''The Kiss, The Hope'' is the second full-length

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

by Norwegian metal band

Lengsel Lengsel was a progressive black metal band that formed in 1994 in Norway. They released one album, called ''Solace'', on Endtime Productions in 2000, which was subsequently licensed to Solid State Records for an American release. The second alb ...

, released on Whirlwind Records in December 2006. The album was a stylistical change on the band's musical direction, representing more of a

sludge metal Sludge metal (also known as sludge or sludge doom) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that originated through combining elements of doom metal and hardcore punk. It is typically harsh and abrasive, often featuring shouted vocals, heavi ...

style.

Recording

After the release of

Extol Extol are a Christian metal band from Bekkestua, Norway that was formed in 1993. The band is known for playing a variety of different styles of heavy metal music, metal which include progressive metal, death metal, black metal and thrash metal. ...

's '' The Blueprint Dives'' and the following tour, Ole Halvard Sveen, Tor Magne S. Glidje and John Robert Mjåland returned to their Lengsel project six years after ''

Solace Consolation, consolement, and solace are terms referring to psychological comfort given to someone who has suffered severe, upsetting loss, such as the death of a loved one. It is typically provided by expressing shared regret for that loss and ...

'' and began work for the second album. During 2006, the band set up a Myspace profile where they hinted that they would take a more

garage rock Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The sty ...

and

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier punk ...

oriented direction while keeping some elements of their

black metal Black metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include Tempo#Beats per minute, fast tempos, a Screaming (music)#Black metal, shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted Electric guitar, guitars played with t ...

roots. Announcing an initial working title of ''Hell Calls Hell'', the band released videos from the studio and sound samples, one of which was accompanied by a short video for "Angels in America" with footage of an old photograph. With a release date set for December 2006, the band announced the official title as ''The Kiss, The Hope'', signed to German-based Whirlwind Records, and shortly after published a trailer for the upcoming music video for "The Pale People" which was released a few months later.

Sound

Musically, the album represents mostly a

style such as on "Hell Calls Hell" (featuring Ilkka of

Benea Reach Benea Reach was a Norwegian progressive metal band based in Oslo. The band was nominated for a Spellemannsprisen Award in the metal category, and at one time included noted guitarist Christer Espevoll of progressive metal band Extol. Histor ...

) and "A Little Less to Heal". "Åndenød – The Easy Kill" consists of

industrial Industrial may refer to: Industry * Industrial archaeology, the study of the history of the industry * Industrial engineering, engineering dealing with the optimization of complex industrial processes or systems * Industrial city, a city dominate ...

noise Noise is unwanted sound considered unpleasant, loud or disruptive to hearing. From a physics standpoint, there is no distinction between noise and desired sound, as both are vibrations through a medium, such as air or water. The difference arise ...

sounds and "Tales of Lost Love" is

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

-influenced, while "The Pale People" is a

gothic rock Gothic rock (also called goth rock or simply goth) is a style of rock music that emerged from post-punk in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The first post-punk bands which shifted toward dark music with gothic overtones include Siouxsie a ...

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-roc ...

song reminiscent of

The Cure The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in 1978 in Crawley, Crawley, West Sussex. Throughout numerous lineup changes since the band's formation, guitarist, lead vocalist, and songwriter Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith has re ...

with Robert Smith type vocals and echoed, dark guitars.

Reception

According to

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

, ''The Kiss, The Hope'' was "less positively reviewed" than ''Solace''. However, critics such as Stefan Lang of PowerMetal.de gave it favorable reviews and called the album innovative.

Track listing

#"An Anonymous Phone-Call and a Dead Line" – 8:03 #"Hell Calls Hell" – 3:53 #"Miss S.C." – 3:49 #"Ådendød – The Easy Kill" – 1:55 #"Tales of Lost Love" – 5:29 #"A Little Less to Heal" – 4:51 #"Eternal Seven" – 2:26 #"The Warm Water Chaseway" – 3:23 #"Angels in America" – 3:01 #"The Pale People" – 6:04 #"Avec Toi" – 3:31

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kiss, The Hope, The Lengsel albums 2006 albums