Gothic – Grim

When a band is called ‘Gothic’ I become a little sceptical, to say the least. This Italian act, founded by James Jason, has been active since the late 80’s and has created a long string of demo’s. The self-released “Grim” is by far their most ambitious release to date. It contains two cd’s, one more experimental, one more accessible. Furthermore there is a multimedia cd-r with a band presentation, artwork, lyrics, photos and a video. The music of Grim is very diverse and makes me think of an experimental rock opera. From gloomy darkwave to symphonic metal, from industrial experiments to electronic dance music. It’s certainly not boring, but I must say that the combination of elements isn’t always succeeded. The compositions are long and go from one extreme to the other, they demand a lot from the listener. I admire the ambitions and adventureness of ‘Gothic’, but this album is not really my cup of tea. The compositions are too chaotic and I’m also not such a fan of the rock/metal elements.

artist: Gothic
label: self-released
details: 2cd + multimedia cd-r