn out the lights and listen to this one .......

THE SINGER:

The highlight of my life ......... one of the top 3 singers that I know of that resembles Geoff Tate the most ........ only this guy (Fredrick Ohlsson) stays constantly up in the high range, while all the time remaining very clear in his words ....... basically, if you ever wanted to know what Geoff Tate sounded like singing melodic doom, this is the band that will cure your curiosity ........

THE PRODUCTION:

Excellent ...... very raw guitar, although very clear, not muddled like a lot of doom bands muddle their guitar sound..... this sound is a very clean, heavy, plodding one ........ the interesting thing about this particular sound is that the guitar is rarely, if ever, overdubbed, and its basically what you hear is what you get ..... I didn't hear much overdubbing except on the lead parts, and even then there isn't much lead work, this band concentrates on lyrical content, and strictly a natural sound to bring the epic stories to you .......... The drum work is very well done, with a typical tinny snare drum sound, most likely the natural sound of the drum versus any recording help that mioght make the drum sound a little more made up (which I actually like, but this works well) ....

THE LYRICS:

It's Christian Metal, for sure, but nothing like the preachy, long winded lyrics that sometimes get forced down our throats in a preachy manner .... this band is more determined to teach us about Biblical events rather than teach us to believe in God ........ very well done in my book ...........

THE COMMENTS:

My favorite of the two discs is Fall Babylon Fall, only because of its melodic warmth, almost defying you to call this a doom metal disc ......... its really more (again) of a melodic power metal disc with doomy undertones ..... the songs on each disc are very long, clocking in between 6-8 minutes for Fall, and between 8-12 for Material Sanctuary ........... Both discs are very well done, and its a matter of taste as to which one you might like better ..... Fall Babylon Fall is much more warm , melodic and accessible ........... Material Sanctuary is much more plodding, heavier, progressive and doomy ........ Once again, the shining point is the singer, who is a dead ringer for Geoff Tate ...........

I understand that they are working on a new disc release for November ......... The Lasers Edge has Material Sanctuary at the cheapest price I have ever seen it .......... I believe he has or is getting the re-issued Fall Babylon Fall with an extra track ......... I won't say what I paid for my copy, but I'm sure that The Lasers Edge will have it at the lowest price ever ...............


Tracklisting:
The Meeting (8:41) / Ecclesiastes (9:30) / Material Sanctuary (7:20) / Ritual Of The Sinner (7:27) / The Mass (5:29) / Behold The Signs (8:14) / Wrath Of The Lion (6:49) / Beyond The Doom (10:00) / Baroque Moderns (2:12)

Musicians:
Fredrik Ohlsson - lead vocals, baccking vocals, acoustic guitar, 11 string alto guitar
Torbj?rn Weinesj? - lead guitar, acoustic guitar, backing vocals
Tomas Weinesj? - drums
Magnus Thorman - bass
Mats Lidbrandt - keyboards
Maria Thunquist - flute
Members from the Choirs Veritas & Cantus

Discography:
Fall Babylon Fall (1992/1997)
Material Sanctuary (1995)
Spiritual Wasteland (1998)
III-The Album Of Labour (2004)

Genre: Progressive-Power Metal

Origin SE

Added: July 25th 1999
Reviewer: Larry "LarryD" Daglieri

Artist website: www.venidomine.com
Hits: 2536
Language: english

  

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