AUTUMN

Dutch band Autumn return with their second album for Metal Blade, 'Altitude', and their first to feature new vocalist Marjan Welman. I recall seeing them live in the Netherlands back in 2005 as main support to Within Temptation, although my memory of their performance is that I was not overtly impressed. In fact, I remember their music being rather bland and generic. However, four years can be a long time in a band's evolution and with a largely new lineup since that show in Utrecht, what do Autumn have to offer with 'Altitude'? Unfortunately, a series of rather bland, generic rock/quasi-metal songs. To be fair, there are occasionally uplifiting moments in the music that elevate some of the songs into above average territory, but they generally plod along in an unengaging, compositionally formulaic manner such as the blander-than-bland repetition of the chorus on 'Skydancer'. For a band who proclaim themselves to be "melodic power rock" (and "with a gothic edge" no less), you would surely want to make certain that the melodies you write are both powerful and melodious (particularly when over-repeated in a song), although Autumn fail on this criteria all too often. 'Altitude' is by no means an irredeemably bad album - the production is impressive, and new singer Marjan Welman has a very likeable voice, it's just that the music doesn't particularly grip me enough to sustain my listening attention and found myself wishing the album would end at least twenty minutes before it eventually did. Having said that, I'm sure 'Altitude' will find a market out there of older rockers who are perhaps more tolerant of easy-listening, blandly composed, generic rock/metal. It just didn't work for me though, unfortunately.

LABEL:

FORMAT:

Metal Blade Records

Album

ALTITUDE

Review by Mark Holmes

RUNNING TIME:

50:30

RELEASE DATE:

16th Feb 2009

TRACK LISTING

1) Paradise Nox
2) Liquid Under Film Noir
3) Skydancer
4) Synchro-Minds
5) The Heart Demands
6) A Minor Dance
7) Cascade (For A Day)
8) Horizon Line
9) Sulphur Rodents
10) Answers Never Questioned
11) Altitude

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:

Netherlands

"'...unengaging, compositionally formulaic..."