Swallow the Sun: ‘Shining’ Review
The album artwork for Shining
Swallow the Sun have long been a shining beacon of high-intensity gloom among the dirging, droning ranks of death-doom metal bands, but never so literally as with their latest record Shining – the ninth in their extensive canon. With twenty years of sorrowful riffing under their belt, among forays into acoustic folk, writing with a progressive bent, and exploring the gothic aesthetic that fits so well with their musical choices, this album seems to take a much more straightforward metal approach – and it’s no surprise, given the band openly describes this record as their attempt at a “Black Album” for the death-doom genre.
For this record, the band opted to eschew working with their longstanding producing collaborator Jaani Peuhu in favour of working with Dan Lancaster – the man who mixed several Bring Me the Horizon and Enter Shikari albums. Both of the aforementioned bands have created their fair share of anthemic tracks. This partnership is new territory for Swallow the Sun, albeit they do have their fair share of massive hooks – see half the tracklist of 2019’s When a Shadow Is Forced into the Light – but this is easily their most accessible album and as such, a massive risk in comparison to their previous efforts.
That feeling comes immediately as we open with what I honestly thought was a modern Katatonia song for the first few seconds – single Innocence Was Long Forgotten. A strong lead guitar line drives a stronger still lead vocal, before ripping into a belter of a chorus – they do this “pop” thing rather well, as was already clear. Under the Moon and Sun has a strong driving riff and a great solo to support it. Chilling harsh vocals come in on Kold, perhaps the record’s strongest track. Title track and closer Shining stands alone as the lengthiest song here, and it does feel earned. A catchy lead to play us out with some strong drumming (albeit somewhat dampened by the mix) to support, before dropping into a vocal-forward outro and then ominous nothingness.
If you’re a longstanding fan, you’re probably asking: does Shining‘s overall accessibility come at the loss of Swallow the Sun‘s longstanding cavalcade of melancholia? The darkness and gothic elements that stir their sound are still very much present. The unwavering vocal presence of Mikko Kotamäki – a man I would argue to be one of metal’s finest vocalists – is there as always, with plenty of highlights on tracks like Charcoal Sky. This is still idenfitiably a Swallow the Sun album. What’s missing for me, however – and I say this as someone that’s followed the band since Songs from the North, arguably their most ambitious record – is the well-rounded feel of their previous work.
A difficult thing to say as a reviewer: there’s not a lot to say about this record when digging further into it. Most songs share a similar structure or throughline, with Velvet Chains being a mild deviation into balladry. Charcoal Sky feels closest to the albums of old, but the record does by and large deviate. This is fine, commendable even. But I fear that it doesn’t quite move beyond “fine” as a whole. The execution is there, the musicianship is there (some surprisingly extravagant leads and solos, and wonderfully creative drum fills to be found throughout) and the vocals are as good as they have always been. Despite these boons, there’s something so ultimately hollow about this record that, while I can appreciate it on the surface for what it is, I have to acknowledge that it’s really a skin deep appreciation – and for that, I can’t help but feel disappointed.
Swallow the Sun is and always has been a band that does a few things really well – production, atmosphere, riffs, hooks, and engaging, emotionally stirring vocal performances, both harsh and clean. Actively choosing to pare down and focus on their pop sensibilities is a huge and respectable leap but I’m not fully convinced that the band needs a “death doom Black Album.” I applaud the risk taken – trying to make a new sound work, but this is a band that has already done big choruses incredibly well, as evidenced by the fact that the main hook in Firelights will get stuck in my head at least once every month or so. It does sometimes gleam, but overall when compared to the sprawling ambition of Songs from the North and the depth of Moonflowers among other records, Shining unfortunately loses some of its luster.
