an album that now forms the foundation of the death/doom genre pairing, turns 22 this October and still remains a proud entry in the chronicles of British metal. Rolling Stone called it "Bram Stokers Dracula, for the ears," and the album was, and perhaps still is, everything a doom album should be.
(1993). This would be the second of what (at the time of writing) was a trilogy of songs sharing the title
The first came in '92 and was a full house doom laden affair, comprising all members of the band, led by a weeping guitar riff and the down tempo drums and a crushing mood. Also notable in this version was Aaron Stainthrope's death metal growling. However,
was a much more stripped back, atmospheric piece potentially because the song featured fewer band members. Aaron is on vocal duty again, although, instead of '92's death metal growls, his delivery is a much more thoughtful and forlorn spoken word. The only other featuring band member was Martin Powell, who featured on both keyboards and violin.
On the commentary that came with the 20th anniversary reissue of
Turn Loose The Swans, the band
remark on how some people may have found it a brave move having this slower and certainly less metal track opening a sophmore metal album, especially when the first one was considered a success. They state that whilst it was not the obvious way to do things, "it's better and more interesting to do things almost the opposite of what people expect, it raises eyebrows." I can happily confirm that, for me, I love this intro track, I love this track whether it's the opener or even deeper in the album. But as far as album structure is concerned, this works perfectly as an intro. Firstly, it offers something new, something that the rest of the genre was not doing in '93 and for better or worse, new and interesting things hook people in, once the listener had heard this track they would be more inclined to hear one or two more. Secondly, it has an open, almost minimalistic structure that drifts off to nowhere and allows the listener to do the same, sinking into a fantastical, almost romantic world buoyed by the moods and music that the rest of the album would convey. However, the thing that really sets this song apart from most death metal songs, including others released in the modern age and not just from its '93 contemporaries, are the lyrics. Unlike many death metal lyrics, this is not a song about war or slaughter or blood or virgin sacrifice or Satan. This is a song with a much more wistful, almost romantic content which at times, according to the band, verges on poetry. I believe the closing lyrics say it best: "Romantic in our tastes/We are without excuses/We burn in our lust/We die in our eyes and drown in our arms." As I mentioned at the top of this, this version of Sear Me is the 2nd of a trilogy. Although, the 3rd instalment of this trilogy more follows the vein of the 1st.
The following song,
Your River, echoes the melancholy and indeed the musical sparseness of the opener. The intro, which was written and preformed by Calvin Robertshaw, is around a minute long and is as wonderfully spacious as it is melodic. This is then (perhaps mercifully for the die hard heavy metal fans) followed up by some spectacular riffing, which in some places echos the "Iron Maiden" galloping style (around the 3:17 mark) before once again hitting melodic heights to bring in the first vocals of the song. Yet, to everyone's surprise, Aaron is singing in a clean vocal style (although growling would eventually happen). This would be the first time he had ever done this on a My Dying Bride recording. Again, I feel it works perfectly and his sombre tone matches both the music, mood, and apocalyptic lyrics. To reference the commentary again, "there are a lot of people out there doing fairly mundane things, and to do something a little different is worth it." At the time, Aaron's clean singing was very different, both for the band and for the genre. However, just like the previous track, the experiment paid off. Not only did this help Aaron find his comfort zone with his clean singing vocals, which became something he would explore in the future, but this track has also stood the test of time, being one that is still adored by fans and played live by the band. Overall, I feel this track had a lot to do with the shape of the band moving forward.
The Songless Bird that follows next is a more recognisable doom track. The intro riff, which follows and echoes a lovely symphonic motif played by Martin on the violin (which was bespoke built in Dewsbury) is crushing and melodious, thick with distortion and oscillates around your head. It is a style that has since been picked up by other doom bands and indeed you can hear the similarities here between My Dying Bride and Electric Wizard, who would release their first album in '95, 2 years after
Turn Loose The Swans.Vocally, the song changes from growls to clean singing as Aaron continues to explore his range. The drumming by Rick Miah (RIP) is incredible, at times it feels more like he is drumming with the riffs rather than over it, which is difficult to do but gives the song an irreplaceable groove. If you have read enough of my writing by now, you will know I love grooves in my metal music and
The Songless Bird is full of them!
