Band: Century Sleeper
Title: Awaken
Label: Bombworks
Release Date: 8/1/2006
Review By: Josh IndieVision
Tracklisting:
01. Voyage
02. Arnos Vale
03. My Face In Eternity
04. Look Straight Through
05. Lost On Your Ocean
06. Fainted World
07. Centenary
08. Your Once Loving Heart
09. The End
10. As I Close The Final Page
11. Autumn
Members/Duties:
Ian Arkley: Vocals, Rhythm, Acoustic, Lead Guitars, E-Bow, Bass James Allin: Keys, Drums, Programming
Century Sleeper is the side project of Ian Arkley from the UK-based death/doom band My Silent Wake and James Allin of the U.S. for Visionaire. In this band, they pretty much keep the same feel keeping the death/doom sounds mixed in with a gothic feel. They’re able to meld the two bands together quite well and produce a solid effort. While you will hear sounds reminiscent of each respective member’s other music endeavors, Century Sleeper does stand apart in the fact that it is a bit more accessible to all. It seems to be a bit more “mainstream” and might open the doors to this genre for some.
The opener, “Voyage”, is a slow paced, haunting melody. The guitars are tuned low and have a thick sound, bringing that doom feel. “Arnos Vale” opens up with a nice guitar riff which leads into a upbeat rhythm, with much lower, dark, clean vocals this time. “Look Straight Through” is a very mellow track filled with hushed, gloomy vocals. This is the one track that keeps things short and simple wrapping up just over the 2 minute mark. One of the main drawbacks for me in this album is that it’s very long. Most of the tracks tend to drag on and would seem to be much more enjoyable if cut down a few minutes. The rest of the album varies back and forth between atmospheric keyboard-filled gloomy tracks and more rock focused doom.
Overall Rating: This was a hard album for me to get into. I’m not big into the gothic culture or sounds. It’s a good effort but I feel it’ll only appeal to those who are already fans of this style. I liked parts but not the complete package.
Standout Tracks: “Arnos Vale”, “Your Once Loving Heart”
Individual Ratings:
Lyrics: Very dark and gloomy, typical for the gothic realm. I have to say I do enjoy the more uplifting type or the stand and fight of hardcore, but these were interesting to read through. The negative was that I wasn’t completely sure what the lyrics were speaking of at times.
Marketability: I’d say there’s not much potential for these guys to get big like other goth-rock acts like say AFI, Manson, or Type O Negative. The album, however, will appeal to those lovers of doom and goth metal though.
Similar To: Type O Negative, Celtic Frost, My Dying Bride
Website
Myspace
Bombworks Records
Buy: here
