An unexpected gem, ‘golden decadence’ is the fourth album from French rockers Karelia, a band who formed over a decade ago with the intention of crafting music that stands apart from the traditional metal listeners are used to. Musical magpies, whilst the rest of the world has recently been seen to embrace classic styles of rock ‘n’ roll and metal, Karelia have been craftily stripping elements from Nine inch nails, the Scorpions and everything between those wildly disparate acts. The result is an album that offers electronic flourishes, multi-layered vocal harmonies, searing guitar work and even a guest appearance from Rudolf Schenker. Consistently surprising, often very good indeed, ‘Golden decadence’, alongside a tour with the recently reinvigorated Michael Schenker, should see Karelia reach a whole new audience with their well-crafted sounds.
Opening track ‘bill for the ride’ kicks off with some stuttering electronics before the riffs kick in, recalling the Teutonic fury of Rammstein. As with so much on offer here it is a misleading opening that leads from dark, industrial styled verse to power metal chorus in the vein of Europe. It shouldn’t, in any way, shape or form, work… but it does – possibly because no one seems to have tried blending such styles before – and Karelia not only make it sound good, they also make it sound easy. ‘War party’ similarly swirls into view out of a warm, electronic opening that gives way to the burning guitars of Rob Zombie, cross-bred with Sisters of Mercy and Dragonforce. It sounds insane (and it doesn’t make much more sense as I write this), but having listened multiple times it gets harder, rather than easier, to pin down the many and various musical influences flying through the mix. ’Animals’ takes a different tack. Whilst the electronic elements are still very much in evidence, it’s a darker trip that mixes up the vocal harmonies of Alice in chains with the funky delivery of Brandon Boyd and nu-metal guitars before the band slam into the grinding riff of ‘vanity label’, a searing attack on the music industry and the corporate henchmen who run it.
If you think you’ve got the hang of Karelia, ‘housekeeper’ forces a rapid reassessment with its dusky Moroccan rhythms and sweeping strings. It’s a fine exemplar of the band’s versatility and the fact that the band so successfully combine Eastern sounds with some of the album’s heaviest riffs is all the more impressive. ‘Keep watch on me’ sees drummer Fr_Edd Seiler unleash a rolling barrage that predicts a metal monster that utterly fails to materialize as the band choose, instead, to subvert your expectations and go with a slab of sleazy rock ‘n’ roll, complete with sticky riffs and disco-stomp chorus… no really! ‘The way across the hills’ is, as the title might suggest, a more introspective number that sees the band take to the acoustic guitars for a rather beautiful, Scorpions-esque number (somewhat unsurprising as Rudolf Schenker guests on this number), but the band never keep the rock to far from hand and ‘ride it wild’, a sub-three minute roller coaster ride of a track, comes swaggering in off the back of electronic meanderings, heavy riffs and a funky vocal. ‘Body’s falling apart’, from the title could be a depressing reflection on some grand inner-turmoil, but turns out to be a mid-tempo metallic beast with pounding toms and grungy vocals that fall between James Hetfield and AIC’s harmonies. ‘Out for a walk’ is the album closer (two bonus tracks notwithstanding) and it is a strange number, recalling the smooth vibes of OPM on the verse, before the guitars come crashing in and ruin the party for all those trying to relax in the sunny atmosphere. It’s arguably the most incongruous track here and liable to divide opinion who like to keep their music on the metallic side, but it’s well done nonetheless.
Aside from the ten track album, you are also treated to two bonus tracks which turn out to be acoustic versions of songs from the band’s 2005 album ‘raise’. Of the two songs, ‘child has gone’ is a gentle, picked piece of work with a minor key vocal that showcases the change in style the band have undertaken over the years. ‘Unbreakable cordon’, is similarly moody and both songs do much to showcase the band’s ability (not least vocalist Matt Kleiber) once the electronics and heavy duty amplification have been stripped away.
Overall Karelia offer a refreshing take on rock and metal, incorporating a huge swathe of influences to successfully end up sounding satisfyingly original. In some senses you can hear in Karelia what Axl Rose wanted to do with Guns ‘n’ Roses post ‘use your illusion’, that is to incorporate everything from industrial to grunge whilst maintaining a powerful rock back bone, and there are elements here that certainly would not sound out of place on ‘Chinese democracy’, although it is arguable that Karelia have carried off the mix with far greater aplomb. Melodic, heavy and well-produced, Karelia offer up a refreshingly different take on hard rock that is well worth exploring.
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