Release date: 15th May 2020
It’s been a long time in the making (fifteen years, in fact), but Sinisthra are back with album number two after 2005’s Last of the Stories of Long Past Glories. The Broad and Beaten Way is a strong and well-rounded listen that is both enjoyable and accessible – it’s both heavy and melodic, and very easy to get into.
The vocals are a definite strong point; there’s a lot of emotion and colour to them, and what works especially well is that they’re very memorable. It only takes a listen or two before you inevitably find yourself humming along to them because the melodies are just lines that get under your skin.
A particularly stunning inclusion is fourth track Morningfrail. With the song having an almost-doomy feel at times (no complaints here!), the crushingly heavy instrumentation juxtaposes fantastically against the softer, more stripped back sections, and the instrumental break in the middle of the song will give you goosebumps.
The only issue is that there’s a lack of variety on occasion. Structurally, the songs are all fairly similar, following the same sort of format, and can blur into one if you’re not paying close enough attention. It’s a shame because aside from that, The Broad and Beaten Way as a whole is very solid bit of work, so don’t let this album pass you by.
8/10
