Woods of Ypres
Woods III: Deepest Roots and Darkest Blu


4.0
excellent

Review

by Mikesn EMERITUS
January 15th, 2008 | 40 replies


Release Date: 2008 | Tracklist

Review Summary: Woods of Ypres' third album contains some of the band's strongest song writing yet. However with fifteen tracks, it's a little on the long side...

I won't lie, though my anticipation for Woods of Ypres' follow up to the superb Pursuit of the Sun and Allure of the Earth album was rather high, I was growingly skeptical that the now five member band would actually ever finish it. Woods' frontman David Gold has only given it what, five or six different release dates over the last couple years, has he not? Regardless, the band's second full length album, titled Woods III: The Deepest Roots and the Darkest Blues (don't laugh, guys) was promised to be a return to the melodic black metal roots of Woods of Ypres five track, thirty minute demo. This also had me somewhat incredulous, as while the Against the Seasons […] was a decent release, it has nothing on the doom metal-esque offering that was Pursuit of the Sun, and tends to lose its lustre far more quickly.

Fortunately, Woods III isn't as, well…black metal as David Gold promised. While it's true that the melodic black metal elements are featured predominately, as the rather raw sounding Iron Grudge shows, Woods of Ypres seems to adopt a sound that bridges the bitter, aggressive themes of Against the Seasons and the slower, more contemplative sound of Pursuit of the Seasons. And while Iron Grudge, Through the Chaos and Solitude I Came, and December in Windsor each feature the two distinct sounds of Woods of Ypres' earlier recordings (Iron Grudge and Through the Chaos each taking on the band's black metal characteristics, whereas December in Windsor would fit right in with the Pursuit of the Sun songs), Woods III's strongest moments fittingly occur on the songs which combine the two styles. It is in highlight tracks like The Northern Cold, Your Ontario Town is a Burial Ground, Years of Silence (And the Private Joke), and the instrumental, Trillium: The Third of Three Winters that it feels as though the band has put the most effort into. The tranquil, doom-y elements created through David Gold's almost carefree, clean singing (which is quite a bit better than his growl, I'll admit) and the slow, soothing bursts of (generally) electric melodies compliment the bitter distortion and relentless aggression of drummer Chris Mezz's blastbeats tremendously. As result (and also thanks in part to the vastly improved production), these songs are some of the strongest Woods of Ypres had penned to date, and immensely enjoyable.

That said, Woods III as a whole is not quite as digestible as some of its stand out tracks. Though most of the songs are surprisingly concise, as only two songs are over six minutes in length, the fifteen tracks that make up the Canadian band's sophomore album is a bit of an overkill. Deepest Roots and Darkest Blues fits the definition of a grower album quite well, as it is quite difficult to get into upon the first one or two listens. Also somewhat irritating are the (rather laughable) lyrics, which blur the lines of stupidity ("I understand the relation / Of black metal and modern life" and "Each day I could see the changes / Each day I became more extreme" both courtesy of Through Chaos and Solitude I Came…) and silliness ("We dug this hole for ourselves, but we’ll gladly bury you instead" – Iron Grudge). While it's baffling how the band could have settled for those lyrics (then again, given the scene they belong to, perhaps not), but David Gold's singing generally negates any ill effects of the lyrical aspect of the album.

Overall, Woods III: The Deepest Roots and Darkest Blues is a rather excellent follow up to Pursuit of the Sun & Allure of the Earth, and taps the Toronto based band's potential exceedingly well. Despite a few blunders during the recording process (both End of Tradition and Song of Redemption could have been dropped), the record shows a definite growth in the band's song writing abilities. Though it's likely that Woods of Ypres' latest foray may not be one of the strongest overall efforts by the end of the year, it's still certainly an album to look into, especially for doom and/or black metal fans.



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user ratings (111)
3.1
good

Comments:Add a Comment 
Mikesn
Emeritus
January 16th 2008


3707 Comments


Would be a 4.5 if it didn't have like 500 songs

Crysis
Emeritus
January 16th 2008


17640 Comments

Album Rating: 2.0

Not a fan of reviewing albums which were leaked... but oh well. Good review nonetheless.

Mikesn
Emeritus
January 16th 2008


3707 Comments


this is already out

Crysis
Emeritus
January 16th 2008


17640 Comments

Album Rating: 2.0

Oh man, thats news to me. Time to go buy this!

Mikesn
Emeritus
January 16th 2008


3707 Comments


you'll have to order it

http://www.theomegaorder.com/s.nl/it.A/id.18694/.f

or

http://www.ultimatemetal.com/forum/woods-ypres/358888-woods-iii-out-heres-how-order-direct-band.html

Essence
January 16th 2008


6739 Comments


Are these guys a lot like Agalloch?

BallsToTheWall
January 16th 2008


51607 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

Great review. Not familiar with this band so buying this now soon whether it's cheaper on Amazon or theomegaorder.



Sorry, yes, it was a slight error. themegaorder, got it.This Message Edited On 01.15.08

Tyler
Emeritus
January 16th 2008


7927 Comments


whether it's cheaper on Amazon or megaupload.


is this a serious post?
And they're sort of like Agalloch, I guess.
Do the cleans stay on key this time around? I was looking forward to this and then just sort of forgot about it.

BallsToTheWall
January 16th 2008


51607 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

There was a moment of confusion with that comment. The Northern Cold is pretty good, the video was pretty cool at times, prefer Descending Winters from STS though.

jimay333
January 16th 2008


433 Comments


Their the black metal version of Agalloch I'd say. I'm getting this album as soon as I can.

Wizard
January 16th 2008


20564 Comments


I'm glad to hear this is promising! Their last album was fantastic! Great review Mikesn! Saying that is getting repeditive!

freudianslipknot
January 16th 2008


803 Comments


Good review. I will definitely get this.

jrowa001
January 16th 2008


8752 Comments


all i have by this band is Pursuit Of The Sun & Allure Of the Earth and i love so i need to get this soon. great review

rasputin
January 16th 2008


14968 Comments


Sounds pretty good.

Mikesn
Emeritus
January 16th 2008


3707 Comments


Do the cleans stay on key this time around? I was looking forward to this and then just sort of forgot about it.
His clean vocals definitely improved from the last album. His growls sound kid of silly sometimes, though.

Two-Headed Boy
January 16th 2008


4527 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

This is really good, if a little bit disappointing. But Distractions of Living Alone, Deepest Roots, Darkest Blues, and the last four or so songs are excellent. Great review.

Confessed2005
January 19th 2008


6088 Comments

Album Rating: 3.0

I really should get into these guys. I'll start with an earlier album though.

Doppelganger
January 20th 2008


3124 Comments


Their the black metal version of Agalloch I'd say.

wat

Doppelganger
January 20th 2008


3124 Comments


oh ok thx for clearing that up

kalkal50
January 20th 2008


2386 Comments


good reviewThis Message Edited On 01.20.08



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