Evemaster
Wither
6.4
And so the Finnish metal onslaught continues. Evemaster, comprised of only 2 full-time members, returns for their third release, Wither. Following a dark atmospheric approach to music, Evemaster aims to evoke a sense of rough melodic black/death.
If you've ever heard Finnish metal, then you know exactly what to expect on the guitars. Infectious melodies guitar melodies abound, Evemaster hits a mid-paced ride for the listener pretty much the entire way through Wither. To me, it almost seems reminiscent of a slower paced Kalmah in a way, with a bit less technical prowess. The keyboards are mostly for atmosphere (providing the symphonic black metal elements) but occasionally take the forefront, but are never laid on too heavy. There are four different vokillist on this album and this leads to my only qualm. Main vokillist and full-time member, Jarno Tuskula, does a fine job with his harsh black metal onslaught, but then there's M. Lindberg (sorry I don't know the first names of some of the session members, I couldn't find them anywhere) who provides the occasional clean vokills throughout that just don't sound quite right in my ear. L. Pentillä provides the backing grim vokills which come across as a bit whiny in my opinion and are not to my liking at all. Lastly, M. Hietala provides the power metal vokills on the last track, "Wings of Darkness" (a cover from a Finnish metal band called Tarot), which I do enjoy, but unfortunalty he only makes an appearance for one track.
For me personally, Wither, just does not get me all hot and bothered. It's an enjoyable listen however, and Evemaster is a band worth checking in to if you haven't heard them. If you're currently on a feeding frenzy of Finnish metal (which seems to be the fast growing trend), then this is worth giving a chance, but is far from the best the country has to offer to the metal community.
