Across the Open Sea

I've owned (and enjoyed) several Unleashed albums over the years, but I've never liked "Across the Open Sea". This is one of those records that sounds dated on first listen, and bear in mind that I first heard it in 1995. Their previous album "Shadows in the Deep" was flawed by virtue of being an inferior version of the debut. The same criticism cannot be leveled at this one, which tries several new things and might (ironically) have predicted some death metal trends. The problem is that it does none of these things well enough. This is a lame album, no doubt, but it is lame in an interesting way.

My immediate question is whether this record even qualifies as death metal. Johnny Hedlund's vocals are barked and decipherable, more like Tom G Warrior than ever before. The music sounds simpler than on their previous album. There are fewer old school death metal traits and it reminds me more of Venom than it does of Master. Such a simplification was typical of Swedish death metal trends at the time. Entombed released the "Hollowman" EP in early 1993. I remember hearing the title track from that EP and being struck by their 'rock' direction. Unleashed did something similar on this album with songs like "The One Insane", "In the Northern Lands", and "Open Wide". I assume this was a case of parallel evolution, given the proximity of release date and how different Unleashed and Entombed sounded before this point.

The band tried plenty of new things on this album. There are some classic heavy metal influences and a (terrible) cover of "Breaking the Law". The decent instrumental title track reminds me of Viking-era Bathory. There is a failed attempt to blend softer, acoustic influences into a death-ish metal ballad ("Captured"), resulting in a virtual rehash of Venom's "Buried Alive". There is the proto-metalcore moshing of "Execute Them All", with some of those stair-casing Slayer riffs creeping in. Then there are a few songs that stick to the old Unleashed formula; "To Asgaard We Fly", "Forever Goodbye", "I am God". None of these are as interesting as equivalent songs on their debut though. The unfortunate thing about "Across the Open Sea" is that Unleashed still sounds like a band retreading the past.

You have to give credit to Unleashed for branching out, but doing so exposes their musical limitations. This would have sounded better with a different production, but this production is dreadful. This is the first album Unleashed recorded in Sweden, having done the previous two in Germany. "Across the Open Sea" has a more typically Swedish sound, but it apes the Sunlight sound without capturing the power. This guitar is tinny and bright, the opposite of "Shadows in the Deep". This stops me enjoying some of the album's better moments ("Execute them All", "In the Northern Lands"). Overall, this album shows a band and a genre on the wane. I still recommend listening to it once or twice for historical interest. It is worth comparing and contrasting with "Wolverine Blues", an album released only days after this one, but to greater fanfare.

One thing is for sure, the entire discography of Unleashed shows blatantly that the persistent Swedish horde has never put the focus on high sophisticated techniques. Simplicity seems to be a value in itself, for better or for worse. But "Across the Open Sea" carries this feature almost too far. Death metal and pop appeal seem to be mutually exclusive, but back in 1993, Unleashed proved the opposite. Some songs are almost painfully predictable, but against the odds, this does not mean that they lack quality. Good songs are good songs, regardless of the number of breaks or surprising twists and turns. And by the way, an earworm always takes the direct route.

Anyway, especially the mid-harsh, rather slow-paced tracks like "The One Insane" seem to be the perfect background music for the local supermarket: "I am the psychopath, I live in my own world, I buy garlic butter" - guess this could work without scaring anybody off. Unleashed do not have an ingenious strategy. They just rely on the effectiveness of their riffs and indeed, the guitars add the necessary amount of rough edges. "Execute Them All" points in the same direction. Everything stands or falls with the quality of the guitar work - and "Execute Them All" does definitely not fall. Lead vocalist Hedlund is able to press a malicious touch into the miniature chorus and the strong riffing expands the catalogue of hymns of the Scandinavian quartet.

Believe me, there is nothing new to discover after having listened to the album for the first time. Just listen, inhale everything and decide whether you want to hear the album again. My recommendation is clear: do it. A beast like the dragging, scornful "Open Wide" shows its teeth impressively and its counterpart, the furiously raging "Forever Goodbye (2045)", also hails from the path to the death metal Olympus. With the exception of the feeble title track (filler alarm!) and the nonsensical cover version, every number adds value to the full-length. Some more (for example the catchy opener), some less (the pretty complex closer - "complex" in the context of this album... oh my God!), but the song formula is simply too primitive so that no one is able to execute it insufficiently, not even Johnny Hedlund!

