Cryhavoc - Pitch-Black Blues (1999)

While I wasn't so hot on Cryhavoc's debut Sweetbriers (other than the cover), Pitch-Black Blues feels a little closer to what I had inwardly hoped for when I saw all the comparisons to their fellow Finns Sentenced. Granted, this isn't quite so much in the ballpark of my Amok, my personal favorite from that band, but the music resembles its own successor Down a lot, only with a rougher vocal approach that falls somewhere in between the two frontmen for that other band. Also, what the fuck is with this band and having chicks covered in sheets? Granted, this one isn't nearly as alluring as its predecessor, but is that some weird fetish of the bandmembers? Had this band continued beyond just the two discs, would we have been treated to other female forms wrapped up in tarps, tapestries, carpets, bearskins, silly string?

Pitch-Black Blues trounces the debut album in most categories, the most important being the superior production and the catchier songwriting. If you know their countrymen then you know this, it's melodic, accessible heavy metal given a slightly Goth edge by the grain of the vocalist and the general mood and seriousness of the riffing. The mix here is clear and potent, giving us everything from the smooth grooves to the bass, the snap of the percussion to a rich and full guitar tone which isn't too heavily distorted but perfect for this style. A number of the chord progressions and arrangements of the tunes here seem actually like later day Amorphis, so if you're into the Tomi years this is a gem you too might want to check out, it's kind of wedged between these two other, better-known Finnish bands...

And that might be half the reason that people didn't flock to it much, since you were getting these components better written elsewhere. Although this album is arguably better produced than Down, I think the songwriting over there was a bit more memorable, that's not to dump on Cryhavoc, because every time I listen to this one I'm engaged well enough by tunes like "The Wind" or "Metamorphosis", but they don't stick around much beyond that, where on some autumnal or snowy day I will reflect back on my favorite Sentenced stuff often. This is 100% the first contact point for this band, though, skip its mediocre predecessor and head straight to this one if you're looking for B-reel Finnish Goth metal with a hard rocking attitude and a lot of...women under sheets of some sort.

Verdict: Win [7.75/10]

Cryhavoc - Sweetbriers (1998)

I am a huge, huge fan of Taneli Jarva-era Sentenced, both the earlier death metal efforts and the transitional phase that included both the brilliant Amok album and the following Love & Death EP, both released in 1995. The fusion of growled, passionate vocals, depressive, gothic Romanticism and melodic metal that draws influence from both the melodic death of Swedish bands and classic rock and metal influences was a rare one, and naturally I've always sought out bands that relived this sound, or tried to expand upon it. There are a lot of obvious similarities to this period of Sentenced in the more mainstream goth metal acts like H.I.M. or Charon, but few had that exact mix of styles, with the exception of Jarva's newer band, The Black League, whose debut somewhat mirrored his later tenure in his alma mater, and another band that arrived on the scene some a few years post-Amok: Cryhavoc.

Sweetbriers was the band's debut, released through Spinefarm in 1998, and sounding a fuck ton similar to their more famous Finnish cousins. I'd place the riffing of this album somewhere between Amok and Down, or rather, try and imagine Sentenced had recorded Down with Jarva still at the helm instead of Ville Laihiala. Presto! Cryhavoc really knew how to get your attention with the cover art for this, and much like the sad, lusty curvature implies, the album is a twisting cup of sorrow with rock out riffs and a glaze of both leads and clean guitars that sound nearly identical to what their countrymen were writing. Unfortunately, though their approach is sufficiently dynamic and morose, very few of the tracks here actually warrant much further inspection. The leads and melodies are simply not as ingratiating as those of Sentenced, and though Sweetbriers rarely if ever hinges on boredom, it's simply not an album I ever found much desire to return to, aside from another glance at the cover...

Is it merely skin deep? Hard rocking tracks like "Bloodtie" and "Wolfdance" certainly pack enough punch to bang your head and lament your late, lost love, or at least celebrate your present sweetheart while you swill deeply from the spirits, the former being one of the bright spots on the album, with a lot of atmosphere tucked into its riffing. "Armageddon Y'Know", "I Fade Away", and "Pagan Uprising" are likewise exciting, and in fact vocalist Kaapro Ikonen gets fairly aggressive on "Armageddon Y'Know", which makes up for the rather average riffs. "Repent (Whore)" sounds a lot like something that would appear on Down, with clean guitar intro and then slowly rousing, dense lattice of chords that shimmer off into empty bottles and hearts.

But even at its most exciting, Sweetbriers feels like a pale imitation standing in a shadow, and their songs are never as intricate as, say a "Phenix" or "Forever Lost". As they say, the devil is in the details, and while Cryhavoc is a competent and somewhat intricate band, the nuances feel more like the sidereal saturation of an existing product rather than a genuine, emotional downpour. The album following this, Pitch-Black Blues, follows a similar path, but it feels ever so slightly more unique than this material, and the songs and production simply make for a more memorable offering. As for this debut, I can't really recommend it unless you desperate crave a rather half-witted memorial to a far better band and their enormously superior albums. For the purpose of sampling their cuisine, go with Pitch-Black Blues instead.

Highlights: Bloodtide, Wolfdance, I Fade Away

Verdict: Indifference [5.75/10] (I want to drink this bottle alone)