Reviewed by Alex Figgis

In much the same vein as fellow Norwegians Extol, Lengsel (meaning "longing" or "yearning") pull no punches stylistically. Tor (guitars/vocals), Ole (drums/guitar/keys) and John (bass) pull together to create some breathtaking technical hardcore, blending such traditional elements as doom, thrash and speed to create their own unique style. Classically influenced, Lengsel's particular brand of progressive metal constantly provides a compelling basis upon which they provoke the listener into thinking about issues of the eternal kind. A good example of Lengsel's "typical" sound is the doom ladened "Coal Of Arms". Complete with atmospheric passages of keyboard runs at the hands of Ole, the song slowly builds in intensity, until finally erupting into a seemingly chaotic wall of complex rhythms and obscure time signatures. Though superbly arranged and delivered, Lengsel fail lo realise their full potential with 'Solace'. Sounding a little constrained and somewhat two dimensional, it is a shame that the panoramic nature of the music herein hinted at has not been encouraged to come to the fore. In spite of this, however, with 'Solace' Lengsel will no doubt continue to win favour within (the hard music scene leaving them still plenty of room to develop and mature into a musical Leviathan).

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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