Review: Desire “Infinity… A Timeless Journey Through an Emotional Dream” [Skyfall Records]

How seriously Desire took themselves we may never know, but the silly nicknames of these guys crack me up and who could forget this album title? Pretentious nicknames and album titles aside – we’re dealing with acceptable doom/death metal that leans more towards the melodic and weepy side of things here (as if that cover artwork wouldn’t give that one away).

To be honest I’m not even sure what Infinity… A Timeless Journey Through an Emotional Dream tries to achieve, as it’s hardly a heavy record, yet it doesn’t function as an album that tries to lure one into its own world through repetition for atmospheric sake. To start off with, this isn’t much of a riff-driven record, even though it’s fairly guitar-driven. Guitars sound far from rigid, yet there aren’t many actual standout riffs emerging – instead, they function more as a tool to lead compositions onward, regardless of the pacing that’s taking place. Referentially speaking Infinity… A Timeless Journey Through an Emotional Dream doesn’t obviously owe anything to earlier albums I can think of, yet I can certainly identify some interest in Paradise Lost circa Icon at times. Take “A Ride in a Dream Crow” for instance, where one stumbles upon a brief, yet brisk riff between the dreamy synths. That said, Infinity… A Timeless Journey Through an Emotional Dream isn’t much of a “riff monster” that hammers one to death with physically harming riff work. That’s not to say that the movements of these compositions are caused by many leads, either. In fact, they’re rather created by pretty ordinary rhythms where leads take a supporting role (even if they aren’t exactly stealing the show). As far as guitar solos are concerned, only “Leaving This Land of Eternal Desires” features a brief, if sentimental solo during the track’s break of a guitarist who goes by the name of Mist. You’d think that the keyboard player would name himself like that, yet he’s called Dawn instead… but I digress.

Regardless of what Infinity… A Timeless Journey Through an Emotional Dream tries to achieve, it’s rather enjoyable, even if it’s hardly the most exciting doom/death metal album out there. The gradual tempo change prevent the tracks from sounding trapped in a one dimensional manner and while there are no threatening riffs showing up that could punch you in the face and kick you in the nuts (or guts for that matter), I’ve heard far sappier guitar work. Sure, these guitar riffs sound fairly “pretty”, yet seldom get boring. Lyrically speaking “Leaving This Land of Eternal Desires” gets rather silly (did you already get that the vocalists cry for their desire?), yet these guitar riffs slowly unfold themselves in a well-paced manner and that works well enough for me. From the humming synths that start off to the quasi-rousing movements and back again, the track sounds quite like a calming journey and although the stereotypical vocal mixture isn’t the best, I can certainly think of bands that featured worse vocals (such as Visceral Evisceration for example). You know the deal: thick beasty growls, thin blackened shrieks, angelic female vocals and goofy spoken word passages.

As far as individual compositions are concerned, Infinity… A Timeless Journey Through an Emotional Dream doesn’t have too many to offer, but that’s hardly an issue to me (besides, who likes their albums to be bloated? I don’t). Therefore it’s probably for the best to spin this album in one setting to get the most out of it, even though it’s not without disturbances. Somehow “Forever Dreaming” sees Desire restraining way too much for their own good, as you end up with a lazy palm muted guitar chug, cliché spoken word sections and not enough and a goofy keyboard melody that’s at least worth a laugh. The thick and prominent bass lines do promise something rewarding, yet the track just never takes off and the result is an undeniable piece of filler.

Regardless, Infinity… A Timeless Journey Through an Emotional Dream features more pros than cons and it’s as suitable for an introspective evening as it is for a nice walk close to the sea – you can thank the woman on the cover artwork for making me think of the latter.

Release date: June 5th, 1996

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