SAILLE — Irreversible Decay (review)

Album · 2011 · Melodic Black Metal

3.5/5 · 2011-02-20
J-Man

The Orion Prophecy

Although the symphonic black metal scene has become overcrowded in recent years with super-polished Dimmu Borgir clones, Belgian band Saille has taken a much more raw approach with their debut album, Irreversible Decay. Rather than paying homage to these bombastic acts, Saille plays a style of symphonic black metal that harkens back to the early pioneers of the genre (particularly Emperor). Saille's sound isn't groundbreaking or terribly original, but Irreversible Decay is an excellently crafted work of art and a breath of fresh air in the modern symphonic black metal scene. For only their debut album, Saille have gotten off on the right foot with an album that almost guarantees a successful future.

As previously mentioned, the music on Irreversible Decay is symphonic black metal characterized by the founders of the genre. Although you will hear hints of Dimmu Borgir, I hear more nods in the direction of Emperor, early Arcturus, or even a bit of Burzum during the darker ambient-influenced sections. As such, Saille isn't breaking many boundaries, but the end result is nothing short of satisfying. The production is pretty raw without ever sounding lo-fi or anything like that. My biggest (and only) complaint is that the length of the album is just too much. 63 minutes proves to be too long, and a "samey" feeling begins to develop about halfway through. A few more memorable compositions and a shorter running length would've ultimately enhanced my experience significantly. The musicianship of Saille is impeccable, and I especially have to give a nod to the terrific keyboard playing from Dries Gaerdelen. The atmosphere he adds to the album is unbeatable, and his neo-classical influences are also admirable.

Conclusion:

Irreversible Decay has created a lot of waves in black metal circles, and it's not hard to understand why. This is an excellent symphonic black metal album from a young band with tons of potential and promise. The compositional quality is a bit mixed, though, and I can't quite put it into as high of regard as some other reviewers have. If Saille can hone in a bit on making more consistent compositions, I sense a terrific sophomore album on the horizon. For this promising and enjoyable debut album, I'll go with 3.5 stars. I'd recommend fans of old school symphonic black metal to definitely give this a spin.

more than 2 years ago
Permalink
Report #234672

Share this review

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer

Please login to post a shout

J-Man wrote:

more than 2 years ago

I get what you're saying now! Every song on this album plays the whole way through, though. It doesn't end before the supposed time.

Vehemency wrote:

more than 2 years ago

If a song is said to be e.g. 11 minutes, it actually ends closer to 7 minutes or so (just for an example) and then the next song begings. The track never reaches the said 11 minutes. Try skipping to some track's last minutes and see if the track actually ends before the said time.

J-Man wrote:

more than 2 years ago

Really? According to iTunes, it's 1:02:49 as well... I added up the length of the tracks and got 63 minutes too. How did you find out it's only 43 minutes?

Vehemency wrote:

more than 2 years ago

Actually the album is just 43 minutes, code666 promos always show wrong timestamps, has something to do with the protections I guess. I always have to convert them to my own rips to get the shorter (= accurate) lengths.