There is a new generation of Doom metal bands that hail mostly from outside of the United States. Some of them are: Anathema, Celestial Season, My Dying Bride, Paradise Lost, etc. There aren't too many bands in the Christian music field of this genre--at least that we know of. The only bands that come to mind are: Paramaecium, Veni Domine, and now, Schaliach. Since I believe that doom is by far the classiest form of metal, you can just imagine how excited I was to get this. You should be too!
I noticed right away how much Schaliach sounds like both GROMS and Paramaecium. Like GROMS, they hail from Norway (a good sign). But Schaliach is far more polished and classically oriented with Malmsteen-like passages throughout. And when you learn that 99% of the music was played by one man, Ole Borud, you'll realize that the Malmsteen reference is not so much a compliment as just a comparison (this is not to say that Ole plays those monotonous, million-note solos). Needless to say, this guy is really talented. The only musicians I can think of in CCM that are this talented on more than one or two instruments are: Greg Flesch (DA, Swirling Eddies), Scott Albert (Circle of Dust, Argyle Park), and Ted Kirkpatrick (Tourniquet).
For those of you who have a much broader musical palette, I think Schaliach sounds most like Celestial Season or My Dying Bride (my wife hates that name). I would feel most comfortable recommending this disc to anyone who is into the newest wave of Doom/death bands coming from Scandinavia and England. I also advise CCM buyers who want something truly substantive, something they will not soon tire of, buy this.
Other coverage for this album
The Phantom Tollbooth 1997Reviewed by Josh SpencerThis album has actually been out for more than a year, but that's how long it took for me to be persuaded to spend the extra cash on this doom/death import from Norway. Someone told me it reminded them of Amorphis' classic Tales From the Thousand Lakes. Yeah right, I thought (but look, I bought it!). And lo and behold, these guys are astounding! It's like a metal symphony, rhythms and riffs…The Phantom Tollbooth 1997Reviewed by Shari LloydI'd been hearing a lot about this release. I became more interested after listening to a few sound bites and hearing the prog feel to it, but not enough to spend twenty dollars. When it turned up for $3.49, though, I wasted no time in snatching it up. I wasn't disappointed, as I was treated to a great progressive metal feast which, although metal, focuses on melody rather than mindless…Similar sounding releases
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1993BelieverDimensions
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