Nothing, Nobody, Never...

The Russian S.N.D. productions is a new label which was established with the one and only purpose to promote and release albums by bands from the city of Stavropol. Some time ago they sent me “Nothing, Nobody, Never…”, the second full length album of Alienation Cold, as you understood, from Russia and specifically from the city of Stavropol. The band exists since 2004, consists of two members and has also released one more full length album in 2006. Their new album contains three compositions of atmospheric Black Metal, a mix of harshness and melody, of thirty tree minutes of total duration.

This album is based on the feeling and it seems that Alienation Cold know how to offer intense feelings and pictures to the listener. The awesome keyboards are those that rule in the compositions giving so live pictures and feelings. However that doesn’t mean that they haven’t done a good job also concerning the rest instruments. The dark, melancholic guitars are combined perfectly with the keyboards and create a very beautiful scenery where the colors given by the keyboards get a somber shade by the sound of the guitars. The riffs are melancholic, mainly slow and mid paced but with the violent, fast parts being also present. The melodies of the keyboards, depending on the part, are melancholic, depressing, dark and paranoid. The bass gives depth to the compositions but it is placed behind the keyboards and guitars and it almost never plays the leading role. The drums come from a drum machine which usually is terrible and ruins the whole effort. Nevertheless I have to admit that both the sound of the drums sounds real and their lines are quite interesting.

The vocals are harsh Black Metal vocals, quite expressive, they add a touch of dark madness and isolation completing the strangely beautiful scenery. The production is very clean, without being annoying or ruining the feeling, it creates a clean sound which helps the listener listen to everything. The mix is very good, giving the premiere role to the keyboards, having the guitars a little lowered, it creates a massive sound.

Alienation Cold in this album show their talent and their love to the dark music. All this creates an album full of sentiments and pictures that it offers a very beautiful, dark voyage to the listener. I think that if many of you overcome your prejudices concerning the more melodic sound, you will surely discover a very good band. The rest of you probably you have already discover them and you have already bought “Nothing, Nobody, Never…”.