Pain of Salvation
Panther


4.5
superb

Review

by Alex C. USER (6 Reviews)
August 28th, 2020 | 165 replies


Release Date: 2020 | Tracklist

Review Summary: How does it feel to be you?

I have to be honest: I have had a phobia for pouncing feline covers since Shining’s Animal turned out to be one of the worst duds in the history of duds. However, judging a book by its cover is never a good idea, especially when the book is written by Pain of Salvation - or ‘Remedy Lane’ would never have gotten the critical praise it got, and ‘One Hour by the Concrete Lake’ would have been left to rot in your local record store’s warehouse shelf – let’s be serious it's not like the band has its ‘forte’ on the imagery side. Alas – let the music speak, dear Sputnik, let the music speak.

And boy, it does.

It all starts with ‘Accelerator’, first single off the disc and preview of yet another major turn in the Swedes’ melodic arsenal; a newborn love affair with dystopian synths and off-balance drum beats (the malicious might say "weirdly produced") melted with the traditional “humanity bad, out of the norm good” lyrical doctrine already touched in multiple occasions and the classic iconic belting of the band’s mastermind, Daniel Gildenlöw, still one of the the top dogs (aehm, panthers) of the lyrical Metal landscape (the song final crescendo is a definite proof, if any was needed).

While this new mix may not appeal to all of the already quite tested fanbase of Pain of Salvation, it actually provides a breath of fresh air to their compositions. Tracks such as ‘Unfuture’, with its slow and captivating stride reminiscent of the ‘Be’ days, get a new layer of complexity and novelty through the added electronics, that do not however denature the broody and soulful atmospheres the group is known for. In ‘Restless Boy’, the band takes all the gimmicks above and cranks them up to the max, crafting an absolute bomb of a track; the added electronic ‘oompf’ on the drums in the third act of the track, with their glitchy double bass pattern, oozes of originality and will probably lead you to some of your most awkward headbanging sessions of 2020.

Counterpoint to the electronic madness of the first three tracks is the magnificent ‘Wait’; the song is opened by a melodic combo of piano and guitar, of a quality that harkens back to the best melodies of ‘Remedy Lane’. It is arguably the highest emotional point of the disc, with Daniel’s pen etching the story of seeing someone you love move on, and the desperate attempts that might ensue to change ourselves in a drastic fashion while life goes on and you are still there, stuck. The added “beating of the clock”-sounding synths providing again an additional layer to the song and echoing the lyrics that just work fantastically.

Thematically, the disc was panned to be a little bit too much on the "holier than thou" side based off the three singles. Title-track ‘Panther’, with its rap verses and cheesy chorus being the main culprit here (but I dare you to not sing it out loud – it is infectious). But on a more careful read of songs such as the aforementioned ‘Wait’ and ‘Keen to a Fault’, the themes touched add a potential more compelling key of deciphering who Panthers truly are: they are not those scoffing at the world, but rather those that are forgotten, misinterpreted, that do not understand modern day's inner workings and are suffering because of it.

These themes are further touched in ‘Species’ (a spiritual successor to ‘Idiocracy’ and ‘Flame to the Moth’, with its arabesque melodies and "f**k the world" lyrical tones) and in the closing ‘Icon’, yet another fantastic power ballad in the band’s catalogue, slowly developing with its brooding atmosphere and a delicate piano melody weaving the ever-changing choruses. Its lengthy crescendo is enriched by a guitar solo and a lyrical nostalgia that few bands can describe so well with sound – it is an apt ending to the disc and flows so well you will not believe, when the last aggressive refrain and second dissonant guitar solo ends, that it lasted thirteen damn minutes.

‘Panther’ showcases that Pain of Salvation can still meticulously craft melodies that inspire thought provoking ideas, as they have aimed and succeeded to do throughout the almost thirty years of the band's existence – it is a wonderful work dedicated to all that recognize themselves as “the outsiders, the diagnosed, the medicated, the hungry, the sad, the ones walking around daily trying to understand how to fit in with this species, with this era”. And with 2020 objectively being one of the worst years in the post World War reality, it quite succeeds in describing how it feels to be us.



