Notre Dame - Coming Soon To A Theatre Near You,The 2nd! (CD)

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Notre Dame's first and “best (as they claim it to be) album is out on the shops again ever since it was initially released on October '98. This time it consists of the original tracks that have been remixed, along with six previously unreleased bonus tracks.

I will surpass the fact that these fellows think very highly of themselves and I will plainly focus on the sounding of the album. Well…it is hard to determine the kind of music that Notre Dame wish to generate; by listening to the first three tracks one would think of them as a horror-black-goth metal band with vampiric elements. When moving on though, one could notice kind of a “theatrical attitude that happens to dominate in most of the songs. And when I mean “theatrical I certainly do not imply any similitude to Shakespearean plays or to anything of relevant magnitude and quality. On the contrary, Notre Dame's attempt to build something like a “gothic-opera -similar to cabaret performances of the 60's and 70's- through immature lyrics and unacceptable vocals (that sometimes sound like whispering bawls) ends up to a ridiculous result.

Besides to the objectionable male vocals, the female vocals sound “vacant, as if performed with dullness, and the narration-like-parts of some tracks irritating. The guitar riffs are noisy, monotonous and dry, even though they grant with a few glimmering solos in some tracks. The bass follows the same standardization as the guitars, while the drums -though speedy in some parts- are barely noticed and remain droning.

The only pieces that remain intact, yet still cannot salvage the album, are tracks 1, 6 and perhaps 11, along with other parts that are lost or buried by the various disharmonies.

I really don't know whether Notre Dame wished for this album to sound like a “theatrical play of the absurd or if all their albums sound like that (I know little of their discography) but on a personal scale, I would say that this album was totally dissatisfying.

Maybe if they had a “more unassertive profile and tried to be less “experimental in their music, then they would be a band worth noticing. My standpoint would prevent me from recommending this album to others than those that are closely attached to the band.