THE BUTCHER'S BALLROOM

When listening to this album with the term 'swing metal' being the only information I had about them, I expected an entire album full of some lighthearted, jazzy fun. What I got instead was a much more varied, eclectic album taking inspiration from symphonic metal bands such as Nightwish, and then applying a massive variety of genre influences such as swing and flamenco, complete with a great juxtaposition between operatic female vocals and much more standard, albeit expressive male vocals, which adds even more character to the band. Despite the very distinct, quite unique sound they have, I also do find a lot of it to be extremely fun and accessible, with everything having a very pleasant, or at least palatable sound to it.

Balrog Boogie is a track that was exactly as I expected from this band, a really groovy bassline that then explodes into a fun, jazzy melody. I find the song to be a more operatic, slightly less energetic take on Devin Townsend's Bad Devil in many respects, and the influence is incredibly clear. Heroines is a much calmer song with a tango style, with a great build up as more metal elements are introduced, before they all fade away into a really nice cello solo. The next song, Poetic Pitbull Revolution, is my favourite on the album, with a really fun salsa style, with some incredibly entertaining trumpets and my favourite moment on the album, the guitar solo at around the minute mark. The song has a particular intensity to it that I just love, and it definitely separates itself from a lot of other songs due to having this, constantly dipping and rising in intensity. Rag Doll Physics marks another high point with by adding a layer of melancholy through the almost isolated feel of the chorus adding some more depth.

The album continues along the line of making all around enjoyable songs that try out their own styles, with particular mention going to Infralove, both for it's incredible transition and its slight electronic intro, which sounds marvellous, and Pink Noise Waltz for the extremely enjoyable guitar. One issue I do have is that I do find the second half of the album to become less interesting due to the somewhat similar sound a lot of the songs have, even if they go into wildly different styles. I feel like this has something to do with the extremely dramatic nature of everything, with the vocals being the clearest sign of it, making it grow somewhat tiring by the end, although it's not enough to have me dislike the album in any way.

Overall, this is a highly enjoyable, interesting album that shows a lot of potential, despite its mild shortcomings. I definitely appreciate how the variation of styles isn't just a gimmick, but the music complements it quite well. I found this album to overall be highly enjoyable and definitely feel compelled to check out their later albums to see what they end up doing with this, especially if they end up going into more territory explored on songs like Gunpowder Chant and Porcelain Judas, both of which have a particular exotic tinge to them that I'd love listening to more of.

Best songs: Balrog Boogie, Poetic Pitbull Revolution, Rag Doll Physics, Infralove

Weakest songs: Velvet Embracer

Verdict: Anyone who wants something fun and different to listen to, I'd recommend this to you, as nothing about it is particularly challenging, yet still offers a very compelling listen full of interesting concepts.

Edit: Despite how fun the album is, I really don't find much push to relisten to it that much. It's actually exactly what I expected from this kind of band, with a gothic sound with nice overtones of a lot of entertaining genres, but never really goes far and beyond to me.