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user ratings (233)
3.8
excellent

Comments:Add a Comment 
LunaticSoul
August 28th 2020


2414 Comments

Album Rating: 4.5

I know some staff review will come in a few days, but after having spent 6 hours or so in the woods listening to this, I kinda felt like I had to write how it made me feel a little bit.



All corrections are kindly appreciated, I re-read it loads of times but boy I haven't written a review in five years or so. Heck, seven if we count "a review in English".

GhostB1rd
August 28th 2020


7938 Comments


Didn't care for the opener then that riff on Unfuture hit and floored me.

Ryus
August 28th 2020


37886 Comments


you can stop now

JDubb
August 28th 2020


1388 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

Excited to listen to this!

OmairSh
August 28th 2020


17728 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off

Going to check sooooon



Of course you reviewed it first Lunatic ;)

kzy
August 29th 2020


127 Comments

Album Rating: 3.0 | Sound Off

enjoying the acoustic session on this album

"Wait" is my Favorite track so far.



it's really a bit Vague to understand how Glidenlow feel on making an understandable lyrics.



nothing more, nothing less

ksoflas
August 29th 2020


1444 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

Ace review, need more listens to grade the album.

3,5 to 4 probably.

Beardog
August 29th 2020


5362 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

Hyped to hear this

LunaticSoul
August 29th 2020


2414 Comments

Album Rating: 4.5

Of course you reviewed it first Lunatic ;)





After someone stealing the honor of doing Martin Grech's I kinda had to run for this tehe.



I have a couple more reviews coming in I think of some obscure modern prog

Mythodea
August 29th 2020


7457 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0 | Sound Off

Oh, hi, didn't realize this was reviewed!



Edit: great review, actually find many of my thoughts put in words here, alas not all ofc, but I would be willing to rate this with a 4.





qwenta
August 29th 2020


817 Comments

Album Rating: 4.5

Great album. I've enjoyed most of it but still have to give it more listenings.

First three songs are so weird sounding, love It. Restless boy is amazing.

Maybe it will be a 4.5 but not for now.

Mythodea
August 29th 2020


7457 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0 | Sound Off

Restless Boy's lyrics have a weird story behind them. Daniel wanted to record some melodies and without having any actual new lyrics, he took a verse from Full Throttled Tribe's cutting floor, that's why they are repeated throughout. Then, when there was really nothing to song, he'd sing "This is just a Test", and he was so satisfied with the result, he didn't change anything for the mastering.



If you could add the link to the interview (https://metalinjection.net/interviews/restless-boy-a-chat-with-pain-of-salvation-mastermind-daniel-gildenlow), he sheds some precious light over the recording process.

kalkwiese
August 29th 2020


10591 Comments

Album Rating: 4.5 | Sound Off

Love it. PoS are truly a unique band

SuperPotato
August 29th 2020


20 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

First half of "Wait" is stunning!

InFlamesWeThrash666
August 29th 2020


10582 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

t/t is the best Korn track

ChaoticVortex
August 29th 2020


1616 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

PoS is back on track again. Kinda lost them around Road Salt, but they're dropping bangers again.

qwenta
August 29th 2020


817 Comments

Album Rating: 4.5

WAIT is sooooo good.

Beardog
August 29th 2020


5362 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

The rhythms are very weird on the first tracks. Ballads are very nice, and I loved 'Icon'. This really needs more listens though, surely. The production lacks a bit of energy in places, but atleast it's dynamic and organic.

nightbringer
August 29th 2020


2755 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

I haven't connected with a PoS album for a little while. Not sure whether this will ultimately change that but I've definitely been coming back for more spins.

GhostB1rd
August 29th 2020


7938 Comments


Closer is amazing.



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