Darkwater - Where Stories End (Remastered 2022) (2022) Hi-Res

DARKWATER is progressive Metal band from Sweden, A great country known for its tremendous Metal scene. The vocalist is excellent. Henrik Båth has a clean high pitched tone to his voice. It is very clean, no scratchy qualities at all. DARKWATER mixes both the melodic and the progressive together in what I feel is an attempt to please all. I am not sure that is even possible. The music is filled with more layers than you can shake a stick at. The crunching Metal guitars with the snare drum tapping and an infectious underscore in the form of keyboards supplying a huge amount of depth. The grandiose elements are all here in all their glory. You have to listen closely to make sure you hear ever subtle nuance that they sneak in there on you. The lyrics are multi-layered. The solos are tasteful and often end up being accompanied by a keyboard solo that imprints itself over the latter.

There are many nuances in this music. Nothing is ever purely simple and straight forward. This is their work of art. Will you like it? That is always the main question. Of course some will like it while others will not. If you like progressive Metal then you probably will like “Where Stories End”. The complex music is for people that like bands like RUSH or DREAM THEATER. Of course this is a bit heavier than those two bands, but the concept remains the same, and that is, intricate music. The violin intro to “Why I Bleed” is very melodic. I really enjoyed that part oF album the most. These guys are very talented.Most of the songs are rather lengthy. I would imagine that was done to capture the many elements contained in their style. You can’t incorporate all the multiple instruments in simple three minute songs. At times I feel the music is a bit too slow, but I am aware that is a part of the genre.

There is also a bit of Electronica (synthesizers) involved here. It’s not as jarring as it could be if there was more of it. That said, I still think it is used a bit too frequently. I am not fond of Electronica at all. ”Blink Of An Eye” is a very good song. I believe it will be the big hit of the album. It is the catchiest song with the best chorus.I would greatly hope if they do another album that they drop the synthesizers altogether, but I am sure they won’t listen to me. The piano is less offensive to my ear, as it has always been a part of the genre for ages.Fans of the genre should be fine with DARKWATER’s new effort. It’s a good album for what it sets out to do. I would not recommend this album for people that aren’t into progressive Metal.