Gravity of Light

Hard 'n' heavy Finns Tarot released this, their latest album, in March 2010. Vocalist/bassist Marco Hietala had been in Nightwish for around nine years back then, and doing Raskasta Joulua metal/rock Christmas song albums and tours since 2004 (plus Northern Kings and Sapattivuosi...). His brother in arms, guitarist Zachary Hietala had Marenne and A2Z. Drummer Pecu Cinnari had Lazy Bones with second vocalist Tommi Salmela, who in addition is part of Raskasta Joulua too. Keyboardist Janne Tolsa is in insane clown posse Turmion Kätilöt and dark metallers Eternal Tears Of Sorrow (plus Marenne and Lazy Bones). Phew! It's bloody nice that guys found time to record something under the sign of mighty Tarot, since the previous album 'Crows Fly Black' was released in fall 2006.

The band's affection to British heavy metal and rock music can be strongly sensed. Tarot's cover versions of Black Sabbath, Blue Öyster Cult, Genesis and Jethro Tull songs are quite big hints, you know! They did a Accept one too, but... Anyway, Zachary was highly influenced by Ritchie Blackmore, and his brisk touch and sound partly come from there; both have scalloped fingerboards in their instruments to get some lovely vibrato to entire chords. He often plays open chords, instead of palm-muting and chugging away. Marco's rumbling and loud bass guitar actually is the rhythm guitar whenever Zachary does leads and is soloing. There is no need for multiple guitar tracks, really. He does perform some insane, unique things here, and his solos are always gripping. And while Marco's bass playing isn't something incredibly technical, its presence is huge and into-the-point. And Mr. Cinnari knew how to hit drums.

Marco handles most of the main vocals. His characteristic voice is very powerful here. His range is still broad. 'Gone' contains parts with very fragile singing from him. Mr. Salmela's voice is more high-pitched and rather nasal. Guys' voices complement each other, more than contend for space, when they sing simultaneously. Lyrical themes include corrupted powermongers, be they politicians or religious people, science fiction and life's obstacles. There are some clever lines, and the style of writing is really unique. Here's one for all sci-fi freaks: "I've seen the wonders of the molten flesh. The 'Thing' and the 'Fly' through 'Predator's eye. At every quantum leap, the terror also creep."

The keyboards and samples (nothing like speech or movie samples, no) are there for melodies or backing up other instruments. Sounds are mostly from past, something like Hammond for example. There are no guitar/keyboard solo duels, that are so old news these days. These guys do not need to mess around like that, they are old school. Some annoying bits occur, like 'Calling down the Rain's meowing sounds and 'Rise's "techno" stuff, but then again, we get fantastic atmospherics of 'Hell Knows' (then again, it also has this "halloween" squeal I love to hate). Well, no so old school...

'Gravity of Light' has both the moon and the sun on the cover. The band have never been very much on the lighter side of things, and this one certainly is no exception to that rule. The album is mostly mid-tempoed. I think it is that Finnish melancholiness that can immediately be sensed. 'Rise!' at least has a tad more joyous chorus... After the most chirpy and fastest piece, 'The Pilot of All Dreams' it slows down. Dio era Black Sabbath can be heard on 'many, many songs, so I think it really can be named as one of Tarot's main influences. Just try 'Magic and Technology' with its soaring vocals and everything else that is heavy. 'Gone' shows the band at their most fragile, but also with some clear influences from Nightwish, when the song goes soundtrack-ish and dramatic. Anyway, mostly it is about sturdy heavy metal, the Tarot way. 'Gone' is one of the more adventurous songs from the band, but there is also some safe compositional solutions. The album feels like being a continuation for Tarot stuff since 1993 album 'To Live Forever', and for sure there's no vibes from 'The Spell of Iron' (1986) (but surely from its 2011 remake).

The songwriting isn't totally waterproof, since there are some moments with unnecessary parts that just go in one ear and come out the other. However, there are some very, very fine bits in every single song, and generally good moments happen much more than shoddy ones. I have to admit I find it a bit too sullen as a whole. The album can still kick arse, but the boot won't be very deep in where the sun doesn't shine. Maybe due to the band member's other activities, this feels like the brightest of spark is missing at times, or perhaps was not captured on "tape".

