Artist: Incrave
Label: Metal Heaven
Release date: 2008
Rating: 2.5/5
The Swedish sextet Incrave is a band that renamed itself from Evergrace a year ago. As Evergrace they put out a self-titled debut in 2006, which came out again under the Incrave name last year with the title “The Escape”. A good year has rolled around, and the guys, who average barely 22 years old, are already serving up a new studio “full-length”.
On “Dead End” the guys stick to the tried-and-tested template of the debut, which got a warm reception from the music masses, but with a noticeable step up in maturity, since the songs sound even richer on “Dead End”. They play predictable melodic heavy metal, with the occasional detour into elements of European power metal. Their sound leans heavily on layered vocal harmonies and keyboards as an equal partner, which this time around aren’t just ambient window dressing. Incrave definitely don’t overcomplicate things. The songs are easy to get into, and your brain unravels them in a heartbeat.
Both in sound and style, Incrave, with their typical melancholic Scandinavian atmosphere, can bring together under one roof (roughly) a range of fans of Tad Morose, Firewind, Narnia, Essence Of Sorrow, even Nightwish. Thanks to the prominent, equal role of the keyboards and the integration of layered vocal harmonies, they sometimes blur the line between hard rock and heavy metal. They even get close to Germany’s Angel Dust from the “Border Of Reality – Bleed” era, mostly because of the choice of vocal melodies, as well as the timbre of singer Johan Falk’s voice, who (supposedly) isn’t related to Neca Falk.
The production is vivid and dynamic! The instruments breathe together and sit in balance, thanks to that excellent lively production. The riffing is solid and explosive, the wall of sound it builds is mighty, and its foundation is metallic and burning, just as it should be. The melody takes center stage above everything else; the guys make no secret of their talent for polishing catchy melodies that flow fluidly from pre-chorus to chorus and back. Incrave are a mourning band. Everything is in minor keys. The keyboards reinforce that mournful mood even more, and the atmosphere is captured at a high level. The songs are compact, played in one gear, with no dips in quality. You won’t find any particular highlights that stand out on the album. The mourning in the verses doesn’t hide an excess of pathos that could get annoying. Often the reason for the “light” verses can also be found in the fact that these studs are still very young and still maturing.
“Dead End” is a good album. With it, Incrave have grown another notch, even though their music offers nothing that could shift the Earth’s axis or split a dog’s hair lengthwise. It’s a very predictable album that would have caught fire like crazy if it had been made some seven or eight years ago. You can’t fault the quality of Incrave on “Dead End”. They’re catching the last train, among a host of bands that are storming out of Scandinavia in an avalanche today and have already filled every gap on the scene in the style Incrave cultivate. Anyone looking for classic melody wrapped in Scandinavian depression, with a melodically crafted vocal, will quickly make friends with Incrave.
Lineup
Johan Falk – vocals
Jon Bålefalk – guitar
David Ohlsson – guitar
Jo0athan Stenberg – keyboards
Martin Davidsson – bass guitar
Josef Davidsson – drums
GUEST MUSICIANS:
Markus Sigfridsson – guitar solos
Daniel Olsson – guitar solos
Production
Per Ryberg
Track list
1. Shattered
2. The Frgotten
3. A Shadow In the Dark
4. The Touch of Death
5. Unveil the Truth
6. Shades of Me
7. An Empty Soul
8. Scream In Silence
9. Never More
10. Dead End
Album length: 43.10
