CADAVERIA
"The
Shadows of Madame" (Triple Silence/Scarlet; 2002)
Reviewed by Christopher J. Kelter
Originally recorded in 2001 and released in 2002 on Scarlet Records, Cadaveria's "The Shadows Of Madame" is receiving proper distribution through the 2004 re-release on the UK's Triple Silence label. I understand the band's namesake fronted Opera IX at one point.
"The Shadows Of Madame" is fundamentally a black metal album, but a host of influences and styles ranging from gothic metal and thrash make this a particularly listenable version of black metal. Symphonic and atmospheric metal influences are also readily apparent. Despite all the extreme metal references "The Shadows Of Madame" has an appealing approach similar to, but not exactly like, the kind of sound that has allowed Cradle Of Filth to expand their fan base outside traditional fans of extreme metal.
At seven songs and 38 minutes "The Shadows Of Madame" comes across more as a mini-CD than an official release, but it does a good job keeping the listener's interest. I often straddle the line between bands who do something simple and do it well versus bands who throw a whole bunch of stuff into a musical blender and come up with something interesting. Cadaveria are more like the latter description and generally I don't care too much for this particular approach, but it seems to be working for the band.
This particular release has a video for the lead-off track "Spell."
"The Shadows Of Madame" was produced by Cadaveria and engineered by John DNA. The album sounds great – good production is always welcome and "The Shadows Of Madame" does not fail in this respect.
Cadaveria: Cadaveria on vocals, Frank Booth on guitars, Killer Bob on bass, Baron Harkonnen on keyboards, and Marcelo Santos on drums.
For more information visit http://www.cadaveria.com.
Rating Guide:
A classic. This record will kick your ass.
Killer. Not a classic but it will rock your world.
So-so. You've heard better.
Pretty bad. Might make a nice coaster.
Self explanatory. Just the sight of the cover makes you wanna hurl.
Copyright © 2004 by R. Scott Bolton. All rights
reserved.
Revised: 15 Apr 2024 15:20:24 -0400.
