Beyond Dawn — In Reverie

Up until now, I admit I had never really heard Beyond Dawn before. A friend gave me an mp3 of their severe rework of my old fav Autopsy’s Severed Survival, in which only the lyrics survived. The completely electronic arrangement left the song completely unrecognizable and very non-metal. Although coming from a metal background, nothing of that is to be found on In Reverie.

Dark yes, but otherwise more connected to pop. More specific: new wave, or even a touch of new romanticism of the 1980’s but also, particularly when brass and/or strings are used, outsiders like Dead Can Dance in their less medieval moments. The monotonous voice of singer Espen in combination with acoustic guitars leans to towards neo-folk like Sol Invictus.

The original EP comprised six tracks which are all found here. The description above applies mostly to that part of this reissue. Atmosphere (version), with its vocal drone, stands out as one of the highlights. Also for the use of trombone the band receives bonuspoints. The bonustracks, opening with a ‘Beyond Dawn reconstruction’ by James Morgan and Steve Kitch, veer into heavier electronics and the dark romanticism is somewhat replaced by a more atmospheric and modern approach. Hairy Fiquid again is a remix by James Morgan while the album closes off with a live-rendition of Fairly Icky.

As I pointed out earlier, Espen’s voice is a bit monotonous and is the weak part for me. I admit to have bit ambivalent feeling, as I can see how it fits the music, particularly on the original EP (released in 1999), but it just comes off as a bit bland to me. Otherwise I think In Reverie stays well on the good side and as I understand this previously out-of-print EP was sought after so I’m sure this rerelease pleases those who have been searching.