Review Summary: Their band name still confuses me. And it confuses me even more than their refusal to do something just slightly different.
An Autumn for Crippled Children has now reached ten albums into their career with
Closure, and during that time they have clearly established themselves as masters in the blackgaze craft with their unique synth heavy take on this genre.
Closure is another continuation of this band's already well established sound, but this is done so well to the point that it is almost a fault.
Firstly, I want to state the number of strengths
Closure has. It’s biggest strength is the consistently well-executed atmosphere, which is created by the stellar instrumentals. The almost overbearing synths that drench the album's entire runtime with solid and sometimes trance inducing melodies are a key feature of the band's music, and this fact has not gone anywhere.
The Feels Like Dying contains the most effective synth melodies on the record, making it the easy standout here, and the closer,
Here Comes the Sorrow, adds in some of the more unique synth work of their discography, and this too includes
As the Void, as it brings in a slight symphonic element to the band's sound. While the guitar work typically takes the backseat with tremolo riffs that blend into the overall sound in order to complement the synths, it enters the spotlight in
For Tomorrow with an excellent melodic riff that boosts the effectiveness of the atmosphere.
Another strength is the vocals. While they are certainly very one note and can, at times, get very tiring, they are compelling with their emotive and forceful delivery, which creates a powerful dynamic with the instrumentals. From tracks such as
I See You… but Never Clearly to
Unable to Feel You, it is clear how much the vocals build upon the band's sound with their raw emotion that would otherwise be missing.
However, as I said before, An Autumn for Crippled Children has already established this sound on their previous records.
Closure fails at adding and progressing their style to something new and exciting, even though what it does, it does very well, but so have their past albums. The album has so little that makes it stand out amongst the band's now ten album long discography that, at points, it feels like a duplicate of their previous work.
Overall, it is clear that the well is running dry for this band and their sound. While it once was fresh, it no longer is, even if it is competently played and even if it has captivating melodies. There needs to be something new here to keep interest, but
Closure does not do this outside of a few very (and I mean very) brief moments. Despite this, it is still a fine album, and it is evident that it succeeds in what it wants to achieve.
