While Heaven Wept is the mind child of one Tom Phillips. While the music is solely his written creations, no man is an island and it takes a great deal of help from other individuals to make one man's visions a reality. Tom let some of the most skilled and ambitious friends and players work their magic on his latest release for his new found home on
Rage Of Achilles records.
I will take you onto a list of the crucial elements that make Tom's brand of Epic Doom Metal possible and enjoyable.
The knob twirler(engineer) and butt kicking(producer) duties as well as some general sampling and effects insanity was done by
Project: Failing Flesh and Assembly Line studio owner Kevin 131. Tom himself played guitars, sang the lead vocals and BGV's and played some Keyboards too. He was helped on some keyboards by Jake Bodner. Jim Hunter played the massive Bass you get to hear in your subs. Scott Loose let loose on some insane guitar work as well. Finally the skinsman, Jason Gray, thumped and bumped like a listless fool all over this thing.
Not only has Tom succeeded in bringing a much needed breath of life into Epic Doom Metal, one could go as far to say that he has provided a cure for a genre of music that was diseased and dying from a lack of creativity.... anybody remember Dream Death? Case made!
Of all areas of metal so vibrant and overflowing with, dare I say, too many bands, Doom metal in it's various forms actually suffers from a lack of bands doing it and not so many doing it too well I might add.
I know there are many out there watching the
Candlemass return with baited breath and await them to bring into being a new Doom Metal opus.
We are hoping for an Opus anyway...no promises on that though. What I can promise you is that
While Heaven Wept are further ahead than most Doom metal bands and most metal bands in all catagories.
Yes it is Doom metal...but it doesn't really feel that way. It's slow but it doesn't trudge along at a mind numbing pace. It's a beautiful slow much like the way
Pink Floyd does beautiful slow.
If there was indeed a throne for a Doom Metal King to establish and reign upon, my vote for King would go to Tom and
While Heaven Wept. I have never heard anything even come close to being a true definition and a shining example of what Doom metal is and should be. Open the metal dictionary and turn to the word Doom. You will find
While Heaven Wept's picture there with their name mentioned prominently in the definition of Doom metal.
Take your favorite elements of
Trouble and
Candlemass, throw in a touch of the symphonic granduer of Rhapsody while never straying too far from
Pink Floyd's Roger Waters and David Gilmour lead albums and you will start to get a little picture of what is happening here.
The album is very layered and takes a few listens for it to start revealing itself to you in all it's complexities and textures. It's not technical metal in the strict sense of the words...it is however technically thought out and the dynamics are what make this record smoke. Tom is a clean and accomplished vocalist and pulls off some really nice moments here. The songs are connected both musically and lyrically. It is some pretty heady stuff lyrically and deals with some tough things in life, mainly loss. The music backs up these emotions quite elequently and powerfully.
Take a listen at Tom's webpage and learn more about him and the guys who played this record. Some samples and info can befound at
www.whileheavenwept.net
Trouble and
Candlemass may have something to offer us later next year.
While Heaven Wept is coming real soon as a debut for
Rage Of Achilles. Wait for the other boys if you want....i'm Dooming onward now with Tom!
Also check out the kickass american version of The Abyss and Studio Fredman; the infamous Assembly Line studios in Vienna, Virginia owned and operated by Kevin131,
www.assemblylinestudios.com for info on how you can sound better than best!
Oh and by the way...the standout tracks on this album are 1-7...hehe!
Written by
David Monday, October 27, 2003
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