Review by Michael on December 19, 2020.

Eight months after My Dying Bride delighted us with The Ghost of Orion, they release a new EP called Macabre Cabaret. I often wonder with many bands what the point of an EP is, if not money-making, but with My Dying Bride I have never been disappointed, except for the dreadful I am the Bloody Earth EP from 1994.

The first song, immediately the title track 'Macabre Cabaret', starts with the usual stylistic devices. A wonderfully doomy, catchy and absolutely melancholic track, which offers a beautifully sad acoustic part in its middle. It makes you want to sit by the sea and toast the approaching end of the world. Global warming, pollution, war, arms race, ignorance, selfishness, stupidity and Corona - we did it!!! It's not far now....which, of course, is not what the lyrics are about, but tragic love and death, if I'm interpreting this correctly now.

'A Secret Kiss' is a song that could have easily been on The Angel and the Dark River 25 years ago, the sawing guitars and death metal-like vocals from Aaron in places are pretty cool. I wish My Dying Bride would tend in this direction more often again. Thumbs up for both songs.

The next two songs should have been spared, though, in all honesty. 'A Purse of Gold and Stars' has become quite a bore - why? The song is more of a sonic background to Aaron's chanting, more of an ambient piece. The only positive thing about the song is the piano at the end of the track. The fourth song 'Orchestral Shores (Buiksloterkeerk Cathedral Mix)' is also nothing that the world necessarily needs. It is a rather quiet acoustic version of 'Your broken Shores' from the last album The Ghost of Orion. I think instead of the two (fortunately not too long) songs they should have put one or two "real" tracks on the EP, then it would have been a round thing (although CDs always are...). So then remains but a somewhat bland aftertaste.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Review by Adam M on January 2, 2011.

This album is hard to pin down because it varies the styles played so frequently. At times, there are moments that are almost euphoric musically, but at others it almost dissolves into generic Metalcore. More often than not, the good overshadows the bad here, however Destrage craft an interesting experience. The songs 'Twice The Price' and 'Jade’s Place' are highlights because they are compelling in their structure.

Destrage illustrate genre-blending relatively effectively and the nuances found within the songs elevate them above what you might typically expect from Metalcore. The outfit is truly more ingenious when constantly varying their style than going for all out aggression. There are occasions where Destrage may appear juvenile sounding, but these are overshadowed by the times when they make themselves out to be an intelligent act. Unlike a lot of Metalcore, there is always a tempo shift or instrumentation change that prevents Destrage from becoming generic. Similarly, the songs are better when they concentrate more on the instrumentation than the vocals. The clean vocals at times aren’t appealing and remind of mainstream acts, but the solid instrumental work wins out on the whole for me. Drumming and guitar showcases are impressive and steal the show overall. Furthermore, there are catchy subdued moments at times that bring in elements like acoustic guitar.

Destrage are a very good act, but have even more room to improve in the future, without a doubt. This isn’t a typical metal release, so it comes recommended to fans of bands like Protest The Hero for example. The aspects of the disc that are inventive outweigh those that are annoying on the long run. There will probably be a specific audience that appreciates the most and many others that will ignore it completely, but that’s what you’ll get with a style that is so different.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 8
Atmosphere: 7
Production: 7.5
Originality: 7.5
Overall: 7.5

Rating: 7.5 out of 10