Tales Of Dark



2006 - Fragile Monuments

Official Site

Reviews:

Maelstrom.nu
(march 2007)
(8/10)

The hard working and enthusiastic Russian label Solitude Productions, to whom this reviewer holds much respect, has released a mighty album here; a highly enjoyable, mainstream-ish, Gothic-tinged doom / death beast that excels both in musicianship, production and song writing / arrangements.

The dual vocal approach of the male vocalist(s) (sometimes triple and even quadruple vocal styles) is astounding; genuine abysmal death grunts intertwined with baritone ones a-la Tristitia's Thomas Karlsson, with that of a folk singer. In contrast, the female vocalist reminds a lot the heydays of the Dutch band The Gathering, especially Anneke Van Giersbergen’s work on Mandylion; crystal-clear, pure beauty and innocence.

The aforementioned could be read and understood wrongly, followed by an unjustified impression of Tales of Dark being yet another lame and pointless "Gothic" doom metal band. However, be assured it is not. In addition to the precise and articulate execution of the songs, the strange inherent dynamics that drive this album effortlessly and flawlessly forward, the singing and playing the instruments impeccably, the band generates a real aura of menace, mystery and dark Baroque-like romanticism.

Not the utmost original of the lot, however highly enjoyable, extravagant and extraordinary. Pick this musical gem for long and lonely nights; it will enhance your pain a bit.

My Last Chapter
(march 2007)
(8.5/10)

The first album I’ve gotten with a Siberian act (I think), so that alone is interesting, and another thing that instantly draws my attention is that Fragile Monuments is a doom album. I love doom metal, but I rarely get promos of the genre. So does Tales of Dark live up to my hope and expectation? They sure do!
This is quite melodic doom/death where the keyboard sets a saddened emotional atmosphere, enhanced by both male and female vocals. The occasional growls adds aggression, clearing the skies of the rainy clouds gathered by the saddened feeling already established, and pushing it forward towards a desperate tantrum by a utterly depressed human being. Comparisons to My Dying Bride and Draconian can easily be made, but for the first minutes of the second track Mephistorium I think of Lacuna Coil. That comparison fades away as soon as the really doomy music sets in, but it sure has it’s gothic moments as well.
Musically it’s well-written and executed, though not original, which in all fareness is extremely difficult to be. The production is clean and fairly thick and the strong clean male vocals, emphasized by the female ones, gives the powerful growling an even greater impact. This is really great! It’s a bit more melodic than the doom metal I usually listen to, but Tales of Dark has no problems convincing me of their potential. The CD also contains a video to Of Grandiose Fevers and Passion Arcane…, though it’s preferred to listen to this in solitude in a dark room for the depression to really take effect!

Live 4 Metal Reviews
(march 2007)

In the mid to late 90s I loved discovering bands from (the then) lesser known depths of Eastern Europe. The Czech Republic and Slovakia seemed to be my favourite hunting grounds, discovering such gems as Silent Stream Of Godless Elegy, Galadriel and various cult acts released on the likes of Shindy Productions and Metal Age Productions. Since then, that part of Europe has been embraced by the West and the World has become more of a global village thanks to the internet. With this in mind, receiving a copy of the debut album from Serbian Doomsters Tales Of Dark was quite a joyous thing for me. The fact it was a Doom-laden masterpiece made me even happier. I always find that an area or country that's unblemished by the commercial shit the kids are force fed in Western Europe and the USA produces quality material that's at least 10 years behind what's "hot" right now. With a list of influences that vary from ex-Anathema frontman Darren White, My Dying Bride, Opeth and Mourning Beloveth, I don't really need to sell this album to you. But for those that need persuading, Fragile Moments is a melancholic slab of Doom, spliced with the deathly tones of Arpad Takac and with hints of Gothic grandeur thanks to the uplifting female vocals of Jovana Karajanov. Basically it reeks of early My Dying Bride, albeit with a more contemporary feel. As with the new Swallow The Sun album, this is perfect winter listening. Cold crisp mornings dominated by an icy chill and a clear blue sky provide an inspiring backdrop for such a depressing, but satisfying offering.

Reviewed by: Steve Green

Power Play Records
(february 2007)
(7.8/10)

After only one demo this Russian band found a label and three years later we have their debut album "Fragile Monuments" which was released through Solitude Productions, another Russian label dedicated to doom metal releases.

