The German Metal band
ATROCITY returns, two years after the 2008’s mediocre
“Werk 80 II” release and I wonder: what the hell has
ATROCITY feat Yasmin to do with Metal? I mean, when I was listening to
“After The Storm” for first time, I thought about the legendary
Loreena McKennitt and her stunning voice, as some of the
DEAD CAN DANCE albums too. So, why
Alex Krull stepped aside his Metal past to get involved to some ethnic/ folk stuff in his music? Maybe the reason answers to the name of
Yasmin Krull, his sister that she’s also known for the previous acoustic
“Calling The Rain” release. Or, the
“Werk 80 II” effect wasn’t the one that the
Krull family expected. Anyway,
Alex,
Yasmin and some of the forests’ tales are here for good, so we have to see what happens
‘after the storm’.
The opening “A New Arrival” welcomes us into the brave new world of ATROCITY feat Yasmin, reminding me a lot DEAD CAN DANCE’s “Yulunga” having Yasmin on the main play and her characteristic trembly voice. The keyboards/ fairy bells of the “Cantara” theme seems to have lent its part to it and Yasmin sounds to my ears like the worse version of Lisa Gerrard- I don’t know if this is good. I am not in mood to hear an alternate, modern version of DEAD CAN DANCE’s previous works, no matter what if the Krull family loves them and has the ideal recipe for that. “Call Of Yesteryear” continues in more electric attitude with the main guitar riff having the lead part, but still the female vocals remain on the same mournful and ethereal style, including Alex’s indifferent participation. Much better indeed but it isn’t something that changed my life, really. The self-titled track is coming up next and I think that the Celtic down grade continues with the Alex/ Yasmin duet imitating a lot the Brendan/ Lisa one.
On the contrary, “Silvan Spirit” hides originality and it’s a tight-composed song with the melancholic tunes of flute and violin in the background, touching softly and tenderly our ears, whispering some of our beloved grandmas’ stories. “Black Mountain” is one of the few up tempo tracks of the album with guitars and the growls of Alex on the main role, giving an aggressive sense from our beloved ATROCITY past. The other up tempo track is “Transilvania”, showing Krull’s love and devotion to Dracula’s myth, 16 years after the “Blut” release. Check its bridge riff out and cry! This one reminds us why we love Krull and his band- not his sister.
Concluding, I could definitely say that
“After The Storm” is a unique tree in the middle of nowhere; has a lot of folk/ atmospheric elements that the devotees of the this sound would find excellent, a few moments from his main maker’s past, but has nothing to do with
ATROCITY’s glorious history. It’s a brand new, green tree with so many polished leaves in the middle of nowhere, as shown on its cover artwork.
Edited
28 January 2023
 - After The Storm (Review by Maria Voutiriadou)&p[summary]=The German Metal band ATROCITY returns, two years after the 2008’s mediocre “Werk 80 II” release and I wonder: what the hell has ATROCITY feat Yasmin to do with Metal? I mean, when I was listening…(Click to read more)&p[url]=http://www.metal-temple.com/site/catalogues/entry/reviews/cd_3/a_2/atrocity_feat_yasmin.htm&p[images][0]=http://www.metal-temple.com/uploads/catalogues/Atrocity%20feat%20Yasmin-After%20The%20Storm.jpg){kind=link}