Review by Jack on January 27, 2003.

To put it simply: clichéd song titles, band name and album title all aside BloodRose has delivered a finely composed symphonic black metal album in “Into Oblivion.”

The elegance of “Into Oblivion” is in its simplicity. Not necessarily in the working of the compositions on the album itself, but more to the point of being that “Into Oblivion” is an album that doesn’t take an overt amount of brainpower to sit there and absorb. Akin to the earlier Dimmu Borgir albums, BloodRose are able to captivate listeners with extensive keyboard witchery and catchy choruses, over the top of mammoth black metal riffing. This stuff isn’t rocket science, but to dismiss it as another boring old black metal album is to hardly give it the time it deserves.

While I am all for giving “Into Oblivion” the thumbs up, there are a few issues that need a bit of addressing before any follow up records from BloodRose should come this way. My main problem is with the production. Overall I think BloodRose could have done better with a far meatier sound. Jari Haapasalo certainly would have benefited from a more guttural and reworked black metal rasp. Additionally, the drumming on “Into Oblivion” (provided by Teemu Peltonen) sounds far too tinny and could use a lift in the production next time around. Nothing too major, but the next album from BloodRose could certainly benefit from these changes.

Bottom Line: This is a damn fine record. In this day and age you would be really struggling if you wanted to find an album that would take you back to the symphonic black metal years of 95-97. These lads are getting near the top of their game, and “Into Oblivion” is a fine introduction to the world of BloodRose.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 8
Atmosphere: 7
Production: 6
Originality: 8
Overall: 9

Rating: 7.6 out of 10