Lòdz – Time Doesn’t Heal Anything (Klonosphere)
Thursday, 4th May 2017
A bit reminiscent of Crowbar’s Time Heals Nothing, eh? Same principle, really, both bands (albeit two decades apart) operating in the down-in-the-dumps emotional metal wasteland, although Crowbar is and was certifiably heavier while Lòdz is hovering around the post and dark metal sphere. As so heard on their previous Something in Us Died foray, the Frenchmen in Lòdz is conjures up a lot of the same atmospheric whirls and joy(?)rides ala Ghost Brigade and to a far lesser extent, the mighty Katatonia. While such name-tagging is great to entice one to dive into Time Doesn’t Heal Anything, there’s something lost in translation.
Lòdz proves plenty capable of conjuring up the appropriate wistful guitar melody, like on the title track, which is the album’s best song. The song’s gentle and basic cadence serves up an appropriately heavy and crashing chorus, of which vocalist Eric nearly finds lift-off. However, Mr. Eric’s vocal timbre and approach never quite gains separation. He tosses in the requisite screams (looking forward to the day when bands realize they don’t have to do such vocals), but his chorus choices often leave something to be desired, like on the scream-y “Shattered Dreams” and gang vocal-infested “Cataract.”
And that’s really the overarching case with Time Doesn’t Heal Anything: It often approaches some kind of melodic and post-metal break, then gradually retreats. The ideas here are pretty well-worn; we’ve gotten these already from a host of like-minded bands, so that leaves Lòdz holding the bag, if you will. Time Doesn’t Heal Anything is simply one of those albums that looks good on paper but is nothing more.
