HANGING GARDEN: Into That Good Night (ATMOSPHERIC METAL): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

Despite its 15 years of existence and five studio albums, Hanging Garden is struggling to make a name for itself outside its borders. Yet, the band has produced real pearls of metal on the borders of doom, melodic death and dark metal. After some experimentations, "I Am Become" seemed to mark the return to an identity now well assumed, as well as a certain maturity.

With the official integration of the singer Riikka Hatakka who only appeared as a guest until now, Hanging Garden benefits from three singers who offer a varied and complementary range of vocals able to convey all the emotions contained in his compositions. And the gods of the Kalevala know how varied these feelings are. From the catchy big riff of 'Of Love And Curses' to the soothing, delicate roll of 'Navigator', the darkness of 'Fear, Longing, Hope & The Night' or the oppressive Doom of 'Silent Sentinel', the northern melancholy is combined here in all its nuances. Alternating between soft passages and painful and heart-rending protrusions, the Helsinki band plays with the clear vocals of Toni Toivonen and the black growls and screams of Jussi Hämäläinen. This contrast is reminiscent of Swallow The Sun, except that in the latter, Mikko Kotamäki does all the vocals alone.

But if the shadow of Juha Raivio's band sometimes hovers over the work of Hanging Garden, the two formations have many differences to which the integration of Riika Hatakka's female vocals adds to. It's true that most Finnish bands share this particular sound mixing melancholy and pale light, but Mikko Kolari's band only rarely takes on the very dark territories in which Swallow The Sun has often gone with talent. With tracks such as the single 'Rain' or the atmospheric ballad 'Navigator', Hanging Garden becomes more accessible to the uninitiated without being considered as commercial. It's easy to get hooked by some riffs ('Of Love And Curses', 'Anamnesis') or by some choruses ('Fear, Longing, Hope & The Night', 'Silent Sentinel'), or to be bewitched by the almost epic approach of the eponymous track.

Ending on 'Signs Of Affection', whose lyrics are an English adaptation of a Finnish text by Elli Loppa and on which Riika and Toni's vocals are superimposed, "Into That Good Night" perfectly fulfils its role of confirming the maturity reached on its predecessor. Without containing any real surprise, it imposes the strong identity of the Finnish band. Often suspended between abysses of sadness, protrusions of rage and anger and flights towards pale hopes, Hanging Garden now positions itself alongside the leaders of an art both dark and melodic. - Official website

HANGING GARDEN

INTO THAT GOOD NIGHT

LIFEFORCE

ATMOSPHERIC METAL