AUTUMN LEAVES — Embraced by the Absolute (review)

AUTUMN LEAVES — Embraced by the Absolute album cover Album · 1997 · Death Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
3.5/5 ·
UMUR
"Embraced by the Absolute" is the debut full-length studio album by Danish death metal act Autumn Leaves. The album was released through Serious Entertainment in 1997. Autumn Leaves were active from 1993 to 2001 and released a demo and two full-length studio albums in that period. When the band split-up, some of the members went on to form Scavenger, which later changed their name to The Arcane Order.

The music on "Embraced by the Absolute" more or less continues the old school, yet technically well played, death metal style with melodic leanings which was initiated on the "Hope Springs Eternal (1995)" demo. The 4 tracks from the demo are also included on "Embraced by the Absolute" in re-recorded versions and the lineup hasn´t changed either, which are also contributing factors to the continuation of the musical style from the demo.

While the music features the right morbid old school feeling, Autumn Leaves successfully incorporate contemporary groove elements, tempo changes (short section blasting, mid-paced heavy grooves, faster tremolo picking sections, and brutal doomy parts), and occasional soaring melodies to the tracks, which ultimately make "Embraced by the Absolute" more than just another derivative old school sounding death metal release recorded after the early 90s heyday of death metal. There´s a hint of a blackened element in there too when the vocals are raspy shrieks, instead of the otherwise predominantly deep intelligible growling vocals on the album, but it´s a minor stylistic element and "Embraced by the Absolute" is other than that through and through a death metal album.

The material are well written although it´s not always memorable beyond while it´s playing, but that´s not a major issue on most death metal releases, and for the most part the music on the album is both instantly catchy and relatively memorable in the long run. The high level musicianship is a great asset and the sound production is also both raw, powerful, and overall pretty strong, so "Embraced by the Absolute" is in many ways a quality release by Autumn Leaves. They aren´t that original sounding though and while it´s not a major issue, it is in that department that the album could have been more interesting. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.
Share this review
more

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

Review Index

Member Zone

Username:
Password:
Stay signed in

Metal Subgenres

Artists Alpha-index

MMA TOP 5 Metal ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
Master of Puppets Thrash Metal
METALLICA
Buy this album from our partners
Paranoid Heavy Metal
BLACK SABBATH
Buy this album from our partners
Moving Pictures Hard Rock
RUSH
Buy this album from our partners
Powerslave NWoBHM
IRON MAIDEN
Buy this album from our partners
Rising Heavy Metal
RAINBOW
Buy this album from our partners

New Metal Artists

New Metal Releases

Hin helga kvöl Atmospheric Sludge Metal
SÓLSTAFIR
Buy this album from MMA partners
The Cycles of Suffering Black Metal
BURIAL OATH
Buy this album from MMA partners
The Suns of Perdition - Chapter IV: To Shadow Zion Black Metal
PANZERFAUST
Buy this album from MMA partners
Facilis Descensus Averno Death Metal
SAEVUS FINIS
Buy this album from MMA partners
Merciless Crossover Thrash
BODY COUNT
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Metal Online Videos

DAWN OF REVENGE - Sanctuary [official music video]
DAWN OF REVENGE
Bosh66· 5 days ago
DAWN OF REVENGE - Farewell [official music video]
DAWN OF REVENGE
Bosh66· 5 days ago
DAWN OF REVENGE - Curtain of Death - [official music video]
DAWN OF REVENGE
Bosh66· 5 days ago
DAWN OF REVENGE - Vengeance [official music video]
DAWN OF REVENGE
Bosh66· 5 days ago
DAWN OF REVENGE - I Need You [official music video]
DAWN OF REVENGE
Bosh66· 5 days ago
More videos

New MMA Metal Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Metal News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us
Follow us on Twitter Become a Facebook fan RSS Feed