From the first note, you can easily understand that Tales of Dark, adore the old days of My Dying Bride, actually sometimes their singer reminds me of the singer from My Dying Bride.

Of course Tales of Dark aren't just a copycat of the English band, but they have their personal sound and this is the more gothic way that they have turned the music direction of the band.

I mean that of course their music is based in doom metal, but they have elements from gothic metal too. Also their well developed compositions have really long duration.

Most of their songs are more than ten minutes length and also they have female vocals and the death metal male ones. Generally the stuff from the band was really good and of course the fans of doom metal should check it out.


Reviewed by: Antonis Maglaras

Chronicles Of Chaos
(february 2007)
(7/10)

This sextet of Serbs are clearly influenced by My Dying Bride at their peak (think "Turn Loose the Swans"). This is not only apparent form the vocals, which are an imitation of Aaron Stainthorpe's once idiosyncratic whines, but also from similar mournful riffs and progressions. Keys are present, but kept largely in the background. Female vocals occasionally surface, and she sounds like she has had some sort of training. (Don't males ever go for any sort of voice training?) The drumming is below mid-pace, but without being agonizingly slow. However, they lack the emotional intensity that their influence brought forth on the seminal "The Angel and the Dark River".

The lyrics have a poetic touch, with faux-archaic English touches; despite their Slavic heritage, they have an excellent command of English, a fact which is not apparent from their ungrammatical name.

As the astute reader has no doubt gathered, Tales of Dark are not the most original doom band to have emerged -- I doubt they are even the most original doom band in their home country. Nonetheless, it is an enjoyable creation that any lover of romantic doom/death can appreciate.


Reviewed by: Quentin Kalis

Harm
(january 2007)

Painful Memories is a very interesting band. They are into doom/death metal but with influences from the very first era of this style. Of course, My Dying Bride are still here as they are in every doom/death metal release. But apart from that, this band reminds me a lot of how death metal used to be here in Greece in the early 90's with bands like Septic Flesh, Horrified, Exhumation etc. Of course all these happen because this is a re-release of the album. It was released back in 1996 so there's a good explanation for this great sound.

The truth is that i enjoyed this album. It's not a masterpiece but it has all the required things to be called a very good one. First of all passion which is something we don't meet often in new bands. Passion to play the music they love and not the music that may help the sign a better contract and make more money. There are many great ideas here. Most of them performed by the lead guitarist of the band which is something that i like as it reminds me the glorious days of this style. I didn't know the band and i am glad i had the chance to get this re-release by Solitude Productions. I don't know if the band is still active but i hope they are and preparing a new album in the studio right now. It would be very interesting to have something new by them ten years after their debut and only album.

With a few words i like this album and i certainly prefer it from the ones of new bands that try to sound like Opeth. Passion is one of the most important things for me in the music i like and it is present here. Fans of early doom/death metal should check this release out.


Reviewed by: Bleeding

The Metal Crypt
(january 2007)
(4.25/5)

Solitude productions certainly seem to be churning out some high quality doom at the moment, and you'd really have problems finding fault in this release by Serbian doom-meisters Tales of Dark. I'd been lucky enough to check out the band's demo 'Kori U Tame' from a Serbian friend of mine (cheers Yuri!), which although I was moderately impressed with, didn't really register on my radar for too long. Many line-up changes since, and Tales of Dark seem a tighter-knit unit than ever before, focusing their energies solely on a more refined melancholic brand of doom-death, concentrating on developing the miserable atmosphere of their demo to another level. Although there is a hue of melancholy throughout the album, this is far from depressing music. In fact, I'd say there is actually some uplifting music on offer here (most notably in the more grandiose, almost progressive feel to some of the songs)

There's a great free-flowing feel about this album, while although emanating the inevitable nods to various other legendary doom death bands (I'm determined not to mention My Dying Bride again… FUCK!!), shows an intuitive use of female vocals more freely than most bands in the genre, without turning the aura of the music gothic and queer. The band aren't afraid to experiment with different tempos either, with some killer blasting sections filled with optimum riffage, simultaneously keeping the melancholic edge with a sheath of melodic guitar-line or piano. The male vocals range between clean (another new addition to the band's repertoire from the demo days), and gravelly growls, in keeping with the genres usual limits, but the female vocals occasionally add a slightly folkier edge to some of the songs, to which the music takes a twist to accompany (see '...Of Grandiose Fevers And Passion Arcane' for full details). Epic, sincere and warm, Fragile Monuments is certainly an album to pick up for those doom-loving souls floating around the Crypt – satisfaction guaranteed.


