Approch Agalloch with a very open mind.
Coming from Portland, Oregon, their beutiful lyrics are mostly nature inspired. Agalloch is what I like to describe a Folk Progressive Black/Doom Metal band. They can remind you of a large span of artists, including Opeth and Ulver.
Pale Folklore is one of the best debut albums ever made. Actually, one of the best albums ever made. Be ready for a dark, depressing, winding, emotional, and ambitious journey.
As you listen to this CD, the tracks revolve around eachother. You cannot listen to individual tracks. It would be like opening a book at a random page. You don't know what the balls is going on. I am listening to this over and over again on iTunes, and you would hardly know that the song has changed. I could not do a track-by-track, as it would never do the songs a bit of justice. Alas, they each represent one huge journey through Portland's wilderness.
Pale Folklore is one beast to be reckoned with, never to be underestimated. It compares to
The Mantle in a very good way. There is not many differences. Agalloch kick off an amazing and beautiful career with
Pale Folklore. There is no filler track within this entitiy. As I mentioned, it all revolves around eachother. Same with the riffage. The licks appear in other tracks to commend how much this work of art flows. Another note is that the licks are mostly in moderate tempo, maintaining a staggering beat around the journey. You can find yourself headbanging, moping, or even crying to the dark feel and build of
Pale Folklore. You could feel yourself slipping away.
The musical scene has hardly ever saw such a diverse band. Agalloch's songs flow beautifully, there are clean vocals with beautiful acoustic passages, raspy black metal vocals, female opera vocals, piano, samples, and very emotionaly riffing. I cannot name all of the feats that this band posseses. The vocals span from such different types. It fills the listener with awe. Agalloch gives a breath of life into a wide span of musical genres. When you listen to
Pale Folklore, you can hardly expect what to happen next.
The musician's aren't virtusos, a little side note. But their songwriting exceed's superb. Another awe-inspiring feat is the lyrics. They could beat Opeth with their lyrics (on another note, on this album the lyrics mostly invole 'Sol' or the sun). They also lack that repitition that make you say, "When will it ever end?". Whoever did the production should be credited. It's raw, yet the bass should be louder. Sit down for the almost exact 60 minutes it plays. One hour. Let the creativity, crushing riffing, amazing lyrics, beautiful songwriting, and many other feats sweep you away.
I feel like I am in one of the best soundscapes ever recorded. You can almost feel like you're on a winding journey through the wilderness. A very moist and rainy atmosphere, which can be almost seen on the cover of their newer album,
The Mantle. I reccomend this album to many people.
Pale Folklore gets a
solid 5/5. A beautiful atmosphereic and melancholy trip.
I reccomend this to fans of;
Isis
Ulver
Explosions In The Sky (On a side note, Agalloch does sound a little like post-rock)
Neurosis
Pelican
Fields of the Nephilim
Cult of Luna
Opeth
Katatonia
My Dying Bride
Swallow The Sun
Line-up for Pale Folklore includes;
J. Haughm " Vocals / guitars
S. Breyer " Drums
L. Anderson " Guitars
J. Willian W. " Bass
