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 Post subject: 'The Ruins of Beverast - The Thule Grimoires (#10572)'
PostPosted: Tue Feb 23, 2021 8:45 am 
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The Ruins of Beverast - The Thule Grimoires
Atmospheric Blackened Doom
Quoted: 80 / 100


Click here to see the review.


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 Post subject: Re: The Ruins of Beverast - The Thule Grimoires (#10572)
PostPosted: Thu Feb 25, 2021 4:46 am 
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Ist Krieg

Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 3:07 am
Posts: 6498
Location: USoA
Agreed with the central criticisms here, Alexander would be well-served to let someone else help streamline his ideas and this record was not as good as Exuvia, still I think you are being too harsh on the final assessment. Polar Hiss Hysteria did a lot for me as a track that went heavy with a proper riff, but you didn't comment on it. Sitewide the ratings on Ruins albums are consistently lower than I'd give them beyond Charles' score for the third album. Surely you'd go higher than Alex did on Rain Upon the Impure?

Ruins of Beverast continues to carve out its own unique path from album to album, along with Oranssi Pazuzu, Hail Spirit Noir, Abigor, Code Orange, Enslaved, Deftones, Nile, Thy Catafalque and a few others I'm forgetting, whereas the rest of the metal landscape is overcrowded with either pure revivalists or bands reinterpreting Meshuggah and Gorguts. Meilenwald is eccentric, and frustrating at times, but he's still essential.


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 Post subject: Re: The Ruins of Beverast - The Thule Grimoires (#10572)
PostPosted: Fri Feb 26, 2021 9:04 pm 
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North From Here wrote:
Agreed with the central criticisms here, Alexander would be well-served to let someone else help streamline his ideas and this record was not as good as Exuvia, still I think you are being too harsh on the final assessment. Polar Hiss Hysteria did a lot for me as a track that went heavy with a proper riff, but you didn't comment on it. Sitewide the ratings on Ruins albums are consistently lower than I'd give them beyond Charles' score for the third album. Surely you'd go higher than Alex did on Rain Upon the Impure?


Perhaps a little on the harsh side, but I do tend to do focus less on the scores and just try to make them consistent with the writing in the review (words > numbers! the go-to excuse whenever a numeral score is questioned!) and past efforts from the same groups - it's definitely at least 10 points less than Exuvia, for instance, although across listens I wavered from 75-85 depending on how good I found individual moments.

Polar Hiss just didn't stand out to me as much as the others, although you're right that it's a little more focused on the riff - it does seem a bit repetitive to me, especially after the groovy awesomeness of Anchoress in Furs which implemented all elements so well. And I'd have to relisten to RUtI, been a while...

We do agree on your final point though. Mandatory act, that gets so much right I feel bad nitpicking.


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 Post subject: Re: The Ruins of Beverast - The Thule Grimoires (#10572)
PostPosted: Wed May 11, 2022 7:13 am 
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Ist Krieg

Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 3:07 am
Posts: 6498
Location: USoA
You were right. While still good, this feels like a lesser work from someone we expect better from. I totally understand the Type O Negative worship that Alexander felt when recording this, but that band is extremely difficult to imitate (MDB's Like Gods of the Sun being the classic example of trying and not getting it right). I think he'll bounce back next time.


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