Reviewed by: Lars Christiansen

Burning Black
(january 2007)

Doom/Death Metal with some slight Gothic hints is what this Serbian band delivers at “Fragile Monuments”, their latest effort and first full length album; the band shows at the six tracks this album contains a strong influence from My Dying Bride; every aspect of this album seems to be intrinsically related with the mentioned British band. The oppressive Doom Metal ambiances are created by the rustic and dense slow Death Metal riffing, which accompanied by atmospheric and obscure keyboards atmospheres creates an arcane, obscure and solemn panorama, never felling into the fucking sweetened Gothic Metal sound. The voices at “Fragile Monuments” are an interesting mixture of low Death Metal growls, clean suffered male voices, in the finest vein of Aaron Stainthorpe, and potent, yet beautiful female voices, pretty much in the same vein of Anneke van Giersbergen (The Gathering), just listen to the first section of “Mephistorium” where the voices of Jovana Karajanov are the absolute protagonist with its strong and emotive style. This album is a really varied work; each track is a unique musical piece, ranging from the suffocating Death/Doom Metal atmospheres, melodic, even medieval passages (especially at the third track “Of Grandiose Fevers and Passion Arcane”) to somewhat Gothic Black Metal inspired parts (the mid part of “Mephistorium” inevitably reminded me the sound of Cradle Of Filth and its “Dusk And Her Embrace” album for few seconds) and, although the average playing time of each track is around 11 minutes, those never become boring… In fact the first time I listened to this work I listened three times in a row… “Fragile Monuments” is a really good piece of Doom Metal, where, although the originality isn’t their strongest point, the high musical quality this band delivers is completely undeniable. Specially recommended for My Dying Bride fans…

Reviewed by: AP

Metal Rewiews
(january 2007)
(68/100)

If you’re like me, you enjoy visiting new places. While my current financial status prohibits me from offering any of you a physical visit, I can reasonably assume that this review will introduce many of you to a band who hail from a location you are not familiar with. Yes, this week’s stop on the journey through the roster of Solitude Productions takes us to Serbia, not generally regarded as a hotbed for metal bands. However, this does not stop doom band Tales of Dark from waving their flag high with their debut full-length album Fragile Monuments.

Tales of Dark play a romanticized hybrid of gothic metal and doom, which of course draws the immediate, and valid, comparison to My Dying Bride. The band obviously adhere to the old adage “the more, the merrier”, as evidenced by their seven member roster. In keeping with this grandiose theme, the production on this album, courtesy of keyboardist Davor Menzildzic, is positively stunning. In fact, I would say it’s the strongest of any of the bands on this label. The guitars are rich and full, but the drums appear to have been aided most by this glossy production. There are times when cheap production actually adds to the sound, but this is rarely the case in doom, so this is a definite plus in my book. As you might have guessed from the My Dying Bride reference, this band employs a fair amount of keyboards and soaring doom melodies, accompanied by both gothic style vocals and the ever present death growl, both masterfully performed by frontman Arpad Takac. In particular the growls grab the listener’s attention. Outside of Shape of Despair’s Pasi Koskinen, I personally cannot remember hearing vocals with this much evil flair. During the second track, Mephistorium, there are a few moments, particularly around the five-minute mark, where Takac’s vocals sound as if they can almost stand alone. It is also on this track where the band makes good use of the contrasting tradeoff between these evil groans and the gentle, silky vocals of Jovana Karajanov. While hers are not the strongest female vocals I have heard, they are certainly adequate for the purposes of this album. On the flip side, one item that doesn’t consistently work for me is the Menzildzic’s keyboards. While I fully appreciated the dark atmosphere they added to the fantastic opening track, Via Descendens, there were times that I almost felt as if they were getting in the way. During Via Descendens, they laid a deep and sorrowful foundation, giving the song a somewhat fantastical and large feel. Unfortunately, they try to do a little too much elsewhere, particularly during Of Grandiose Fevers and Passion Arcane (what a mouthful of a song title, by the way). Though I had no issues with the piano passage in the intro, the continuation of this sound throughout did not sit right with me. It’s almost as if it lies gracefully over the top of the guitars and vocals, which lessens their impact. Not only that, but, when coupled with the song’s long run time, it really makes things seem to drag on, making for an arduous listen. This is not meant to imply that the keyboards are not a necessary addition, as Luciferian Elegy sees their return to the enhancing effects they had on the opening track. Sadly though, by this point in the album, things had begun to get a bit stale for me. Luckily, the addition of an aggressive double bass approach utilized on Towering Grief Behemoth broke the aura of familiarity. I only wish the band turned to this style more often, as it is pulled off admirably and seems to suit them very well. The closing track, Serpent Wisdom, while not the strongest track on Fragile Monuments, contains a very powerful mixture of all the band’s strengths around seven and a half minutes in. A solid way to close out the album.