The production values are different than in 1986, when their debut album 'Spell of Iron' was released, of course. Every instrument and the vocals have their place in the mix, and it does not get clogged when everything is at their loudest at the same time. There's no too much studio trickery utilized, as it does sound organic.

Drummer Pecu Cinnari's unfortunate and untimely passing in September 2016, after the long fight against severe illness, left a question in the air, if Tarot will ever make another album again. Only hell knows, I presume... 'Gravity of Light' is a heavy, vivid and majestic piece of Finnish heavy metal, and also such in worldwide scale. Those who love heavy metal with Finnish and British vibes, should not miss out on this band and their voluminous discography.

(Originally written for ArchaicMetallurgy.com)

Following up from 2007’s exceptional album ‘Crows Fly Black’, Finnish traditional/melodic metal band Tarot have released their latest CD, entitled ‘Gravity of Light’.

Tarot is the group born from the creative mind of vocalist and bassist Marco Hietala, who also is the bassist and part-time vocalist of Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish. Hietala is also involved in other projects, such as Sapattivuosi, a band that performs Black Sabbath covers in Finnish, while he also sings for Northern Kings; an 80’s pop cover project also featuring Juha-Pekka Leppäluoto (vocalist for Finnish gothic metal band Charon) and Tony Kakko (Sonata Arctica’s front man). Making up the rest of Tarot, is long time guitarist and brother of Marco, Zachary Hietala, drummer Pecu Cinnari, keyboardist Janne Tolsa and co-vocalist and sampler, Tommi “Tuple” Salmela, Tommi, who has been with the band for many years, has only recently been made a full-time member of the band. Tommi originally was a “roadie” for Tarot.

Tarot are veterans of the metal scene, considering that they have been around since 1985. Beginning on the unknown label, Flamingo Music, Tarot changed to Bluelight Records (another unknown) for their 1993 album ‘To Live Forever”. Tarot finally made it to a bigger and well known label in 2003, when they signed with Spinefarm. For Tarot’s last two releases (including this one), they have been with Nuclear Blast and King Foo Entertainment, so I guess the old saying is true: hard work does eventually pay off.

Tarot are also one of the few bands which I can honestly say have consistently made solid and good records; so you know when they release a new album, that it’s going to be fresh, appealing and entertaining. Every CD this band has released, they have always produced something different. Whether it be a different feel or mood, such as dark, heavy and dissident, or energetic, light and bright. Whatever each new album brings, you know that it is going to be a great mix of tracks that contains music not just restricted to the simplistic side of traditional and melodic metal.

‘Gravity of Light’ is Tarot’s eighth full-length studio release (as well as two live albums and a best of compilation) and is another solid CD that can easily stack up with their most recent material; particularly their last two releases, ‘Crows Fly Black’ and ‘Suffer Our Pleasures’. Black Sabbath is the inspiration for the slow, eerie and prodding track “Magic And Technology”, while a foot-tapping bluesy beat and riff accompanies the charismatic, wonderful and uplifting “I Walk Forever”. The song also features co-vocalist Tommi Samela quite heavily and the two singers together on this track sounds superb, making for “I Walk Forever” to be one of the best tracks on the album.

Both “Calling Down the Rain” and “Caught in the Deadlights” are exceptional tracks and two of the best. Using just a typical and traditional heavy metal formula, with Tarot’s own trademark sound and influence, these two tracks are bursting with exuberance, melody and finesse. “The Pilot of All Dreams” is an erratic track, with a flurry of up-tempo beats, grooves and power; while other tracks like “Satan is Dead”, “Hell Knows” and “Rise!” are all very good songs in their own unique style, adding depth to an already powerful, creative and imaginative album.

Once again Tarot have produced another consistent CD, continuing the trends of excellent releases over recent years. With such a broad range of tracks, influences and creativity, ‘Gravity of Light’ undoubtedly covers a vast range of metal sub-genres and contains something that almost everyone can get into and give their stamp of approval.

Fans of Tarot will yet again be extremely satisfied with ‘Gravity of Light’, much like they were with previous releases, while fans of Nightwish should also find this album quite entertaining and interesting; particularly with the link Marco has between the two bands. Lastly, the great majority of traditional European heavy metal and melodic metal fans will also be attracted to the sound, riffs and attributes which this CD has to offer.

