Despite the fact that the Canadian band WOODS OF YPRES around main man David Gold constantly have released fantastic albums since a few years they still seem to be something like an insider’s tip in the darker metal scene (at least here in Germany). So let’s hope that the new album titled Woods IV: The Green Album will finally change this and give them the audience they clearly deserve.
On Woods IV: The Green Album WOODS OF YPRES have refined their diverse sound in an impressive way.
While the first album was influenced a lot by Black Metal generally, the two following albums contained a lot of Doom and Dark Rock influences, acoustic guitars and extremely well done clean vocals supporting the Black and Death Metal drenched screams. All of this was put together by WOODS OF YPRES to really fantastic and both complex and catchy songs, far away from standard “evil” Black metal and more a form of dark, nature bond sound, which some poor grudgers without a needed mental horizon labeled mockingly as “Summer Black Metal”. So what…!?!
Woods IV: The Green Album as such is the logical next step on the chosen path and comes along with a full load (16 altogether!) of wonderful songs in the mentioned blend of styles, this time moving even a bit further away from Black Metal towards more doomy terrain but without leaving aside the grim parts completely. The self chosen description “dark and organic” hits the nail right on the head – you definitely find something breathing and living here, but coming from dark side of the woods and out of earth’s dark bowels and I’m nearly drawn to give this a new label called Darkgreen Metal as neither Black, Doom nor Dark Metal really describe their music.
But in the end it doesn’t matter anyway – it’s not the genre name that counts but only the music. And WOODS OF YPRES Green Album really blows me away. Regardless if sounding slow, gritty and heavy riff laden (Everything I Touch Turns To Gold… Then To Coal), if creating a gloomy, melancholic atmosphere solely by acoustic guitars (You Are Here With me (In This Sequence Of Dreams)) or if playing Dark Rock in a most catchy way (Wet Leather) – WOODS OF YPRES just shine in all respects and nearly apropos of nothing throw out choruses for which other bands would do anything to write them. Besides the great guitar work another outstanding feature once again are the diverse vocals, which suit me personally best when coming along in the clear and melancholic way, slightly reminding of a rawer form of new Anathema or Katatonia.
Being a fan of either Doom, Black or general Dark Metal there just is no way around Woods IV: The Green Album and more than any other band I encountered during the last years, WOODS OF YPRES deserve to be supported and gain more listeners!
With the Green Album being available as a limited 2CD version (the second CD containing the full album of David Gold’s other band Necramyth) for ridiculous 20 $ (inl. shipping!!!) and with all songs put up on Youtube by the band themselves, any form of hesitation is just redundant and makes at least an occupation with this fantastic band simply obligatory!
Direct contact: woodsofypres @ hotmail.com