Audio CD review:
Dark Tranquillity - Exposures: In Retrospect & Denial

Dark Tranquillity - Exposures: In Retrospect & Denial

Band: Dark Tranquillity Title: Exposures: In Retrospect & Denial Rating: Release Date: 15 June, 2004 Media: Audio CD Tracks: 1: Static [#] 2: Poison Well 3: In Sight [#] 4: Misery in Me [#] 5: Cornered 6: Exposure 7: No One [#] 8: Yesterworld 9: Unfurled by Dawn 10: Midwinter (Intro)/Beyond Enlightenment 11: Vernal Awakening 12: Void of Tranquility 13: Wonders at Your Feet [Live] 14: Treason Wall [Live] 15: Hedon [Live] 16: White Noise/Black Silence [Live] 17: Haven [Live] 18: Punish My Heaven [Live] 19: Monochromatic Stains [Live] 20: Indifferent Suns [Live] 21: Format C: For Cortex [Live] 22: Insanity's Crescendo [Live] 23: Hours Passed in Exile [Live] 24: Sun Fired Blanks [Live] 25: Damage Done [Live] 26: Lethe [Live] 27: Not Built to Last [Live] 28: Therein [Live] 29: Zodijackyl Light [Live] 30: Final Resistance [Live] 31: Ex Nihilo [Live]

Customer Reviews Essential Compilation Their 2-disc compilation Exposures - In Retrospect and Denial is a perfect example. Besides being the absolute best melodic death metal band out there, Dark Tranquillity is also a band that knows how to take care of its fans. Most American metal fans are resigned to the fact that other markets, particularly the Japanese, get exclusive bonus tracks added to their albums. Japan consumes a LOT of metal, so I can see how this practice makes sense. But it is a source of frustration for those of us who are die-hard fans and want to have every song a band releases. Unless we're willing to drop $30 or more on a Japanese import, we'll never hear the "full" album. This is why Exposures rules. Dark Tranquillity has collected all of the various bonus tracks, b-sides, and demos that were otherwise unavailable and released them in one package. Many of the tracks are from later in their career, but there are some early tracks as well. They're all quite good, but I've come to expect nothing less from this band. As if that weren't enough, the band has added a second disc to the package - a live album that is the audio companion to their Live Damage DVD. This disc sounds great, and would have been worth buying on its own. When it's all said and done, you get 31 tracks on 2 discs, and all for the price of a regular CD. Compare that to Soilwork's 5-track rarities EP that retailed for about the same price and you get an idea of why Dark Tranquillity has such a devoted fan base. . MUST OWN A band that has B-sides this good is truly talented. WOW! This is the only band that has off the wall unreleased materals that is just as good as their albums. I love DT's experimentaions and how artistically they develop a certain theme for their releases. I totally dig their lyrics and I love the fact how they stay true to their sound; even with these experimentations. They are truly brilliant and remain as my fav melodic death metal band of all time. An Excellent Collection Disc 2 is excellent for any fan of live music. This double disc album is a collection of b-sides and early demos, as well as a whole other CD with their live performance in Krakow, Poland, which can also be seen on their "Live Damage" DVD. The production is wonderful and the band plays perfectly. Vocalist Mikael Stanne's voice does sound a bit different than on CD, but wouldn't one expect that? He runs short of breath a few times, but not enough to ruin the song. Really, not even enough to effect the song period. But as I said, the musicians play flawlessly, tearing through each fast-paced riff with amazing precision. And not to mention the set list is perfect for any big D. T. fan. So disc 2 is excellent, but what about disc 1? The first track, "Static", is a slower paced track, featuring excellent lyrics and beautiful music. "The Poison Well" is a bit faster, but just as good, though a little less memorable. Other standout tracks include "In Sight", which might come as a shocker to those expecting the heaviness that most D. T. songs feature. The song is entirely sung; no growling, screaming, anything. And it's sung in quite an awkward voice. Fans who have heard Stanne's clean vocals before know should know what I'm talking about, but for those who don't, it's a very manly, operatic type voice, basically the last thing you'd expect from someone who growls like a madman half the time. His clean voice is a little odd, but it grew on me. "In Sight" is a simply beautiful song, and why it didn't make it onto "Haven" is beyond me. Perhaps it was just too different from the rest of the album. "Exposure" is quite a thrashy little number, once again featuring excellent, compelling lyrics, and possible one of the catchiest riffs D. T. have ever played midway through the song. It's an odd rhythm dual guitar assault, with brilliant hi-hat work from Anders Jivarp. It's definitely the standout of the song. "Cornered" also features great, catchy riffs. Now, the demos on disc 1 are the only real down point of the entire collection. As I'm sure you've heard, they feature current In Flames vocalist Anders Friden on vocals (Mikael Stanne plays guitar). Had no one told me that before, I'd think it was some dude who's now in a black metal band; he sounds absolutely nothing like himself. He sounds. . . really, really bad. The music is excellent however. It's a bit darker and more drawn out than D. T. 's present day material, kind of resembling Opeth. The songs are longer, and each has a LOT of lyrics. "Unfurled by Dawn" and "Void of Tranquillity" are equal in length to two Cradle of Filth songs' lyrics put together. And if you've seen COF's lyrics, you'd know what I'm talking about. Ok, maybe that's a stretch, but I'm saying, if you're someone who likes to memorize lyrics, you might be a little challenged here. Anyway, another problem with the demos is the quality; it's just bad. Not the quality of the songs, but the quality of the sound. I think maybe one or two demos would have been sufficient, but no one's gonna wanna listen to 5 of those when you have the rest of the collection to listen to. So. . . should you get this album? If you've never bought a D. T. album before, start with something else. But if you're a big fan of the Swedish masterpiece makers, be my guest and by this album as soon as you can. . You can see a complete list of all Dark Tranquillity discography, or go back to the Dark Tranquillity tabs