In summary, this is a good first effort. I definitely got the sense that I’d heard all this before. Then again, when hearing this style of doom, this is unfortunately expected due to the growing number of bands in this category. Luckily for Tales of Dark, they have a true cornerstone to build around in the vocals of Takac. There are certainly shining moments on this album, but there are also many opportunities for improvement. Nonetheless, fans of this style of doom will want to keep an eye, and an ear, on this band.

Reviewed by: Adam

The Metal Observer
(january 2007)
(8,5/10)

The 2003 demo "Kori U Tame" by Serbian Doomsters TALES OF DARK had been an ok affair, with my main beef being the female vocals. In the three years since, a lot of things have happened. For one guitarists Nikola Cavar and Kristijan Zavodski and vocalist Arpad Takac are the only surviving members of that line-up, which means four new faces in the band. Then they signed a contract with Russian Doom specialists Solitude Productions and now are offering us their full-length debut "Fragile Monuments", with six songs and a playing time of almost 70 minutes.

The sound of TALES OF DARK has not changed compared to the demo, it still is Doom/Death Metal with some female vocals as added flavouring, but the compositions definitely have matured a lot and a more powerful production adds its charm to the melancholic meanderings of the Novi Sad-based septet. They do not really deliver anything groundbreakingly new in this genre, yet the quality they offer us here is nothing short but amazing. Other than the melancholic atmosphere one main focus is great, majestic melodies and surprising variety for a Doom act in terms of rhythm and speed, always loosening up the songs by a well-placed break or two and also a few faster eruptions to keep things interesting, something that a few Doom bands of late are practicing and with great effect I might add.

Contrary to the demo, Arpad Takac this time around also brings in some clear vocals opposed to strict growls back then, which definitely adds to the mix and the too thin female vocals of the past also are a thing of exactly that, the past, for Jovana Karajanov has a nice, strong voice, not a soprano, but a regular voice that convinces in its expressiveness. The opener "Via Descendens" clocks in at over 12 minutes and is quite variable Doom with well implemented keyboards, three different kinds of vocals and some truly superb melodies, which continues into 13 minute monstrum "Mephistorium", which begins with clear guitars and female vocals, before the Doom sets in and towards the end we even get one of the mentioned faster eruptions, very nice!

But all of this only leads towards one of the best Doom tracks I have heard in a while: "...Of Grandiose Fevers And Passion Arcane". Everything fits here, the melodies, the atmosphere, the vocal arrangements, the rhythmic variety, the dynamics, one hell of a song! And the other songs also are very good pieces of Doom Metal, nothing as outstanding as the just mentioned behemoth, but definitively far above average.

If you'd be looking for big originality, would you necessarily go into the traditional Doom genre to find it? I doubt it, therefore I will rate "Fragile Monuments" for what it is: great classical Doom/Death!

Reviewed by: Alexander Melzer

Doom-Metal.Com
(december 2006)

Tales Of Dark is a seven-piece band originating from Serbia. 'Fragile Monuments is their debut album. According to the biography on their website, they managed to get a record deal after releasing just one demo, a lot of live gigs, and doing well at some sort of local demo band competition.

Spoken lyrics, growls, female and male clean vocals share the space pretty equally on the songs. Keyboards are used nicely most of the time. They add a symphonic touch to the music, but in some places they seem unnecessary. Acoustic guitars get a lot of space along with the obvious distorted ones.

