Review Summary: Seemingly unforgiving in it's cruel and viscous assault against the listener.
Of all the doom/death metal bands that follow like a grocery store list, November’s Doom is the satisfaction of seeing a band differentiate itself from the others, including October Tide (what’s with all the monthly band names popping up?), the Spanish rockers of Novembre, Daylight Dies, and several others. November’s Doom once established it as another Opeth rerun, but The Novella Reservoir sees them maturing into their own style.
Simplicity seems to be the gist of what this band can succeed in, and though that may sound rather dull, the band trades in past defects of character (the copycat Opeth riffs did not make them very noticeable) for its own quirks.
Poetic lyricism of desperate longing for strength in a bleak world that vocalist Paul Kuhr paints is one of the key plus sides to this group. “Rain”, which takes a death metal cue, is the introduction to this album and the title track are the best evident tracks with this trait, with lines like “Water now engulfs me, it burns my sins away / Enemy preys upon my flesh as darkness burns the sky / Surface drifting further, taken from my sight The only way to cleanse my soul, is drown my dirt with rain”.
The title track has an acoustic opening, which fades into growls of angry disappointment in the confusion of not finding something to believe in for comfort. The chorus is the pure emotional portion that blows you on your ass without mercy. An exceptional guitar riff ends the song, and “Drown The Inland Mere” kicks off. This is a great song in its own right, but compared to the rest of the album it fails with some flat-sounding singing in the chorus of the song.
“Twilight Innocence” is a love-ballad that lets you realize for a moment that you have pissed your pants and there’s snot hanging from your nose. Its tender acoustic guitar picking with the addition of Paul’s baritone vocals add an admirable touch that will make you think of your ex for quite a while.
“The Voice Of Failure” kicks off the rest of the record into brutality, giving you no chance for breathing room again. The last three songs are highlights as well, which makes practically no filler. However, some of these songs are better off listened to individually, since the album has a little trouble gracefully flowing at certain points. That’s a minor criticism, and I think that there will not be many of those even after hearing this The Novella Reservoir from this band. Congratulations November’s Doom, you’re no longer Opeth’s little brother. You are now men who can stand alongside bands like Opeth and make them honored to be an influence on you.
Happy Thanksgiving.
