Chthonic
Relentless Recurrence


1.5
very poor

Review

by ApplicationToHeaven USER (7 Reviews)
January 26th, 2013 | 19 replies


Release Date: 2002 | Tracklist

Review Summary: Generic

Symphonic black metal has always been an extremely unappealing genre for me. Every band I’ve heard labelled as such seem to be subpar songwriters who rely on gimmicks such as cheesy synths and ‘operatic’ female vocals. However various things about Chthonic gave me an inclination they might be different. For instance, they apparently incorporate elements from their Taiwanese culture; however on this album it seems these were minimal – with their ‘trademark Erhu’ not making a notable appearance.

So without the traditional Taiwanese instruments Chthonic are known for incorporating all that is left is very bland and artificial metal. The album isn’t redeemed by the musicianship either, with the majority of the guitarwork consisting of uninspired chugging riffs and generic tremolo picking. However, in the album’s defence there are some fairly enjoyable solos here and there. The two most interesting tracks on the album happen to be instrumentals which are both under 3 minutes, which considering the album clocks in at just short of an hour shows how uninteresting the bulk of the album is. The usual suspects of symphonic black metal are prominent throughout the album, with almost all of the songs featuring the cheesy synths that are a trademark of the genre. The vocals are fairly abysmal as well –mostly comprised of extremely irritating, feeble sounding shouts and coarse growls. Although it may seem redundant to complain about bad production in a black metal review, considering this is more in the ‘technical’ realm of the genre, I’d have high expectations in terms of sound quality, however I find the album is very clustered in places, with layers of guitars, synths and vocals all forming an incoherent mess.

So overall I found this album to be very uninteresting, the lacklustre musicianship combined with the bad production, as well as the sheer length of the album made for an unenjoyable listen.



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user ratings (31)
3.1
good


Comments:Add a Comment 
ApplicationToHeaven
January 26th 2013


1566 Comments

Album Rating: 1.0

my first negative review

Shuyin
January 26th 2013


14924 Comments

Album Rating: 3.0

small but good review



pos'd even tho i totally disagree with your opinion

BallsToTheWall
January 26th 2013


51216 Comments


Band is a one hit wonder.

anarchistfish
January 26th 2013


30310 Comments


they have two good albums

this is one of them

linguist2011
January 26th 2013


2656 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

Good review, and just long enough. I believe that Chthonic are a love/hate band in the genre of symphonic black metal, just like COF and Dimmu Borgir. Even though the vocals are slightly irritating for me on this particular album I really do like the direction they were taking here. You're right in saying that when bands who largely depend on folk instruments or traditional instrumentation go for a more "straightforward" approach (without those instruments) the music tends to go a bit bland. I don't think that's the case here, but you certainly put forward your argument well.

DarkNoctus
January 26th 2013


12200 Comments


I believe that Chthonic are a love/hate band in the genre of symphonic black metal, just like COF and Dimmu Borgir.


wish people would stop saying that considering i don't love or hate any of the bands you describe

as for the review you don't really describe the album at all, all i deduced from this is that it was symphonic black metal and that's literally it. you're going to have to expand on your points to get my vote.

ApplicationToHeaven
January 26th 2013


1566 Comments

Album Rating: 1.0

I realise this review isn't particularly good, but I only reviewed it because it was assigned to me in that review a random album thing. I know very little about the genre so I wasn't really able to make comparisons to other bands. And in terms of describing the album, I struggled simply because the album does nothing for me, and nothing in the album grabbed my attention. I wouldn't have posted a review but I thought it would be worse of me to not follow through with writing the review, than to write a mediocre review. That said, I might put myself through another listen and try to augment the review with a bit more depth.

DarkNoctus
January 26th 2013


12200 Comments


that description was more descriptive than the entirety of your review

i mean fine if it was just for fun but if it's not a serious review it probably should have been posted on a blog or something otherwise it will be scrutinised

ApplicationToHeaven
January 26th 2013


1566 Comments

Album Rating: 1.0

"that description was more descriptive than the entirety of your review"



Ha yeah my writing abilities seem to fall apart when I try to actually write something



but no to clear up why I wrote this, there was a game where we submit an album in the database that doesn't have a review, and that album is assigned to another user who has to review it





DarkNoctus
January 26th 2013


12200 Comments


fair enough then [:

linguist2011
January 26th 2013


2656 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

"wish people would stop saying that considering i don't love or hate any of the bands you describe"



Obviously I don't mean that people literally Love or hate this band in a serious way, just that they seem to be the bands that are criticized the most in this particular genre. I like all three bands anyway, so just putting it out there...



FrozenVain
January 26th 2013


3043 Comments


lol generic is not a word

ApplicationToHeaven
January 26th 2013


1566 Comments

Album Rating: 1.0

?

Colliiiin
January 26th 2013


789 Comments


Band's profile pic on main band page is fucking hilarious. Do they always look that ridiculous?

linguist2011
January 26th 2013


2656 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

They always dress themselves up like that. I saw them at Bloodstock last year and, even though it was broad daylight, they still looked as frosty as a Christmas morning.

WeepingBanana
January 26th 2013


11387 Comments


alright review dude, but mad respect for trudging through the album that was assigned to you, even if you didn't like it. better than complaining like some of the pussies who are playing. have a pos for being able to commit

Killerhit
January 26th 2013


6016 Comments


Accusing a cheap album of being cheap is an easy game to play, my friend.

Good review nonetheless

omnipanzer
January 28th 2013


21827 Comments


There is nothing worse than forcing yourself through an album you can't bring yourself to enjoy and
then forcing yourself to produce 400 (give or take) words on the subject. I thought your description
was adequate, I feel I have a pretty good idea of what this probably sounds like.

POS

Hawks
August 8th 2018


87071 Comments


This thread/review sucks but the album doesn’t so m/.



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