Nahtaivel is the solo
project formed by Brazilian native Fernando Nahtaivel, whose former
credits include keyboard duties in the black metal bands Insane
Devotion, Evilwar and Doomsday Ceremony. With five solo albums
already under his belt since 2002 his latest release sees a major
change in direction. His dance-friendly and club-orientated
industrial/ebm formula on 'Epicus Doomicus Electronicus' is augmented
by sci-fi themes, tribal drumming, ethnic embellishments and an
altogether more adventurous writing style.
Taking cues from the likes of iVardensphere and even a hint of Juno Reactor, songs like 'Galactica', 'Life:Abomination', 'The Void', 'Here Comes The Rain', and 'Twilight Zone' are all testament to this more innovative approach to song writing. The mixture of prog sensibilities, seething synthesizers, distorted vocals and infectious, organic sounding rhythms give the tracks a greater scope than his previous club friendly offerings.
Nahtaivel has chosen to gamble on this release, and for the most part it has paid off. There are a few areas that do hold the album back a bit. The overly long intro with battle sounds on 'Green Hell' is unnecessary and clumsy, and 'Endless Galaxies Part I' sounds a bit too much like it was written for a video game compared to the more cinematic tracks on the album.
On the whole though, the quality of the song writing, along with the production of the album is pretty solid. Occasionally the mix gets a little swamped with all the various elements vying for the listeners attention, but the songs don't suffer for it.
This is a strong release for Nahtaivel and one that could prove to be a serious game changer. A little more of a focussed execution (and perhaps a whole lot more of the tribal and eastern influences) on future releases will undoubtedly see his stock rise further afield.
Taking cues from the likes of iVardensphere and even a hint of Juno Reactor, songs like 'Galactica', 'Life:Abomination', 'The Void', 'Here Comes The Rain', and 'Twilight Zone' are all testament to this more innovative approach to song writing. The mixture of prog sensibilities, seething synthesizers, distorted vocals and infectious, organic sounding rhythms give the tracks a greater scope than his previous club friendly offerings.
Nahtaivel has chosen to gamble on this release, and for the most part it has paid off. There are a few areas that do hold the album back a bit. The overly long intro with battle sounds on 'Green Hell' is unnecessary and clumsy, and 'Endless Galaxies Part I' sounds a bit too much like it was written for a video game compared to the more cinematic tracks on the album.
On the whole though, the quality of the song writing, along with the production of the album is pretty solid. Occasionally the mix gets a little swamped with all the various elements vying for the listeners attention, but the songs don't suffer for it.
This is a strong release for Nahtaivel and one that could prove to be a serious game changer. A little more of a focussed execution (and perhaps a whole lot more of the tribal and eastern influences) on future releases will undoubtedly see his stock rise further afield.
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