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Ad Inferna - Im Mortelle


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Like a precisely attuned mechanism, French Ad Inferna continues their annual release schedule with "Im Mortelle". Their newest record is soaked in moodiness, its heart clearly devoted to the depths of melancholy and darkwave gloom. Without act's usual dance-floor bent it's an exercise in stylistic cogency that fulfils its dark intent but doesn't register as the peak of their creative prowess.

Album opens to haunting atmospheres of 'Eternity Regained' filled with shiver inducing, sensuous whispers and choirs, punctuated by sounds of piano and brought to life through pulsating synths. Track's restrained tempo marks Ad Inferna's departure from the explosive, bombastic rhythms of their past material even if vitality of the compositions is not sacrificed in favour of dense, brooding tones. Tones that define the shape of tracks like sample heavy 'The Freezing Light' and contemplative, ascetic 'Rebirth'.
Alas "Im Mortelle" reaches its heights beyond the gothic context of its stylization- at the point where Ad Inferna's darkwave tendencies meet band's infatuation with energizing, club friendly arrangements. Romantically predisposed 'Equinoxe' finds them swaying between the lush, dramatic vocals and infectious electronic melody, while 'Extra Life' transforms from slow burning ambient textures to full on assault of blunt beats and growling voices. It seems that under the shadow of every mysterious intro, lurks a predictable structure of dynamic EBM crescendos that although enjoyable, begin to contradict album's palpable sense of artistic sensibility.
Track list is book ended by 'Ad Vitam' that returns the listener to motifs from 'Eternity Regainged' in an attempt on adding an overarching conceptual structure to the music on "Im Mortelle". The sense of poignant journey is all but gone by this point however, killed by the monotonous stylization and abundance of melancholic instrumentations that act under the pretence of higher creative purpose. In the desperate attempt on elevating their method, the duo of VoA VoXyD. and V.V. Arkames sacrificed the straightforward pleasures of past releases, replacing them with uniformly haunting but dour and forgettable melange of gothic styles.

This newest release is somehow devoid of the energy that felt palpable on Ad Inferna's previous records as if the exploration of the darkest corners of their imagination brought their musical growth to a sudden halt. Build from solid but dated darkwave elements and erected on the foundations of simplistic dance floor ready trends "Im Mortelle" is forgettable even if mildly entertaining.

Track list:


01. Eternity Regained (Feat. Melissa Ferlaak)
02. The Freezing Light (Feat. MyLucina)
03. Extra Life
04. ReBirth (Feat. Annie Bertram)
05. One Million Miles Away
06. Equinoxe (Feat. Alina Dunaevskaya)
07. In-Human
08. Moïra (Bewitched By Jana Cova)
09. Ad Vitam (Feat. Melissa Ferlaak)
10. Eternity Regained (Acoustic Version)
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Translator: DamienG
Add date: 2013-05-27 / Music reviews


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