I’m always on the prowl for dreamy music, especially metal. It’s harder to find things that fit that descriptor in the metal area too. After discovering sometime three or so years ago ISON, I somehow didn’t run into Light Field Reverie until earlier this year. My surprise arises from the fact that former ISON vocalist, Heike Langhans performs vocals on Another World, as well as synths and writes the lyrics too. So basically what I'm saying is that while I was doing my 'homework' about ISON, it would've been expected to find this.
Obviously, I got excited when I saw there’s this and after listening to the album once, that excitement skyrocketed. I think Astronoid already sort of claimed the ‘dream metal’ moniker with their particular blend, but in a certain way I really feel that it applies here just as well, even if in a different manner.
Light Field Reverie play, something I couldn’t summarize succinctly, a mix of doom metal, atmospheric metal, post rock, and post metal with something of a progressive tinge to it. But do listen to the record and tell me if dream metal, as a label, doesn’t encapsulate the essence of what’s going on perfectly.
The slowly expanding phrases, the ample and lush textures, the sparkling melodies, and many other details, contribute to a dream like vibe. I think I’d say that there’s something of a gothic element in there tucked away neatly, but it surfaces more as a feeling rather than actually taking aesthetic cues from that niche.
Anyway, labels aside, the oneiric tone of the music is ultimately owed to its slow pacing, Langhans’s soothing and ethereal voice, and the heavy usage of synths. I would add that the usage of synths is very tightly knit into the sonic tapestry and really manages to craft the entire backdrop of the listening experience as something nigh cosmic.
The slow pacing is something I had a bit of trouble pinning down as it is. At first it didn’t feel like that, mostly because of the vibrant melodic content and the dense, overlapping layers, but as I repeated the trip, I concluded that indeed, it’s far from quick and maybe closer to moderate on that spectrum, than legitimately slow, the way we’d know doom metal to be traditionally for instance.
It feels quite engaging and easy to pass through in spite of that. Most records that focus on textures and atmosphere can lose listeners due to how they decide to go, but it’s far from an issue here. The flow of the album is even and fluid, leading the listener with ease from one end to another. There’s also a fair amount of groove that makes things catchy as well, which coupled with the steady rhythm, makes for a hypnotic experience. I found that most enchanting through the course of “The Oldest House”, particularly in the latter part of it.
Granted, it’s not a long record, spanning just a little over forty minutes, but it feels shorter than that. At least that’s how I perceived it upon my initial encounters. Maybe it also has to do with my weakness for this specific kind of music and it just sort of passed quickly.
For all intents and purposes, Another World is a practically flawless record. All around there’s no noticeable weakness and virtually no fat that needs trimming. I think that it’s actually so lean that I almost wished there was some filler, just so it can go on for longer. Ultimately, I’d say that Another World literally refers to where it wants to take you. It did that successfully with me, so I urge you to give it a shot as well. Worst case scenario, you’ll waste little over half an hour, whereas in the best case you’ll have a small haven to retreat to for a long time.
