GROMTH is a new acquaintance to the world of symphonic metal, now releasing their first full-length The Immortal, but some members ought to be well-known to most of us: Grimd (KHOLD) are in charge of guitar, bass, keys and are from whom GROMTH is the brainchild of, Tjodalv (ex-DIMMU BORGIR, ex-OLD MAN’S CHILD, SUSPERIA, BLACK COMEDY) handles the drums, Andre Aaslie also are responsible for keys as well, and Ole are in charge of the vocals.
The Immortal is a concept album about life itself, libido and destrudo all in one, all-together with 16 songs divided into the three major parts RISING, DESTROYING, and DESTRUCTOR. Those up for a fast and easily digested ride should look away, because this is not something for the unfocused listeners since GROMTH needs all of your attention in order to grasp the majestic appearance of the complex arrangement.
The music is as holistic as it is detailed, with the latter fully necessary in order to build up the overwhelming whirlwind of orchestral extreme metal. Bombastic riffs in concert with the the symphonic keyboards build up a cinematic sound. Due to the continuity of the songs, all tied together in a thread-like procession throughout the album, there is no point in dissecting them one by one. The Immortal is something you either take on as a whole, or you don’t do it at all. For descriptive reasons, take a song like Philsosopher where there is really a bit of everything; distorted and heavy guitars, battering drums, acoustic guitars, grim vocals, female vocals, strings, horns, monolithic parts, and piano. Still it does not become messy or too much. It is all very well-thought through, and each thing has its own place in both space and time. From time to time, it can feel like the guitars and the synthesizers take off on different paths. They are still compatible with each other, but one could easily separate them into two fully different songs without ever noticing that they once belonged together. Thus it may not come as a surprise that the physical release of the album comes with an additional disc, which includes the orchestral versions of the songs.
GROMTH provides a multi-dimensional world of its own, much like if you would find yourself in a mirror maze of sounds, with the songs mirroring each other but stretching, contracting, faceting themselves into different shapes of the initial appearance. So if you like your teacup filled with vibrant and beautiful, symphonic atrocities, GROMTH should suit you just more than well.
-Septikemi
VITALS:
Release: 30.09.2011
Label: Worlds Apart Records/Indie Distribution
Avantgenre: Orchestral Extreme Metal
Duration: 1:06:02
Origin: Norway
Official site: http://www.myspace.com/gromth
Review online since: 10.01.2012 / 19:39:57
TRACKLIST:
PART I RISING
01 – Rise Destroyer
02 – Unknown
03 – Remember
PART II DESTROYING
04 – Killing
05 – Enemy
06 – Philosopher
07 – The Immortal
08 – My Mind 09 – The Everlasting God
PART III DESTRUCTOR
10 – Explosive Power 11 – I Destroy, Therefore I Am 12 – I Leave The Dead Behind… 13 – Death Eternal 14 – The Destruction Of All That Is, That Was, And That Ever Could Be
15 – Finale – Destroyer Of Worlds 16 – Extinction
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