Nebelhexe - Dead Waters
Amber Autumn
Gothic, Alternative
10 songs (41:11)
Release year: 2009
Nebelhexe
Reviewed by Goat

A strangely Norwegian-styled Kate Bush is perhaps the best way to describe Nebelhexë. She has been producing her distinct sound under a variety of guises for several years now, Aghast and Hagalaz’ Runedance the names of two of two former projects. A woman of many talents, she has written about Pagan traditions, been a former fetish model, part of Cradle Of Filth’s live show, as well as her varied works as a musician. Her links with the Metal underground are many, especially her guest appearances on well-known albums like The Principle Of Evil Made Flesh and Nemesis Divina, as well as once having been married to Emperor/Zyklon guitarist Samoth, but there’s much of interest in her latest album Dead Waters, too.

A less grandiose, more Darkwave-styled version of Dead Can Dance in some ways, there’s a tribal-esque base to the music which, along with her distinct yet unshowy voice (think a less out-there Björk) forms the basis of the sound. Overlaid upon this is a variety of styles, from the Folky moments of the title track to the gentle spoken word and nature samples of In My Dreams I Am Free; it’s hard to label her or categorise this, really, which it seems is Nebelhexë’s intent. The underground music world has several female artists who produce atmospheric and intriguing works of this sort and who get very little attention from the Metal world as a result, perhaps due to their lack of obvious aggression. It’s a shame; just as with ex-Swans chanteuse Jarboe, Nebelhexë deserves much more credit for her work in the various scenes she belongs to.

Yet focusing on Dead Waters, it’s interesting how it truly grows and develops a personality of its own. The album has a natural flow and is subtly addictive, growing ever so slightly more epic as it continues until you reach the rather fantastic finale The Nightguard. There are plenty of great songs here, though, the strident Against The Wall, the witchy seductiveness of Skindeep, the dreamy melodies of Digital Sleep... admittedly, this isn’t the first sort of music that I reach for, but Dead Waters is an excellent album, and is well worth a look even if this isn’t your favourite style of music.

Killing Songs :
Against The Wall, Skindeep, Digital Sleep, Dead Waters, The Nightguard
Goat quoted 80 / 100
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There are 3 replies to this review. Last one on Wed May 20, 2009 8:10 pm
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