Thursday, May 8, 2025

Entry 1122 - Moonspell - Hermitage

 

Style: Gothic metal

Primary Emotions/Themes: Another year another interesting Moonspell album, this one is a bit more on the progressive side of gothic metal

Thoughts: The more time goes on the more I'm enthralled by Moonspell. Every album has it's own identity, yet somehow the band has created a discography that is cohesive and uniquely their own. I wasn't sure what to think of their latest offering at first, but it was in a discount bin for less than ten bucks so I figured why not give it a shot.

Hermitage tends to be a bit more free flowing and a bit less structured than the other albums in the bands discography. Relying more heavily on atmosphere and open concepts rather than defined riffs. There are long sections of the songs where it's only bass and keyboards, no guitars in sight. When the guitars do come in though the music gains a bit more backbone. It's this ebb and flow between the atmosphere and the metal riffs that defines Hermitage.

In a lot of ways the cover is indicative of the music contained within. Large open spaces with a few defined characteristics at specific points. It's a fascinating approach that the band never really has employed much before. I'm curious to see where this brings them in the future.

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