Originally posted on Instagram on August 14, 2021.
Album recommendation: ‘Last Fair Deal Gone Down’ by Katatonia
MINI COLLAB REVIEW
Due to my trip I didn’t have enough time this week to record and edit a full video review so I’m just doing a little review here instead. Also, I typically only review albums from the last month or so, but I’m making another exception here for the collaboration. This was my first dive into Katatonia’s music and I knew next to nothing about them previous to this.
‘Last Fair Deal Gone Down’ is Katatonia’s fifth studio album released back in 2001. It marked a significant turning point in Katatonia’s catalogue and saw the band change their style from death/doom metal into more alt rock/heavy metal, featuring clean vocals instead of screams. It wasn’t what I expected at all, but in the end I rather enjoyed it.
I anticipated more thrash/death metal influences. Instead I was met with lots of grunge touches and some spacy electronic elements, most notably a drum-machine. The vocals are very melodic yet subdued and the guitar riffs rely heavily on power chords. Some nice additions to the music are the strings on “Dispossession” and “The Future of Speech” as well as the jazz-fusion-esque intro to “Don’t Tell A Soul.” However, LFDGD’s strength definitely lies in the melodic vocals and the jams between the guitar, bass, and drums.
Lyrically, many of the songs discuss personal struggles as well as fictional stories. Of course, my favorites are the ones about personal struggles because I think they feel more real and from the heart. Overall, the lyrics are well-written and quite poetic.
As my first glimpse into Katatonia’s music, this album has made me curious to listen to more of their music and study their evolution over time.
Big thanks to @randometalbvms for inviting me to join this collaboration and to everyone else for participating!
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See you all when I get back in early September!
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