SENMUTH — Вдоль пути к поднебесной (review)

SENMUTH — Вдоль пути к поднебесной album cover

Album · 2004 · Metal Related

3/5 · 2011-02-17
Conor Fynes

'Вдоль Пути к Поднебесной' - Senmuth (6/10)

The third installment of Senmuth's epic musical journey, the man behind the music of this project finds himself treading deep into the realm of oriental/far east music. While almost all of his albums are influenced by ethnic sounds, this is the first work under the Senmuth label to focus on one culture almost exclusively. While 'Вдоль Пути к Поднебесной' certainly follows the tradition of industrial-tinged metal that Senmuth based his early career on, the integration of East Asian musical sensibilities fit very well into the staple style, generally working their way in as upbeat synth melodies. While 'Вдоль Пути к Поднебесной' lacks both the catchiness of 'Cognitive Discord,' and the intricacy of 'Izoteri- Ka,' the album's focus on cohesion and melding ethnic styles seamlessly into Senmuth's metal foundation makes it a rather worthy addition to the Senmuth project discography.

The music generally revolves around light oriental synth melodies bouncing around overtop downtuned guitar riffage, and the typical electronic industrial ambience that Senmuth seems to throw into every project he worked on in 2004. Despite the work of this man typically being labelled as 'doom metal,' the mood here is generally light hearted and whimsical, with a few mentionable exceptions. One such exception is the dark ambient piece 'Chinese Theatre,' which is thrown in the middle of the album. While it is an effective, even haunting piece of soundscaping, the dark and imposing tone here feels very out of place next to the melodic, upbeat pieces that surround it.

Another very prominent sound here (besides the oriental ethnic style) is that of the martial, Industrial beats that run throughout most of the album. While Senmuth has always had an Industrial side, it always meshed into the metal side of the music; never being showcased on it's own, or with any other genre combination. While it gives the music a very militant, aggressive feel (perhaps a commentary on Chinese culture,) it feels like it robs the music of what could have been a much more melodic inclination. Due to the fact that the instrumentation generally relies on melodic synth work (and some of the melodies work remarkably well,) it feels a bit disheartening to hear the percussion drowning out songs which might have been a more effective experience, had they been kept 'lighter' overall.

Senmuth seems to have melded some of the aspects of his last two albums to create a new piece that retains some of the qualities of his catchy pop-based work and the more complex orchestrations of his sophomore. By this point in my listening experience with Senmuth, I am definately drawing patterns in his music, but if anything, the man has proven that he has the ability to reinvent himself within the space of a few days. 'Вдоль Пути к Поднебесной' is an enjoyable listen with some strong melodies and a more upbeat sound, and while not all of his musical innovations are entirely convincing here, the merging of oriental, industrial and metal styles works surprisingly well in parts.