Betrayal - Leaving Nevermore (1999)
After 6 years of silence Betrayal is back with a new release and a new sound. For the most part, Marcus (original guitarist) now handles all vocals, guitars, bass, and drum programming. That's right
programming! Marcus has moved forward and although
some critics may blast him for "selling out", I think that the new sound is very mature and has progressed to a new level for Betrayal. The sound is very
"industrial/techno/ambient" while still maintaining the guitars as the "driving force" behind the music. The guitars are still technical, at times heavy, and are not hidden behind the keyboards (which there are
plenty of). The overall atmosphere is very surreal and ambient but with the obvious metal roots still intact. The keyboards are eclectic and haunting giving most of the tracks a floaty goth feel. There are obvious influences from
bands such as Nine Inch Nails, Under Midnight, and Circle Of Dust, but rather than using the "crushing power chord" style guitar work of those bands Marcus uses the guitar to
weave a technical tapestry of sound. I am
impressed (as always with Betrayal) with the guitar work on this disc. The biggest change aside from the programmed beats are the vocals. The new vocal style is a clean vocal with a minimum use of effects. The vocals are light and
airy also adding to the spooky goth feel. This disc reminds me a little of Kohllapse and the direction they have taken on "DMA". The production on here is very crisp, clean and nicely done. The only downfall I find is
that by disc's end you might become a bit bored as some tracks tend to get very mellow and the beats seem to get a little repetitive (I personally liked all of it though). It is, in a way, bewitching and mysterious because just
when it starts to seem too light or monotonous all of a sudden the music, or even the lyrics, become very dark, heavy and ominous. The lyrics are also GREAT! This is the kind of stuff I love lyrically, they are very poetic,
introspective and dark, yet are clearly filled with the gospel message! I for one am proud to say that I like the new disc and look forward to hearing more from "The New Era Of Betrayal". -- Review by Norm