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Black Sails in the Sunset

AFI - Black Sails in the Sunset Audio CD

A fair review of the AFI "Black Sails in the Sunset" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all AFI reviews here, or go back to the AFI tabs.

Band: AFI
Title: Black Sails in the Sunset
Rating:

Release Date: 1999-05-18
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Strength Through Wounding 2: Porphyria 3: Exsanguination 4: Malleus Maleficarum 5: Narrative of Soul Against Soul 6: Clove Smoke Catharsis 7: Prayer Position 8: No Poetic Device 9: Weathered Tome 10: Last Kiss 11: At a Glance 12: God Called in Sick Today

Its so Black in here!
And I must say that i prefer their older stuff to their more mainstream sound. Well to start off I have been a fan of AFI since "girls not grey". I will always be a fan of AFI because I know they have talent and are very hard workers. I gave this cd 5 stars because EVERY song on here is amazing and the lyrics are just amazing in itself!!! Daveys voice is very uniqe and different and thats pretty much why I love them so much.

My favorite song on here is "Clove Smoke Catharsis"! then "God Called in Sick today" which is very haunting!.

A True Work of Art!!!!!!!
I am a fan of so many different subcategories of Rock like Punk, Metal, Industrial, Alternative, Hard Rock, et cetera, and to me this album ranks as one of the best of any genre of rock! This album is what I would call melodic goth punk, because it is hardcore punk coupled with goth lyrics, all the while being very melodic! Davey Havok, the lead singer of AFI, has one of the most incredible voices you will ever hear, some people for some ridiculous reason find his voice annoying, but this man hits notes that one can only dream of hitting. This album is easily one of the best albums I have ever heard. He can sound menacing and dark one instant, and then the next have the most beautiful, haunting melodic voice you have ever heard, he is a true talent. The lyrics on the album are possibly some of the best around, very mature, very intelligent, and most importantly very meaningful. For instance on Clove Smoke Catharsis, "If only pure sweetness was offered, why's this bitter taste left in my mouth, if I could catch my breath just to exhale, I'd know that I held it in too long"! The song, in my opinion, being about substance abuse and the great high you get, but the consequences being so much stronger and more prevalent than the positives, great artistry. The musicianship on the album is nothing short of amazing as well, this was Jade's first album as the guitarist for AFI, and his joining is strongly felt as AFI not only plays hardcore riffs anymore, but also very melodic as well.

The album starts off with Strength Through Wounding, which is a rallying cry hardcore punk track which is very enjoyable! Track 2 Porphyria Cutanea Tarda is another fast punk anthem that if it doesn't get your energy boiling, then check your pulse because you might be dead. Track 3 Exsanguination is cut down the middle between another fast hardcore punk song, and an incredibly melodic breakdown with Davey singing beautifully, "In an instant, my life just slipped away, I fought for life the whole time you were holding me down, you watched me dying holding me down, you brought my rebirth, holding me down, you watched me dying holding me down, you brought my rebirth", classic stuff here! Track 4 is Melleus Maleficarum and this is a slower very hardcore song with awesome drumming by Adam, and incredible vocals and lyrics by Davey, this one will also get your blood boiling. Track 5 Narrative of Soul Against Soul is that of a questioning on religion by Davey and is another very fast punk rocking track that has some of the best intelligent lyrics you will likely hear, Davey is nothing short of an amazing poet with his lyrics. Track 6 Clove Smoke Catharsis is probably the slowest and most melodic track on the album, and one of my personal favorite AFI songs of all-time, simply inspiring! Track 7 is the most hardcore song on the album The Prayer Position, and has almost a metal feel to it, but more of a Sick of It All hardcore punk feel to me, the chorus will go down in history as one of the most uplifting of all-time. Track 8 is No Poetic Device, and is just a straight up hardcore punk track that would get even a depressed crowd member moshing with the best of them, very good track, great lyrics once again, what else is new! Track 9 is The Last Kiss, and is possibly my favorite AFI song of all-time, Davey's voice and lyrics just cry out sincerity, this man means what he is singing about unlike so many others, this song has yet another of the most beautiful and haunting choruses you will ever hear. Track 10 is Weathered Tomb and is a hardcore track that will once again get your blood pressure raised with it's energetic delivery by the guys with once again intelligent lyrics. Track 11 At A Glance, is another of my personal favorites, which is half a hardcore punk anthem, and about halfway through the song there is an astonishingly melodic breakdown, with many whoa's(a Davey ode to his favorite group The Misfits). The chorus to the song, "what if I could go to sleep for days, would you count the hours, or would your restlessness consume fading memories of me", it is the question we all sadly ask ourselves the answer to about our loved ones, and sadly we all know the answer. The last track on the album is God Called In Sick Today and it might be my favorite song of all-time and is a permanent staple in AFI's live performances, it is clearly one of the most melodic and powerful songs any of us are ever likely to hear, and Davey's voice is so beautiful and powerful it might just bring tears to your eyes!

