Indian based metal group Midhaven are back with their concept album ‘Of the Lotus & the Thunderbolt’. Forming back in 2012, the band saw growth with the release of their 2013 EP titles ‘Tales From The Tide’ which was met with mixed reviews. The band continued to steadily grow with the release of their first album back in 2014 titled ‘Spellbound’ which was, once again, met with mixed reviews. The band will be hoping for a more universally approved release this time around so without any further delay, here is my review of Midhaven’s ‘Of the Lotus & the Thunderbolt’.
Opening track ‘Para Brahman’ gets the album started unusually. The structure of the song feels quite lost and there is a real lack of progression throughout which hurts the song quite a bit. Mix that with a fairly generic instrumental and it‘s safe to say it’s not the best way to kick off an album, and unfortunately this momentum continues into ‘Primal Song’. Sounding out of time at parts, this song is just not that good. The mixing on the track seems off with parts fading in and out constantly as if they are being panned from speaker to speaker. A very unusual technique that was hard to ignore while listening to this track.
On a bit of a brighter note, ‘Codeman’ is an ok track. The melodic guitar is a bit too quiet and is drowned out by everything else but, overall, this track has a bit more going for it. A more engaging beat matched with a decent mix of levels can go a long way and this is a great example of that. In a sudden twist, the atmospheric track ‘The Immanent Effervescence of Sorrow’ is a light in the dark. The calming melodies are a beacon of hope in a sea of mediocrity and it was a welcome addition to the album for me. This was by far the best track of the entire record!
Falling back down to a disappointing level, ‘Zhitro’ is a slog to listen to. Coming in at a whopping 9:37, the song does little to keep the listener engaged and I found myself becoming easily disinterested and at times, wanting to skip right past this mess of a track. Things aren’t saved by the following track ‘Mahakaal’ either. Once again, the song feels completely void of any life and I can’t help but wonder why I listened to this track more than once. Extremely disappointing! I think the saying save the best till last is great however I don’t think Midhaven would agree with me as once again, this song is just bland and uninspiring. I guess it’s the perfect way to wrap up this album.
I don’t think I really have to say much more on this album. I found it to be an extremely dull and boring affair. Musically, the record is generic and in terms of my enjoyment, while listening to it, there was very little. Reviewing music rarely feels like work however this album certainly felt like a chore to get through. At least it has a kick-ass cover.
We see you like Midhaven! Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram for the latest news about them.