*. Unto Ashes .*

Album: Burials Foretold (2012)
Genre: Prog Folk (Neofolk/Darkwave/Medieval Music)  /  USA

Once again we're treated with another set of dark folk tracks from Michael Laird reunited with Erica, Natalia and others for this latest studio album. img On this work we are presented with 15 impressive tracks including a couple of unique covers and various renditions on classic poetry and other sources including those by Michael himself. For those familiar with this project, it's not too hard to describe and relate this band's unique take on all of these various lyrics. To start off the album, it's a dark dirge with "Burials Foretold", very short, but presenting the mood for this album. For a minute "Pilzentanz" picks up the pace and the mood a little bit yet the vocal styles keep the track grounded in a dark, medieval style. As the album progresses, the haunting mood continues through various tracks, some dark and brooding and at times more on the ethereal side. Within these tracks there are several favorites that stand out such as "She Binds Away The Night" which listeners should already be familiar with as we've been playing it for quite some time. "I Remember Happiness" moves along smoothly with dripping emotion and longing all portrayed through somber vocals and soft strings and guitar. The funeral dirge style is strong on several pieces including "Young Men Leave For Battles Unknown". This style remains very prominent on the album going along well with the thematic approach of the title of "Burials Foretold". For those that enjoy the softer, ethereal side of things we have some definite treats here on this album as well. A track that really stands out is the incredible cover of "Kathy's Song" in a very soft, angelic, ethereal style. As this project has covered a number of very different pieces over the years, this is another great version we can really enjoy. Along the theme of covers, another that some might recognize is "Running With The Devil", a classic Van Halen track from the 80's. Again, this is done as only Unto Ashes can pull off with excellent medieval styles. Overall this is a great album with really a lot of diverse material here and a lot of great pieces. This stands out as another great album from this project as they manage to take all the different lyrics, compositions, instruments, etc. and combine them all into a dark, sometimes beautiful masterpiece. Definitely recommended for old and new fans alike. (www.gothicparadise.com)

RATING:  7.75 / 10

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