Even though this Death/Doom is well played, the lack of originality lowers the overall impression. Most of the record passes by without further notice if you don't really concentrate. Even though some unexpected elements spice up the songs, it's easy to suddenly wake up wondering what happened the past hour.

Tales Of Dark shows good potential to become something great in the future. As for now, they are one of a myriad other Death/Doom bands.

Reviewed by: Kristian Larsson

Metal Only
(december 2006)

To mix doom with gothic metal isn\'t that unusual, but what?s interesting with the band TALES OF DARK is that they come from Serbia. I can personally count on one hand the bands I know of that comes from this country, so it?s always nice with new acquaintances. \"Fragile Monuments\" is the bands first album, which has now been released by the Russian doom metal oriented label Solitude Productions.

The album sets off with sorrowful and dark tunes with the song \"Via Descendens\" and it becomes soon obvious that the main component in the bands sound can be found within doom metal. With slow and dark guitar riffs backed up by a powerful drumming just below mid tempo the songs are built up around the strong atmosphere of melancholy that engulfs the whole album. Yet the active use of keyboards and the quite classic use of male and female vocals gives the sound a rather strong gothic metal impression, something that the band manages really well in incorporating into the otherwise quite heavy doom metal sound. What needs to be mentioned about the vocals on the album is that even though the female vocals turns out to be the usual light angel-like voice that is so common in connection to gothic metal, the male vocals for most part unexpectedly consists of a deep and clean voice, though growls also are quite frequently used in the song material. I?m ready to give TALES OF DARK thumbs up regarding their sound, since even though they balance on a thin thread where nothing really new or original is provided the overall result is still good and enjoyable. A bit more problematic is however the case with the song material which isn?t always as inspiring as I had hoped. The songs are a bit too similar to each other and has big difficulties with capturing the listeners interest for any longer periods of time. This may be connected to the generally a bit too long songs that unfortunately consists of a bit too much filler material that have a tendency to suffocate all the moments where the songs turns out to be really good, especially during the final minutes of \"Mephistorium\". An exception is the third song \"...Of Grandiose Fevers And Passion Arcane\" which to my delight has strength that lasts all the way through and it turns out to be a really strong song with an especially great opening. The band also seems to have realized this since there are also a video for this song included on the album.

There are both positive and negative things to be said about TALES OF DARK?s debut \"Fragile Monuments\", which despite a really good sound grinds to a halt because of too weak song material. This is far from bad, but simply lacks the strength to gain any broader attention. Now we can just hope that the band finds their way out of averageness before the release of their next album.

Reviewed by: Janne

Tartarean Desire
(november 2006)
(7/10)

Tales Of Dark seems to be a name more akin to a zine than a doom metal band, at least in the eyes and mind of a twisted bloke as yours truly. Not too many bands from Serbia & Montenegro come to my hands and the classic exotic touch made curiosity increase by moments. First impression was clear: there was a dying bride floating in the air of night while these guys composed the songs conforming “Fragile Monuments”, so you already know what is the main influence of this band. Some The Gathering and Theatre Of Tragedy may appear in the spectre while hearing this album, too. Songs are quite long; the very first track lasts 12 minutes... and the rest are of similar length. Despite the fact, this album is not as boring as it could seem; far from being something really appealing, it?s not an uncomfortable to the ear. The songs are well structured enough to avoid the yawns of an experienced doom metal freak and good melodies are more frequent here than in any average debut album released nowadays. Anyway, shorter songs would have made the whole thing sound thicker and more consistent, sure. The sound of the band is based on guitars and those simple but effective passages where the string chords play the same notes. One of the foundations of the songmaking are the weeping guitar notes and the torn clean vocals inspired in My Dying Bride, as I said before. However, when Tales Of Dark stray away from this reference, the quality decreases: the female vocals and double bassdrum passages, elements added to the basic doom metal played, fail significantly when they take part in the execution of the songs. Female vocal lines could have been much better, being a bit cold most of the times. Drum beats in the faster parts are a bit excessive and lack of accuracy. To sum it all: a good doom metal band which still need to build their own personality but showing quite a few nice parts and some things to be improved in the next release.

Reviewed by: Fjordi