Is "Across the Open Sea" a masterpiece or does it have an outstanding production? No and no again. It just holds pretty decent consensus metal that tends towards death metal, but I am not sure whether hardcore death maniacs really accept such an album. From my point of view, a song like "In the Northern Lands" enriches the album, inter alia due to its slightly eerie note that the guitar contributes during the instrumental middle part. Yet the death metal scene police will probably have a different opinion when faced with this nearly relaxed number. Anyway, "Across the Open Sea" combines a solid production with unspectacular yet mostly unerring sounds and the integrity of the formation cannot be doubted. I will not tell my still unborn grandchildren about this work, but I appreciate to listen to its best songs every now and then.

When it comes to producing high quality, top-of-the-line death metal, Unleashed is one of the best. They have a no nonsense, simple and deadly sound that was perfected on Across The Open Sea and it will always be able to stand the test of time. Despite a few recycled riffs and possibly too simple song writing, there are very few filler tracks on this record and the sound was 100% pure Swedish death metal.

What has always drawn me to Unleashed is their killer riffs and mix of tempos. If you feel the same way about heavy metal in general, then buy this album. The majority of this record's songs have a great mix of tempos and riffs that fit them very well. "I Am God," definitely Across The Open Sea's best song, showcases a fast and furious beginning and end, with a slow middle. The song's melodies are dark and hateful, just like the sarcastic and spiteful lyrics. Another song in which a nice blend of speeds and tempos can be found is the album's second best track, "Execute Them All." It's a mid-tempo song that thunders along and leaves nothing in its path intact. The change from a 4/4 tempo to a 3/4 tempo and the tremolo picking added into the slower sections was a great way to balance out the song. If you are looking to see what this album has to offer, then these tracks will let you know with their versatility.

A few songs like "To Asgaard We Fly" and "In The Northern Lands" feature similar tempos and rarely change structure. "To Asgaard We Fly" features a riff to the opening riff to the song "Onward Into Countless Battles" from their previous release Shadows in the Deep. Was this similarity off-putting? Yes. I think that the simplicity that Unleashed embodies will not only make them more pleasing to listen to at times, put also somewhat (dare I say) boring. The unfortunate lack of solos on most of the album's songs combined with the occasionally filler lyrics definitely deducted my rating of this record.

Unleashed's roster at the time this album was produced was my favorite. Johnny Hedlund's vocals and bass playing were what they have always been: straightforward, thunderous, and even masculine if I had to choose a third word. His lyrics in Across The Open Sea show no signs of change from previous records, so there isn't much to say about them. They seem to be as dark as usual. Fredrik Lindgren and Tomas Olsson provided some interesting lyrics and guitar playing. "The ravens flay across the plains, TO tell their master's tales, Tales beyond narrow minds, Weak lambs led astray..." says Olsson as he weaves a tale of Norse lore. His playing in the title track was something out of a medieval story, play, movie or song and captivated me. It stood out like a sore thumb and in the best way possible. Lindgren's leads and solos were blistering and always send chills down my spine. The two men are simply put: unstoppable. Drummer Anders Schultz rounds out the band with some on beat and well focused drumming. Not a single beat was out of place. His wide array of patterns were demonstrated with ease.

Let's take a look at this "Breaking the Law" cover. First of all, Johnny Hedlund is no Rob Halford, but he sang this number with a ferocity all his own. The heavier death metal guitars playing a song from the lighter British Steel album made for an interesting sound. Overall, it was a nice cover that deserves some attention.

One thing that needs to be addressed is Unleashed's good sense of how much "Viking" to put in a release. A song about "Northern Lands" and "Asgaard," a cover art featuring a boat full of vikings crossing the ocean, and lyrics that weren't cheesy made this just the right dose of viking/folk themed material. Sure, bands like Tyr or Amon Amarth and the other viking metal bands of today have great music, but the image can be cheesy and silly.* Unleashed has proven here that in moderation, you can use Viking themes.

