Orphanage - By Time Alone (1996) - Between the beauty and the beast - 84% (11/08/11)

I first heard from the band and this album when I saw the brilliant and creepy video clip of the opener "At The Mountains Of Madness" on a compilation record. I actually thought this was a modern band and was surprised to discover that this record is from the mid-nineties. Today, many band mix harsh death vocals with operatic approaches and soft female vocals but at that time when the metal scene was running low, Orphanage delivered something quite unique and visionary.

I like the mixture of straight death metal tracks such as the hidden bonus song "The Crumbling Of My Denial" on one side and more epic and majestic gothic songs like "Cliffs Of Moher". The bonus track even employs some electronic elements which underlines the open-minded creativity of the guys and the girl from the Netherlands. But the band is best when they unite both sides like in the fantastic opener and band hymn "At The Mountains Of Madness" or the calm and spiritual "Requiem". Orphanage switch easily and quickly between spiritual and ethereal choirs, female operatic voices, slight orchestra samples and a lot of piano work on one side and sharp simplistic but effective riffs, powerful harsh vocals and even dark narrative passages on the other side. The band develops a strong and dark atmosphere that reminds me of the horror metal approaches from recent bands such as "The Vision Bleak" or "Marienbad" but also the earlier days of "Therion". This band does almost some pioneer work and has a lot of potential. It's a shame that they didn't get the success they would have deserved and split up so early and they surely do a better job than bands such as “Sirenia”, “Angtoria” or “Atargatis” that try to copy this style nowadays.

I really suggest any fan of gothic metal music with guts to check this charming and visionary record out. Even though some tracks are less convincing and get a little bit repetitive in the middle of the album, the band employs a really good mixture between the beauty and the beast of the gothic metal genre.