Originally written for www.themetalforge.com

I will admit that I became interested in Tarot after discovering them through Nightwish, and therefore have not been a fan of the band since the beginning or even since the release of Crows Fly Black. Regardless, once I picked up Crows Fly Black I was determined to discover the full history of this awesome band where Marco took full charge of lead vocals instead of playing second banana to Annette Olzon (God help us). But this is not a review of Nightwish, this is a review of Tarot.

Again, having explored the full Tarot discography, I can legitimately say I am rather disappointed with this release, in part because instead of playing second banana to Annette, Marco is playing co-first banana with Tommi Salmela, and this unnerves me. Salmela’s voice does not have the same kind of driving raw power as Marco does, and I was much more content with his role as a backing vocalist on Tarot’s previous releases. For some inexplicable reason, Tarot has decided to integrate him as a full time co-vocalist and “sample” player, which I do admit if you know what you are looking for, you can distinguish Salmela’s competent sampling from Tolsa’s keyboards. His vocals, though, detract from the quality of the album by taking the raucous energy out of large sections of songs.

This has yet to account for the songs themselves. Tarot has gradually grown over the years into a more modern heavy metal band, and I appreciate bands that can change their style subtly while still remaining true to their core sound and vision. Gravity of Light does not do this. This album finds Tarot experimenting a bit too much with their writing process, and their experimentation does not live up to the standards these guys have set for their writing. Songs like “Magic and Technology” and “Caught in the Deadlights” simply fall flat, the former featuring what appears to be ridiculously downtuned guitars and poor riff-writing that is incredibly uncharacteristic of these incredibly talented musicians and the latter feeling too simple to be a Tarot creation. Tolsa’s duties also appear to have been scaled back in favor of a bit more work from Salmela on samples, which feels to me like an invasion.

This album had one highlight for me: I Walk Forever. Here, Salmela actually gave a more convincing performance than he has in the past, and Tolsa’s keyboards can be heard. The bridge section features creative riffing and intricate orchestration. The dual vocals work well here, with the harmonies lining up well and creating an excellent atmosphere for Tarot. Though different from their previous output, this is the direction in which Tarot should head next, not the direction this album went.

Despite all the flaws, the band still performs this album incredibly well, and it is still a good album. It is just not up to the standard that Tarot has set consistently for the last twenty five years.

Tarot has risen to be one of metal's most consistent bands in recent time, releasing quality albums one after the other. It appears that they are not ready to slow down either! Their last two releases Crows Fly Black and Suffer Our Pleasures proved to be their own versions of metal masterpieces by keeping their old sound while adding newer and more modern elements. Gravity of Light retains this trend of consistent releases for Tarot, but with a few changes and some not for the better.

My biggest complaint on this album is the use of vocalist/sampler Tommi Salmela. While I think that he has a fairly solid voice, he sings way too much on the album, especially on the song "Calling Down the Rain" where it is practically him singing the entire time instead of lead vocalist and bassist Marco Hietala. Marco still has more vocal parts than Tommi of course, but his role is greatly reduced which upsets fans like me because I feel he has perhaps the best voice in modern metal.

The only song where I think the two really do good together on the album is "Sleep In the Dark". What makes this track great is the use of Marco and Tommi trading off sections of their vocal lines. Plus, it helps that the song is just pure kick ass heavy metal! That is the kind of creativity that should be done if Tarot was to use Tommi for vocals. Otherwise, Tommi should just be used as a backup for Marco mostly.

Another issue I have with this album are the filler tracks it has. "Calling Down the Rain" is a rather weak song as I have already mentioned. "I Walk Forever" has a catchy chorus but it is just a very boring song altogether with stock riffs. "Magic And Technology" could have been a great song, but it lacks substance and it gets tiring after a while. Plus, the main riff gets a little repetitive. "Caught In The Deadlights" is an okay track, but it just misses the mark for me in terms of the quality we expect out of Tarot.