This is and will always be one of my favorite death metal albums and bands of all time. Yes, the album was flawed and could have been more complex, but let that simplicity stand as a lesson to new metal bands. You don't have to mind-blowingly complicated in your music to get the point across.

Key Tracks: "I Am God," "Execute Them All," and "In the Northern Lands."

*(Get angry at me if you wish. I don't care.)

With all the (justified) tumult over Amon Amarth, it's easy forget about the earlier Swedish Viking death metal act Unleashed. Before the mediocre Victory and the awful Warrior, they had a string of simple and straightforward records worth a damn. Across the Open Sea is the third of these, and in my opinion one of best albums of their career (until the excellent Sworn Allegiance in 2004).

Unleashed were a little simpler and more groove-laden than many other death metal acts during this period. The focus was not on sheer brutality but on making the best use of that classic guitar tone in tunes that rocked. I wouldn't call the band death'n'roll per se, they didn't take this to the extreme of Entombed or Desultory, but there is a little of that vibe present on this album.

"To Asgaard We Fly" opens the record at an eight-legged trot, with some breakdowns. "Open Wide" is slower and groovier, based around a simple chord progression but making good use of the guitar tone. "I Am God" uses a more traditional death metal riff, and "The One Insane" rocks out at a middle pace with some of those Entombed-like chords which hit you like a brick. Other nice touches on the album are the instrumental "Across the Open Sea", the blazing "Forever Goodbye [2045]", and the groovy "Execute Them All". The cover of "Breaking the Law" is mediocre.

Across the Open Sea is dominated by its excellent guitar tone and solid drum battery. The bass is present but never quite enough to matter. Johnny Hedlund's are usually at their gruff best, but at a few points they seem less inspired. I wouldn't call the lyrics good: I am the psychopath/I live in my own world/I'll be the one you fear/...the one insane could hardly be considered poetic, but at least it fits the song. The band wasn't re-inventing the wheel at this point but their simple delivery and occasionally Viking folk-inspired lyrics did set them apart from some of the other Swedish death metal bands emerging at the time. This was their best effort prior to the millennium.

-autothrall
http://www.fromthedustreturned.com

Being one of the earlier bands in the Swedish death metal scene, Unleashed shared the early days with Dismember and Entombed. After releasing two albums in "Where No Life Dwells" and "Shadows in the Deep," both of which are highly regarded by their fanbase, the Swedes turned their attention to Norse glory and warriors on "Across the Open Sea." Unleashed was one of the earlier bands to do this, perhaps even giving some inspiration to Viking warlords Amon Amarth who would make their claim to fame some time later. Yet even with more interesting lyrical topics (as opposed to the usual "death" and "destruction" of the first two albums) "Across the Open Sea" seems to suffer from standard songwriting and generally being less memorable than its predecessors.

Diversity is the name of the game on "Across the Open Sea," and I don't just mean the lyrical focus. I recognize some of these songs run in the vein of traditional death metal, and some I could say even go with something known as "death rock" or "death 'n roll." Fortunately, Unleashed don't break into the realm of Six Feet Under's various covers of rock songs, but for a lack of better terms I see songs like "The One Insane" as following a rock formula. The riffs are catchy and the songs are indeed quite heavy, but they can't stand up to the better moments on this album, which mimic more traditionalized death metal which Unleashed are better known for.

The more traditional death metal arises on tracks such as "The General" and "I Am God," but then move into more melodic territory on "Captured," which was a surprise on this album but a good one at that. One can also pick out the gritty and chunky riffs of "In the Northern Lands," which reminds me some of "Precious Land," a slower number that appeared on the next album "Victory." These heavy, fat riffs remind me some of Crowbar (and vice versa) but this is meant to be compliment to both bands as I hold both groups in high regard. Being a fan of slow, sludge-laden doom metal, "In the Northern Lands" stands as one of my favorite tracks on this record and one of the more memorable ones.

