Colosseum - Chapter 2: Numquam

Colosseum are a band from Finland who show some real potential to be one of the new shining lights in doom metal when their debut album "Chapter 1: Delirium" came out in 2007. That is a masterpiece of funeral doom with a bleak and dreary atmosphere that was hard to beat at the time. While the word "progression" is not usually associated with doom metal, usually bands in the genre do change and develop their sound over time and i have been waiting for nearly a year to hear this album to see which way Colosseum go. While i have to say "Chapter 2: Numquam is disappointing because its so much like the first album, you swear at times you are listening to the same songs all over again. Not that its all a bad thing, the first album after all is a classic slab of doom intensity. Were they just trying to write and record part two versions of every song from the first album ? I don't know but the tracks on here are so recycled from the first album tracks that you are blown away by the overwhelming sense of deja vu. Within seconds of the opening track "Numquam" is become obvious that this just a re-write of the opening cut from the first album "The Gate of Adar". The main riff is the exact same slow-chugging riff or very close to it and the vocals are the same guttural death-growl. You don't really expect vocals to change much album to album but here you get the feeling its the same words all over again. Maybe they are just playing it safe and trying to capture the essence of the first album. Now skipping the obvious comparisons, the album does have some subtle differences from the first. The keyboards seem a little louder in the mix this time around and there is more quieter sections added in which give the album a little extra dimension.

The use of orchestral type arrangements are still prominent in the songs, the last part of the second track "Towards The Infinite" being a good example. The other standout track is the last track before the outro called "Prosperity" and this contains all the elements that made the first album such a powerful album. The tracks in-between follow pretty much the same path, the sound on this album is still massive with crushing bottom-end and excellent production. The band’s ability to use the slow build up to a crescendo is still there but there is a increased use of keyboard and guitar melodies that seem tighter overall. The guttural vocals are still there but are mixed perfectly so as to not take away the main focus of the instruments. There is still the melancholy and sadness that the first album had and they still have the soaring lead breaks, i do dig the style but i would have like a little more anger inserted into the songs in parts. Interesting if you judge this album as a whole it is full of great moments like the final crescendo of "Prosperity" but its moments more than complete songs that leave a lasting impression. In conclusion, there is nothing on this album to compare to the brilliance of "Aesthetics of the Grotesque" from the first album but it is still high quality doom but obviously the band doesn't know the meaning of the word "plagiarism" that this album reeks off. If you never heard the band before and love funeral doom, you will dig "Chapter 2: Numquam" but if you bought the first album you may feel like you bought the same album again. I hope for the next album they show some signs of innovation and progressed a bit, a third album the same as this would be overkill but for now this is a crushing funeral doom release you should check out. 7/10

Colosseum @ MySpace