Light Of Day, Day Of Darkness

What is going on at The End Records as of late? This label is really getting some incredibly talented musicians on their expanding roster. With bands like Agalloch and Scholomance releasing excellent albums you might as well go ahead and add Green Carnation to the list as well.

Green Carnation is a band with a pretty storied background. The band was started in 1990 and released a death metal demo entitled "Hallucinations of Despair" in 1992. Tchort later left to take over the bass duties for Emperor and current vocalist Richard Olsen decided to leave as well. The band found a new vocalist, changed their style and name to In the Woods… The band reformed in 1998 and set about writing new material and released an album in 2000. In September of 2001 the band finished work on their latest creation "Light of Day, Day of Darkness".

This album is simply described by one word…BRILLIANT!!! This is just incredible when you really take the time to experience this album as a whole. The album has only one track but that one track is 60+ minutes in length. You would think that this would make the song drag somewhere along the line but it never does. This is one of those albums that you really need to devote an entire hour to and sit back and really listen. This album has the effect on me as if this is a story being told that is addicting and you cant wait to hear where it is going to go next. The time and care that were taken in the studio shows the intense desire to release something special when see what was all involved. The use of an opera choir, children's choirs, a string ensemble and even a sitar really show the level at which the band was willing to go to release something really special. This album really runs the entire spectrum of emotion and does so seamlessly that you are simply amazed when the album is done playing. There are many varying styles of metal on this album but it is really pointless trying to pick one over another and I really believe this would simply end up taking something away from the music by trying to give it a label.

Overall one of the best albums I have heard all year and a must have for any serious metal head. Highly Recommended.