Johnny Hedlund makes head way into the album, giving out his usual gravelly yet intelligent snarls. I enjoy this brand of death metal the most, as the vocals are ferocious yet decipherable, never descending into the realm of ugly, disgusting barks that sound like recorded diarrhea, something that always kept me away from bands like Cannibal Corpse and more "extreme" death metal bands. Hedlund has none of this, and his vocals are well defined not to mention fit the music perfectly. He also stands as the best performance on "Across the Open Sea," due mostly to the production values. The instrumentation is strong in places, but flat in others. This goes drums, who don't carry much of an impact in some sections of the album and the bass is usually inaudible.

Unleashed took a few steps forward and some back here on "Across the Open Sea." I actually really like this album, along with their earlier two and enjoy the lyrical focus, which shifted away from the darkness of earlier albums. Yet on a musical scale it doesn't have the punch nor the memorability of its predecessors, though it is by no means bad. It stands about on par with the next album in "Victory," so if you liked that album you'll surely enjoy this one. Either way, its reliable if rather unremarkable Swedish death metal that any fan of Unleashed can surely get into. While I would recommend "Shadows in the Deep" first, "Across the Open Sea" is no slouch based on its own merit and deserves attention from any fan of the Swedish death metal genre.

With the third album, Across The Open Sea, finally Unleashed started to talk about the Vikings period and battles, leaving a bit behind the classic, a bit too common themes about darkness and death. This is where a new period begins for them even if the music has not changed because it’s always on death metal and that is good. In 37 minutes the same formula is displayed through always essential production and sounds. We can find also the classic mixture of fast paced tracks to more doom and darker sections where the band points everything on the sheer gloominess of the guitars.

“To Asgaard We Fly” is one of the most famous tracks by this band and it’s the first fast one with galloping riffs and the catchy chorus. The darkness and the essentiality of their sound is the most remarkable characteristic. Everything is sharp but also extremely gloom and if you are searching for a full sound, a powerful one you can be disappointed because these are not the most important elements in this sound. By the way, the band plays always quite well and with the right attitude even if the songs acquire more powerful in a live gig. So far, everything is good.

“Open Wide” is massive through mid-paced progression to evocate a sense of epic adventures and it’s not so well developed because has few riffs and few ideas. The general atmosphere is, by the way, quite good and with “I am God” we return to speed with simpler riffs and songwriting. This time the tremolo picking is the most used technique and it’s really dark. The vocals are always very good and suffered in many parts. They are screamed and never too growled or distorted but easily recognizable for their style and tonality.

“The One Insane” is a good example of mid-paced track where the riffs are always present and less derivative, sustaining the structure and catching the attention. The title track is an instrumental one with the arpeggios by an acoustic guitar and the glom/epic atmosphere. It’s a prelude to the monolithic riff to “In The Northern Sea”. The tempo is again not so fast with lots of stop and go parts by the guitars but it’s always quite enjoyable even if not stunning. To increase the speed and the violence we find “Forever Goodbye (2045)” while the return to mid-paced parts has the name of “Execute Them All”. The guitars are good at switching from palm muting to tremolo picking and the chorus is truly screamed and dark.

“Captured” features some clean arpeggios under the slow riffs and the vocals are darker. The restart by the middle is a bit more extreme and intense but we return immediately to the non-exceptional, slower progression. We can find a Judas Priest’s cover, “Breaking The Law”, obviously on speed with the strangely punkish vocals. It’s not bad and with the last “The General” we return to speed but everything seems a bit common and done before. In various parts, seems to me that the band is doing the homework without passion or the right rage and it’s a pity. Some parts also are a bit boring and the mid-paced tunes are not shining in originality.

All in all, this is an album that suffers a bit of the classic “less ideas” fever and it’s not at the same level of the precursors. It’s not bad but it’s a bit common and too lame. It’s better to check the efforts before this to have a good idea of what Unleashed is about.

