Twelve years longing for this day, the Geniuses Ulf Theodor Schwadorf and Thomas Helm have teased me and the Empyrium fans with only two new songs since their last album, Weiland, in 2002, and those two songs did not disappoint. They were and still are masterpieces.
My first impression about The Turn Of The Tides: The album is majestic, the use of keys and operatic vocals gives it a unique signature that is definitely Empyrium yet not the Empyrium we know.
The new album uses distorted guitars very little, yet they elevate the drama of the song to a higher level.
What’s interesting is the use of pop-like drums. It’s very weird to hear such drum beats, but somehow, it blends with the other instruments amazingly.
Lyrics can be summed up with these words from the track “The Gutter of this Spring:”
Outside, the rain keeps falling
On foul soil, dying snow
Melting and transforming
to waters made of woe
I’ve listened to this song a thousand times until now, and every time I hear this part, I get chills down my spine.
To those who don’t know Empyrium, they play dark music and focus on drawing landscapes with their music. They are inspired by nature and their surroundings. Some say they are neo-folk; some say dark folk. Whatever musical genre they are, they are the best musicians I have ever listened to.
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