Overall, this album is a true gem, and probably the best modern punk rock album by far, as well as one of the best general alternative/indie albums! Highly recommended to everybody, it is just that good people! Cheers!.

They Sold Out Bigtime
Everyone being mentioned in the reviews are faggots. First of all, everyone who is saying listen to Clay, Clay is gay. This is music, this is power, this is punk the way it is suppose to be and AFI will most likely never get their sound back. This is a great album and recommended for anyone who likes hardcore punk, however, the vocals can be annoying at times but it is still very good.

Wow
The first song I heard by them was Love Like Winter. I was introduced to AFI through Decemberunderground. My friends (sell-out fans) told me that the new stuff was horrible, and that their old stuff was great.

When I got this, I was shocked. Davey. . . his vocal style is so. . . different is an understatement. And does he, like, have a lisp or something? Is that from the lipring? It's weird.

I'm not saying this album is bad; it's not. It's just so incredible different from their new stuff.

This is the title. It means nothing. Please procede.
That's not to say that it's their best but whatever phase of AFI you like---the early hardcore stuff, the middle period goth punk stuff or the current arena ready stuff--- you can find something to like and admire on this album. You know what? In many ways "Black Sails in the Sunset" is probably the perfect AFI record.
This was the first AFI record I heard when a friend played it for me back in the spring of 2000 and I immediatly knew I loved it as it blends two of my favourite types of music, eighties goth like the Cure and Joy Division, with hardcore, and does so perfectly. Although they would build on this template and improve it on their followup releases "All Hallows" and the nearly flawless "The Art of Drowning", "Black Sails" will always have a special place in my record collection.
Now, as one of the few earlier AFI fans who doesn't believe that they have recently sold out(rather they have been given the finincial means to expand on their influences, and this isn't as a bad thing as both "Sing the Sorrow" and it's followup "decemberunderground" are excellent records), I am not feeding you some purists nonesense when I tell you that if you are an AFI fan then you need "Black Sails". Where there earlier hardcore records were typical east bay hardcore, "Black Sails" builds on the template. The songs have more crashing dynamics than anything that came previous, while upping the melody and allowing Davey Havok room to write more insteresting lyrics and expand his vocal range. The songs all feature the same chant along choruses that have taken AFI to the top of the charts lately, only this time they're dellvered with a far more breakneck speed.
What's surprising to hear, or at least to me, how much sense the bands newer stuff sounds when you listen to "Black Sails". The playing is strong and the melodies are easily digestable without being easy and obvious. The production of the record at time can be a little same sounding, thought each song has it's own distinctive features and ebbs and flows that you know exactly what you're listening to every given second.
Again "Black Sails" is not the best AFI record in my opinion(that really has to be "Art of Drowning"), whatever you like about AFI is here on this record in spades. Crushing hardcore, melodic breakdowns, excellent lyrics and vocals and even the requisite power ballad("God Called in Sick Today", still one of the bands best songs), and for those reasons alone that should make this record an essential in every AFI fans collection.
That and every sing is pretty great. What more could you ask?.

You can see a complete list of all AFI discography, or go back to the AFI tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.