The title says it all, folks. "Across the Open Sea" is a profoundly painful listening experience, as it never wanders into unknown territory further than mommy allows. In general, the oldschool speed/death riffage easily expresses a badass masculine attitude without the idiocy associated with the majority of "masculine" acts, hinting at adventure, slaughter, frenzied rape, and a mystical continuity of virile activity over the ages, regardless of socio-historical context. While this is perfectly evocative, great for goofing around in the woods and drinking some exquisite porter, the completely predictable and unimaginative (verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-verse-chorus) song structures obstruct these phrases' capability to create a slightly more elaborate logical progression of ideas, leaving the matter to the listener's competence in its entirety. It is possible to create a consistent mythos out of these songs, therefore it can't be said that "Across the Open Sea" lacks substance - more like depth of inquiry into these ideas, such that would dispel the need for a temporary suspension of disbelief. I personally find it best to use this album as a soundtrack for an active day, and when in doubt, reassure myself that this is actually Venom gone viking-rock. Oh, and the acoustic title track's references to Tchaikovsky's "Nutcracker" are hilarious.

Unleashed's debut album was an absolute corker. Full of good riffs and great vocals. It was passionate, powerful death metal and a great example of just how damn huge Death Metal can be when it's done right. Unfortunately, like a lot of bands, Unleashed were unable to keep the spirit of their first record. Instead, we have a bunch of death metal songs, that while they are solid, better produced and less raw, they aren't anywhere near as pure, as passionate as Where no Life Dwells.

Don't get me wrong though, this is still a good album. Not much has changed. There's still the mid paced guitar riffs, the rythym section is capable without showing off, and while the vocals aren't quite as throaty and aggressive as they where in the Where no Life Dwells, they are still fairly aggressive and fit the music perfectly.

There's still plenty of awesome riffs to be found. To Asgaard we Fly is full of awesome galloping riffs with a nice mid tempo bridge. I am God is pretty damn fast, with some cool tremelo picked riffs. It's pretty menacing, and as good as anything of the first album. In the Northern Sea is full of effective and simplistic riffing, and Execute them All has a super powerful main riff that's very thrashy and extremely headbangable. Not all songs are good though.. The title track is decent, but the melodies in it aren't that good, and the song can't make up it's mind whether to be epic or an interlude. It would've been cool if it was nine minutes long and had some massive riffing, and it would've been cool if it was a minute long. But at 3 minutes, it overstays its' welcome and doesn't really achieve much. The Judas Priest cover is horrific. The singer may be a great growler, but he can't do Rob Halford.

So every song but two of them is pretty good.. Why only 70% then? Because the album just leaves you disinterested. Maybe it's just me, but it just doesn't sound like the guys in Unleashed were still excited about playing death metal, and decided to just churn out an album of songs. The production is more polished but it lacks the warmth and thickness of the first album, and the vocalist sounds like he can't be stuffed. Not a bad album by any means.. Just not a good one.

"Across the Open Sea" is a triumph of death metal songwriting. The Viking atmosphere/artwork and the bands performance make this CD an epic in hiding. Sadly, the production and sound are a bit flat compared to the bands other great works but the songwriting is more consitent and the mood even stronger than ever before. Hedlund and co. really put a good deal of thought into this record, despite the somewhat poor sound quality. (The rich, bassy tone is terrible flat on this record which Johnny commonly blames on a lack of new gear.) Whatever production flaws may exist though, the band plays like a bunch of barbarians at war and the songs are imaginative and full of great death metal riffage.

One may note that the Viking theme in the writing may have inspired the great songwriting on this record well beyond the lyrics. The lurching riffs, brutal pick up sections and the fact that not one song is truly without something unique makes this a landmark in death metal songwriting. The riffs sound like an epic film battle put to music, without all the fruity keyboards and choirs. (Not that there is anything wrong with those things if Bathory happens to do them, as a side note.) This is flesh against flesh and steel against steel. The music and lyrics lock together to forge the perfect mental imagry of the Viking in heated and hopelessy grim battle. This is something few supposed "Viking" bands have done and Unleashed deserve credit for putting the work in to create such a monster.

The only obscure note is a strange cover of Judas Priest's "Breaking the Law". I don't know what the band were thinking...it's just...very...strange.

I have no qualms in suggesting this to EVERY death metal fan alive. Despite it's "iffy" sound the band is in fine shape here. I dare say this ranks with the Deicide, Entombed and Morbid Angel classics as a great record that MUST be recognized by the death metal community for it's brute force, amazing songwriting and amazing entertainment value.