Trail of Tears - Bloodstained Endurance

September 3, 2009

Reviewer: Peter

Norway has had its share of female-fronted Gothic metal bands emerge from it rugged terrain.  Bands such as Tristania, Sirenia, and Theatre of Tragedy immediately come to mind.  However, one band that almost always seems to be hidden from view is Trail of Tears.  Unlike all of the aforementioned bands, they don’t get nearly same amount of press, but like all of the aforementioned bands, they seem to be experiencing the same downturn that has affected the other bands.  For Trail of Tears, the low point appears to have come in the form of the 2006 release Existentia.  Their latest album Bloodstained Endurance is a slight improvement, but not by much.

Bloodstained Endurance is an improvement over Existentia in the sense that there is more female vocals, which are provided on this album by Cathrine Paulsen.  Unfortunately, that is about the only real thing that can be said for the album.  The music arrangements are okay, at best, but there seems to be one thing that is missing that is important for all bands of its ilk: bombast.  That is not to say that Bloodstained Endurance is completely void of the grandiose factor; in fact, the first track “The Feverish Alliance” shows glimpses of what should have been for the album.  Lead male vocalist Ronny Thorsen provides some rather atypical Gothic metal vocals in the sense that they aren’t the standard “beast style” vocals for the genre.  Paulsen’s vocals are a good compliment to the male growls, which in some ways, accounts for the total amount of bombast on the album.  However, that is the only thing that truly stands out in a good way.  Outside of the keyboard and orchestral arrangements, there isn’t much in the way of either style or substance.  The music is a little flat at times, and while the effort is there to spice things up, it just simply doesn’t pique the listener’s interest long enough.

In spite of the good vocal tradeoffs between Thorsen and Paulsen and the orchestral and keyboard arrangements, once one gets through to the core of the music, there isn’t much to grab onto in terms of the basics.  Bloodstained Endurance seems to be an apt title for the album, especially the second part of the title.  It’ll likely take all the listener has just to get through the album, if one doesn’t decide to change albums first.  Trail of Tears may want to try and think of ways to experiment with their basic sound, as what they are doing right now isn’t going to get many people’s attention.

TRACK LISTING

1.  The Feverish Alliance
2.  Once Kissed by the Serpent
     (Twice Bitten by Truth)
3.  Bloodstained Endurance
4.  Triumphant Gleam
5.  In the Valley of Ashes
6.  A Storm at Will
7.  Take Aim, Reclaim, Prevail.
8.  The Desperation Corridors
9.  Farewell to Sanity
10.  Dead End Gaze
11.  Faith Comes Knocking

Total playing time: 42:49

Release Date: May 27th, 2009
Label: Napalm Records

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