### The Vision Bleak: Set sail to mystery

#### 31/01/12 || BamaHammer

Every now and then, an album comes seemingly out of nowhere and I get really into it for absolutely no reason whatsoever. I honestly shouldn’t even like this. It’s just mid-paced heavy metal with more than a hint of doom influences and semi-tight-ish guitar riffing in the vein of Grand Magus. Definitely not my usual cup o’ tea. However, I just can’t help but enjoy the vibe I get from the atmosphere, orchestration, and the dramatic and unique vocals.

The albums starts off with “A curse of the grandest kind,” one of the most enjoyable and necessary introduction tracks in recent memory. It’s nothing more than a recitation of a part of Lord Byron’s “Manfred,” a genuinely spooky tale and a good read if you’re into that sort of thing. But what makes it work so well here is the way the orchestration in the background only accents the dark themes of the poetry and works to set the tone for the album’s atmosphere perfectly. Now, don’t get me wrong. I despise intro tracks for the most part. For every “Alsvartr (the oath)” from the likes of Emperor, there is a “XVI” by Hypocrisy. This album, though, possesses one of the all-time greats.

The riffing on “Set Sail” is simplistic and catchy with a good ripping tone that sounds nothing at all like I was expecting. When I say it reminds me of Grand Magus, I just mean that nothing really sounds like it took an inordinate amount of technical skill to write or perform any of the riffs or licks you hear. It’s just straightforward rockin’ heavy metal riffing for the most part, and it works for what you get here. The guitar tone has a lot of treble, and that makes it sound extremely fuzzy and splattery, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It actually gives an organic, human quality to the music that sharply contrasts to the string arrangements and orchestration.

The string arrangements themselves are nothing short of spectacular and make this record one to behold. I firmly believe that the whole album works as well as it does simply because of the orchestration. In a word, it’s beautiful. It’s never the focus of the music, but instead serves as a decorative scaffold that supports and accents the music firmly. A lot of thought had to go into the arranging because it all fits so well. At some moments, the strings veer into the “movie score” variety while at other times, they’re subtle and spooky. Ultimately, the orchestration makes this album infinitely more epic than it would be without it.

The other element that makes this album truly unique are the vocals. Both band members serve some vocal duty to some extent, and they give this album a sound that it all its own. They sound at times like a cross between an English-speaking Till Lindemann and Peter Steele, and it fits the 19th century European themes so wonderfully. They sing low and loud without any apparent cares about vocal range and even visit the growling side of things occasionally just to add a little more mystery to the sound.

I enjoy surprises. I also enjoy Lord Byron’s works, British romanticism, and epic heavy metal with with superfluous orchestration. Hence, I enjoy this album. I also highly recommend it to anyone who is looking to hear something pretty unique and interesting and at the same time maybe a bit bored with the norm of modern heavy metal. Set sail to mystery. You won’t regret it.

- Information
- Released: 2010
- Label: Prophecy Productions
- Website: www.the-vision-bleak.de
- Band
- Ulf Theodor Schwadorf: vocals, guitar, keyboards, bass
- Allen B. Konstanz: vocals, drums, keyboards

- Tracklist
- 01. A curse of the grandest kind
- 02. Descend into the maelstrom
- 03. I dined with the swans
- 04. A romance with the grave
- 05. The outsider
- 06. Mother Nothingness (The triumph of Ubbo Sathla)
- 07. The foul within
- 08. He who paints the black of night