Midnight Syndicate - The Dead Matter Cemetery Gates (21 tracks) +Album Reviews

Another winner from Midnight Syndicate!

J. Maher | Chicago, IL | 09/09/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It has been 3 years since Midnight Syndicate's last CD of all new material (not counting the soundtrack to THE RAGE released earlier this year). One might ask after such a long "hiatus" if the band has still got it. With CEMETERY GATES, the answer is a resounding YES!!!

CEMETERY GATES starts out a little differently than most of Midnight Syndicate's previous releases. Whereas many of them begin with a "prelude" of sorts, a kind of creepy, drone-like intro that builds to a climax, CEMETERY GATES' opening track ("Cathedral Ruins") is quite the opposite and comes out swinging. For me, it conjured up images of a chase through a cemetery, past the catacombs, tombstones... hiding behind a mausoleum. Somebody else might envision something completely different, which is the beauty of a Midnight Syndicate album.

From there, Midnight Syndicate supplies the listener with the usual roller coaster ride of emotions throughout the CD. The title track sounds like a distant relative of "Eclipse" (from REALM OF SHADOWS/OUT OF THE DARKNESS). The bonus tracks offer up something a little different than previous CDs have... songs with actual lyrics. Apparently, these are songs that are actually featured in the movie THE DEAD MATTER. I'm not really a big fan of remixes, but the A.B.T. Remix of "Theme to 'The Dead Matter'" has really grown on me.

After listening to a new CD (by ANY artist), I often put in some of their previous CDs to compare the new material to the old stuff. This time, however, CEMETERY GATES has yet to leave my CD player. After listening to this album for the umpteenth time, I asked myself the following question... after 10 releases, how does Midnight Syndicate keep coming up with such great music? I may never know the answer, but as long as they keep making it, I'll keep listening."

My favorite Midnight Syndicate Release!

Tate | 09/10/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Wow, just when I thought Midnight Syndicate would start running out of tricks they release this INCREDIBLE CD! I've been a fan of the group since the beginning, and Cemetery Gates has the same old creepy atmospheres that I've always loved, but sounds even more professional! They're style has grown and improved, showcasing a talent that apparantly has no limits!

Being 100% honest, I Love EVERY track. They were all so deliciously ominous. With that being said, I was really surprised with the outstanding quality of the bonus tracks. "Lost" and "The Dead Matter Theme remix" were INCREDIBLE! I really hope MS releases a more dance-y themed album sometime, the hot beats on those two tracks were extraordinary - Something I'll definately be playing this Halloween to keep a more up a hip atmosphere.

Overall: If you've never got a Midnight Syndicate CD and you need to know where to start - Right Here! I have them all, and it's definately the best.

"

A Frightful Feast............

Mark Silvestri | Baltimore, MD | 01/13/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Saying that every Midnight Syndicate release is an event, merely scratches the surface. Ed Douglas and Gavin Goszka are, musically, who make Halloween.......HALLOWEEN. Hearing them evolve over the years has been amazing. And even though Gates of Delerium and The 13th Hour are still my favorite discs, for content, The Dead Matter: Cemetary Gates is probably their most mature work to date. There's no doubt it's Midnight Syndicate, only now, it seems more so. The songs are richer and fuller in sound and scope, to the point of epic proportions in some cases.........truly a sumptuous experience. And even though it's meant to go with their upcoming film by the same name, like all the previous discs, Dead Matter stands on it's own. On two of the three bonus tracks, Gavin Goszka's pure and eerie vocals seem to float over the disturbing and thunderous industrial tracks, with Not Your Saviour standing out. For diehard fans and those just initiated alike, this is absolutely a must have."

