By this point (1997), Johan Edlund had long since shaken off the Swedish death metal ghost he had escaped from in the late 1980s. At the latest after the release of the debut Sumerian Cry, the gothic-inspired tones were integrated into Tiamat's scaly compositional body and gradually gained more space until, around the time of the sequel to A Deeper Kind of Slumber, they were little more than an embarrassed replica to The Sisters of Mercy´s later releases.
Now it may seem as if Tiamat is a one-man project, and to a certain extent it is. At least if you look at the band's member turnover and who it is who creates most of it. Lyrically, musically, visually, and conceptually, it is Johan Edlund who almost always stands as the originator. He also always has a finger in the jar when it comes to production.
If the opening paragraph in this review is considered pejorative, it is only to try to create some kind of balance in this reflection. A Deeper Kind of Slumber is a masterpiece. Even one of, in my opinion, the musical highlights of the 1990s. With the predecessor and the band's perhaps greatest commercial success, Wildhoney, followed the psychedelic and atmospheric soundscape and some classical and oriental instruments that seem miraculously contextually perfectly arranged. I write miraculously because it is impossible to discern anyone else's hand but Edlund's in the arrangements and only as a comparison with Tiamat's previous productions.
 |
| Who, if not Johan Edlund himself, adorns the cover (European version) |
This album may not be something to hang on the Christmas tree for those who are senitive to pretentiousness. Magnificent and sweltering compositions accompanied by an unsustainable (maybe even false?) singing voice of course make way for an expression dressed in too large shoes. And maybe they are if you take your first dive into Tiamat's discography right here. With that in mind, I might recommend starting with the band's third album Clouds, if it weren't for this album's opening track Cold Seed, which equally introduces the listener to Tiamat's multifaceted soundscape. So dig in and get your fill of A Deeper Kind of Slumber, but then go back in the discography. The predecessor Wildhoney is on par with this one, while most of the stuff after 1997 just feels forced.
Favourite Tracks: The Desolate One, Atlantis as a Lover, Only in My Tears it Lasts, A Deeper Kind of Slumber
Genre: Gothic Rock
Rating: 6,4 / 7