Now that I have got the negatives of the album out of the way, there is in fact a lot of good that came out of Gravity of Light. "Satan Is Dead" starts out the album with a great riff which leads into what Tarot does best and that is doing heavy metal their own way. "Hell Knows" has a nice doom metal feel to it which is reminiscent of older bands like Black Sabbath. "Rise" is a fun metal song that has a great chorus you can sing along to. And finally we have the song "Gone", which is basically as I call it the album's "epic". It's very progressive and it shows a different side of Tarot than what we usually hear. We get a very nice vocal performance from Marco without putting Tommi into the picture on this track. Definitely worth a listen and a great way to end the album.

This isn't Tarot at their best, but it is worthy of a solid album. Despite my heavy criticism, this is better than ninety percent of what most metal bands produce nowadays. If it wasn't for the weaker tracks and Tommi's excessive singing, this would have been a much better album. But the fact that these guys are all in their 40s and still producing music this good is just amazing to me. If you need a good metal album for 2010, then Gravity of Light is up your alley.

Yay, a new Tarot album! It’s been four long years since Crows Fly Black, and what do the boys have in store for us this time? A new album called Gravity of Light, and boy, was I excited. This would be the first new Tarot album since I got into the band, and with how much I’ve kept playing their albums over the years, I was hyped as hell for this. Now that it’s here, let’s just cut to the chase and review it.

Gravity of Light is not quite the riff-heavy assault of Crows Fly Black, nor the diabolical concentration of maniacal power that was Suffer Our Pleasures, but it is a Tarot album; that much is certain. Tarot has always had their own unique style; nobody else ever sounded like them, not really. Their style is so air-tight and so individual by this point that they might as well trademark it. Marco’s distinctive howling and gruff midrange combined with the melodic crunching guitars and snappy, angry songwriting talents make for a killer treat of a record every time, and this is no different. I don’t think this is quite on the level of the last two, just by virtue of the songs not being on the same stellar level, but it’s still really good anyway, mind you.

I have to say the production on this just isn’t good, as the vocals are way in the front and the guitars way in the back, smoothed down from their sharp bite of the previous two albums to a very dull, rounded clunking that robs the album of a lot of its power. The songwriting shines through, but seriously, guys, go back to the Crows Fly Black production. Please. The other big change has come in the form of newly initiated second vocalist Tommi Salmela, who uses his thin, nasally whine to great effect in sync with Tarot’s uncouth heavy metal beating. Sometimes he gets a bit grating, as on the weak “Calling Down the Rain,” but most of the time he adds an extra pinch of energy – not that the band needs it so much as uses it to an even greater effect.

The songs are split up between classic Tarot-styled rippers like the great opener “Satan is Dead,” with riffs and eccentric vocal patterns to spare, the monstrous choirs of “Rise!” and the propulsive, driving “Pilot of All Dreams,” and slower, more mystical pounders like the awesome “Hell Knows,” which is probably the best single song on the album, and “Magic & Technology.” The choruses are big, loud war-chants and the synths create mesmerizing soundscapes to lose oneself in. They’re simple songs, but the band makes every note count for a hundred of a lesser band’s, and the whole thing is just crushingly good. “Gone” (SAAAAAIIIIL MY DREEEEEAAAAMS TO BABYLOOOON…) and “I Walk Forever” could almost be Nightwish tunes, with their heavier reliance on orchestration. And, as always, the lyrics rule, intelligent, sharp, witty and mysterious. How can anyone deny the greatness of lines like You may find me laughing in a haunted house/Drawing strange runes to the air and dust/And here inside of me there’s a long forgotten key? You can’t.

At its best, Gravity of Light lives up to its name and produces heavy, entrancing material that will at times make you feel like you’re being crushed by some invisible, unimaginable weight. This is a moody, opaque work at heart, contrary to the angry vitriol of previous works, when the band was scrounging in the underground, and it might take some getting used to. It is worth it, though, once you feel your head being compressed to pieces by the magnitude of the riffs on this album. This really is a mature, well thought out album, even if it isn’t quiiite as good as their last two. Tarot is a metal band with no limitations, completely devoted to their intelligent, creative style of heavy metal, and goddamn if they aren’t absolutely wonderful at it. Here’s to another handful of kickass albums in the new decade, boys. Good show, good show.

Originally written for http://www.metalcrypt.com