Excellent album that's creepy and epic sounding

Joker | Michigan | 10/14/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Dead Matter: Cemetery Gates is an album that contains music that is INSPIRED by the movie of the same name, but is NOT the soundtrack to the movie. Instead, it's basically a standalone Halloween music album with the cemetery/zombie/vampire theme of The Dead Matter. The theme is strong and the atmosphere throughout the album is consistently creepy and mysterious from the first track to the last. Some of the tracks are on the mellow or slow side, which is just the right tempo for an album with this subject matter (vampires, the living dead). The slow tempo on these tracks brings the spookiness to the surface more. When listening to this album I feel like an impending sense of doom is in the air, like something is going to happen, but I don't know what (I guess I'll find out when the movie comes out). The band has developed a noticably richer, more sophisticated sound with this album. While a lot of the tracks are slow and mellow, there are quite a few faster songs that really have an "epic" sound to them. This is definitely their most "epic" sounding album overall to date. When Midnight Syndicate does "epic" sounding songs, they don't overdo it. What I mean by that is the music, while powerful, isn't TOO powerful. When they put gothic choirs into some of their songs, the voices seem to be a little more in the background, or just at a lower volume. The choirs aren't booming in your face. This is good.

There are a lot of good melodies on this album, and the song arrangements are pretty neat. My favorite tracks are Cathedral Ruins (upbeat and fast), Meeting Of The Acolytes (slow with a good melody), The Revenants (fast tempo), Called From Beyond (epic sounding), Nightfall (good piano), The Hunt (has that "epic" sound to it), Entering The Crypt (slow, creepy, good piano), Forging The Scarab (another "epic" sounding song), Shadows Descend (has an epic movie soundtrack feel to it), Exodus (powerful and emotional), and Dark Legacy (good keyboards). This album sounds like a cross between Vampyre and Gates Of Delirium (both great albums, by the way). The band uses a lot more keyboards on this album than previous albums, which is a welcome change, though I don't mind lots of strings.

The three bonus tracks? They're different than the other tracks on the main album. They have a rock and industrial sound to them. A couple of them feature singing by Gavin Goszka. Maybe two of these bonus tracks might appear in the movie. The movie comes out in 2010.

What I really like about this album is the fact that you get a mixture of songs -- I can tell just by listening to the songs which ones will probably be in the movie and which ones are inspired by the movie, but won't be in the movie.

If you want the actual soundtrack to The Dead Matter movie, then buy The Dead Matter: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. It contains the creepy background musical score from the movie along with rock 'n roll songs that were featured in the movie. However, I recommend getting BOTH the Cemetery Gates album and the motion picture soundtrack in order to get the full experience of The Dead Matter.

I recommend The Dead Matter: Cemetery Gates to anyone wanting to create a great haunted atmosphere. Even if you don't see the movie, this is an excellent and versatile Halloween album that will do the job nicely when creating your own haunted atmosphere. Listen to this album and you'll be taken into the shadowy world of cemeteries, zombies, and vampires. This album is right up there with their best albums. Buy it. I highly recommend it. You'll love it."

Awesome disc except................

Brian Nallick | Mpls, MN | 10/10/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The last three tracks!!!

What the HELL were they thinking?

I can understand MS want to branch out and try something a little different but comon.

There's experimental and then there's just plain bad which the last three tracks are.

Thank God there called "bonus tracks"!!!

Stick to what you do best and hopefully this isn't a sign of things to come.

The last three bonus tracks in no way detract from the main album which is simply amazing.

My introdution to MS was with The 13th Hour.

I can say that as good as 13th Hour was, The Dead Matter is just leaps and bounds ahead of it.

The songwriting is way more mature, it has more balance.

The songs are way more epic, I think MS working on an actual movie has helped them immensely.

There seems to be more of a cohesion between the songs than just being different tracks.

My favorites so far are track 3 and 5.

But really, there isn't one bad track on the main disc.

I can't recommend this disc any more than I already have.

And with Halloween right around the corner, what a great time to introduce yourself to one of the scariest, innovative and brilliant groups on the planet.

Just skip the last three songs......DREADFUL!!!

Still....

Highly Recommended!!!"

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