Next comes the song that probably best describes My Dying Bride. It is heavy, morose, oppressive, dark, sombre and yet it also manages to be poetic, melodious, thoughtful and beautiful.
The Snow in my Hand opens with a riff that I would just love to have playing if ever I am sent to the gallows. This then transforms into a rich down tempo eulogy which is sung over by Aaron in a very pained cleaned style "I've seen them. So dark. Black. And yet fine/The flower they carry had once been mine." From here the song builds into a relentless wall of heavy metal fury. Double bass drums and crunchy riffs preside over Aaron's death metal growls and Martin's soul scraping violin playing. Eventually this falls back down to the mourning, down tempo section from the beginning of the track as Aaron sorrowfully sings the closing lyrics. "I had watched the snow all day falling/it never lets up/all day falling/I lifted my voice and wept out loud..."
Despite the trouble the band had recording the middle section of the song due to the limits of electronic software (and the bands knowledge of such things),
The Crown of Sympathy, remains a classic My Dying Bride song that still has a lot of legs in a live setting. In general, this is a very doom laden track with a beautiful, almost fantastical middle section that sets a really dark atmospheric tone. This is then capped off by a haunting section of 2 voices singing, in unison, another rich song that keeps you alive in its melodious, violin filled waters with the flotsam of chunky riffs and perhaps the most wrenched, and sombre vocal performance from Aaron on the album. At a little over 12 minutes long, this song is a doom epic, well it's a metal music epic, regardless of genres.
Finally, we hit the title track which is obviously,
Turn Loose The Swans. Lyrically, this is probably the most beautiful and interesting concept. Essentially, it is about the dissolution of life. It is about a man who wished that life could be as grand as he desired it to be, perhaps hedonistic and fantastical. But realises that it cannot be that and that life is actually a harsh, grim grind. Especially when compared to what he yearned for it to be. Hence the sheer amount of frustration at the scream of "turn loose the swans" wherein the swans encapsulate the beauty and grace of his desire, but having no need for them any more, turns them loose. Musically, the song captures the mood of someone who has had all they love taken from them and the mask of their reality wrenched away. It is crushing, desolate, dark and oppressive. Mood and music, lyrics and riff marry perfectly here.
The album is finished and book-ended with
Black God, which echoes the openers style and sound, rich and melodious, yet simplistic and minimal. It is a great way to end an album such as this. You drift out, the same way you drifted in, after experiencing some deeply emotional, oppressive and crushing heavy metal. Boldly, My Dying Bride took the decision to enlist a female singer, giving this song new depth. The singer in question was Zena, who was/is a My Dying Bride fan and musician, who was at a show in '92. After handing the band a single, she was asked to join and record the vocals for this haunting, dour song that plays while the listener tries to stitch together the desolation of the the songs that preceded it.
All in all this was a very mature album from a band, who at the time of recording, were all in their 20's. A band who were still finding their feet and their identity in the metal world. However, this album was not only mature, but also brave. As death metal sped up and became more aggressive, My Dying Bride, slowed down and became more oppressive, some may even say filled with repose. The album is rich and steeped in darkness and while the 90's maybe remembered for the Seattle grunge movement, or the angst filled alt rock/metal stylings of Nine Inch Nails, or Smashing Pumpkins, My Dying Bride offered one of the best and most interesting heavy metal experiences of the time with
Turn Loose The Swans. Indeed it was an experience that would and still does, inspire many musicians old and new.
My Dying Bride are currently touring the European festivals, with apperences scheduled at Wacken, Inferno, Graspop and Dokk'em Open Air. They also have plans to release their new album in the Spring of 2015, which sees the return of guitarist Calvin Robertshaw.
Article by Gary Lee (@thewheelbear)
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