Lux Aeterna

Canada’s vast expanse contains a great number of metal secrets for the adventurous listener, and Ontario’s Gates Of Winter are one that you’re not likely to find unless you do a reasonable amount of digging. The band’s lone self-released full length, Lux Aeturna, was dropped in 2008, much to the confusion of metalheads everywhere.

Confused because, quite simply, the band seems to have the best sort of identity crisis going on. Broadly, I would describe this record as being symphonic and melodic progressive metal. However, this brings bands like Royal Hunt and Adagio to mind; neither of which sound anything like Gates Of Winter. Imagine a highly emotive progressive metal backdrop, rife with semi-complex rhythms, heavily shrouded with atmospheric keyboards, and featuring deep, throaty vocals like those of Dark At Dawn’s Thorsten Kohlrausch. Then, add some epic atmospherics, some fantasy/medieval lyrics, supporting female vocals, and the occasional death grunt or roar, and you may have an idea of what this album will greet you with. In places, this even reminds me a bit of power metal similar to what Borealis is churning out.

Straight away, I’ll tell you that this album will likely appeal to those preferring the more somber, melancholic emotions of darker prog and gothic-tinged metal. The tempo is generally middle of the road and the background plodding of drums, bass, and guitar can make the entire backdrop sound mechanical and dry after a time. This was one of my biggest complaints with Lux Aeterna, Because once in a while there will be a mad shred, followed by the rhythm section (including the guitar) settling back into a relatively unremarkable backdrop that almost feels dronish after a while, without being attractively minimalist.

Despite the under-utilization of instrumental talent on much of the album (with the exception of the keyboards), Gates Of Winter manages to pack a lot of sprawling, cold, and emotive metal into its songs. This isn’t an album I could listen to with any frequency, but it is quite singular in sound. Songs like the splendid “Winter Flight” could certainly find their way into my regular playlist, but beyond this, I would recommend Lux Aeterna to prog listeners that don’t mind some redundancy and heightened focus upon darker sounds. Listeners of extreme metal may also find this more accessible than typical prog/power offerings because of its vocal style and supplemental use of keyboards. Very much a niche band, and one that understandably could be a favorite, though not of mine.

Original review written for Black Wind Metal

I came across Gates of Winter through a podcast. The song I had heard was 'Winter Flight', a song that, in one word, made me feel 'released'. And that's the kind of feel I got throughout the whole album. Right from the start of the album, one can tell that this band's intention is go STRAIGHT for the listener's mood. Their songwriting is VERY emotion-oriented, something that I find lacking in most progressive metal bands, who are busy showing off their technical prowess and superior education in music.

Gates of Winter may not come across as progressive to someone who's definition of 'progressive' is based on music by bands like Dream Theater and Andromeda. No. Don't expect ridiculously brain-jarring time signatures and beat skips OR virtuosic technique. So what makes them progressive? Well their ability to change rhythms frequently and constantly make the listener feel like he/she is part of the story they are trying to tell. And they CAN tell stories. Case in point: the 'Burning Kingdom' trilogy. The way the 1st part, 'A Dark Affliction' begins, sets the tone running for part 2 and finally closes with the instrumental part 3 that shares its name with the album title, bears testimony to their storytelling prowess.

Another highlight of this album is that there is never a dull moment. This is something that many progressive metal bands have not been able to master. Gates of Winter ensure that their songs do not drag on unnecessarily, clocking at 11-15 minutes JUST for the sake of being called 'progressive'. Hence one never feels that the same riff is being repeated for too long, or that the lead guitarist can stop his 5-minute long wankery already. Also, this band has a VERY solid backing rhythm. None of those 'falsely promising-sounding intro' problems here.

All in all, this is a wonderful album. The production though, DOES give away the fact that it is self-released because of the unusual prominence of the bass. No matter, it is still a piece of art. No matter what kind of a bad day one has had, one can be assured that he will feel total bliss for those 49 minutes and 44 seconds that this album runs for. A few of my favourites:

-Winter Flight
-From the Flesh
-Burning Kingdom II- Heavenly Insurgence
-Omega