Courtesy: Pavement Entertainment
This past October, underground industrial/goth metal outfit Gabriel and the Apocalypse released its latest full-length studio recording The Ghost Parade. The Minneapolis, MN-based quintet’s new record is a good fit for anyone that is a fan of Otep and to a lesser extent Prong, Nine Inch Nails and other acts of that ilk. That is due both to the album’s musical arrangements and its lyrical content. The songs mix together Nine Inch Nails’ industrial elements with the hard-edged sound of Prong and Otep (even front woman Lindy Gabriel sounds eerily like Otep front woman Otep Shamaya at points) for a record that musically speaking, will easily entertain its key audiences. Lyrically speaking, the record covers a number of topics, too including politics, world issues and more. All things considered The Ghost Parade is a record that Gabriel and the Apocalypse’s fans will soundly celebrate.
Gabriel and the Apocalypse’s latest full-length studio recording (and its Pavement Entertainment debut) Ghost Parade is a record that the underground goth/industrial act’s fans are sure to celebrate. Between its musical arrangements and its lyrical content, it presents plenty for fans to appreciate. The album’s opener ‘March Of The Dolls’ is a prime example of how the album’s musical arrangements and lyrical content come together to make the album stand out. In regards to its musical arrangement, the song is a powerhouse composition with a sound that takes the best elements of Otep, Fear Factory and (believe it or not) Type O Negative and binds them together into one work. The end result is a work that will surprise audiences in the best way possible. That is because of the manner in which the arrangement balances those elements. It is just one part of what makes the song stand out. The song’s lyrical content is just as important to note as its musical arrangement.
The musical arrangement presented in ‘March of The Dolls’ is important in its own right to the song’s overall presentation. It balances a number of different influences throughout the course of its nearly three-and-a-half-minute run time, and does so expertly, too. That in itself is certain to keep audiences entertained. While the song’s musical arrangement plays its own important role in its presentation, it is just one part of what makes the song stand out. Its lyrical content is just as important to note as its musical arrangement. Gabriel sings in the song’s lead verse, “You want/You need/To beg and to please/Get on/Your knees/I’ll make you believe/I want/I need/I love/The taste/My sweat/Is smeared across your face/My god/My god/It’s all/The same/Another sinful/Another save/But I can’t/Resist/Cuts down my wrist/I put it back together/What matters is the ending.” It’s a rather dark statement to say the very least. What is interesting here, though is that considering such a statement, it would have been easy for the band to go more in the standard, brooding goth direction with the song’s arrangement. But instead it went the aggressive route. In hindsight it seems to serve the defiance seemingly exhibited in that lead verse. The song’s second verse is very similar to its first with only one real minor change, which comes in the end of the verse. The real power that matches the song’s musical arrangement comes in the song’s final moments as Gabriel sings, “I’ve found myself…in the Ghost Parade…What do you think of me now?” That last group of lines is especially interesting because it has been noted that The Ghost Parade is a personal record for the band’s front woman. That final statement perhaps illustrates how personal it is for her. It is almost as if she is saying through this song, she has grown and become someone new through all of the negativity that she has experienced in life, so “how do you like her now?” It is a bold, powerful statement that when coupled with the song’s musical arrangement becomes even harder hitting. Considering this the song in whole proves to be just one example of what makes The Ghost Parade a record that the band’s fans will celebrate.
‘March of the Dolls,’ with its powerhouse musical arrangement and equally interesting lyrical content is solid proof of why Gabriel and the Apocalypse’s fans will celebrate the band’s new album The Ghost Parade. It is just one of the songs that serves to show what makes the album stand out. ‘Colour of Winter’ is another of the album’s songs that serves to make it stand out. This song is the polar opposite of ‘March of the Dolls’ both in terms of its musical arrangement and its lyrical content. Speaking first about its musical arrangement, this piece is that dark, brooding composition that goth fans will appreciate. It is driven largely by the work of drummer Zach Williams and guitarists Jake LaCore and Joey Connelly. Keyboardist Figgles McGee (no, that’s not a joke) adds an extra touch to the song, too. The end result is a work that instantly conjures thoughts of works composed by Marilyn Manson and his band mates. That is especially the case when Gabriel’s vocal delivery is joined with the work of her band mates. It is only one part of the song that should be discussed. The song’s lyrical content adds even more depth to its presentation.
The brooding musical arrangement at the heart of ‘Colour of Winter’ is its own key element to the song’s presentation. As noted already, the combination of Gabriel’s vocal delivery and the work of her band mates gives the song a feel that instantly conjures thoughts of Marilyn Manson. The brooding doesn’t end with the song’s musical arrangement, though. There is just as much of that in the song’s lyrical content, too. Gabriel sings right off the bat in such morose fashion, “I’m alone in the world today/I can’t take it/But I feel it anyway/It’s not enough that it was/It’s not enough cause it’s gone/I can’t breathe/I can’t stay here/I’ll numb myself all the way. She goes on to sing about “burning yesterday,” “sinking into the void” and other brooding matters. Simply put, there’s a lot of deep emotion expressed in this song’s lyrical content; emotion that, again, goth fans will appreciate. When that deep emotion is set against the song’s equally brooding musical arrangement, the end result is one more of the album’s most standout compositions. It is one more song that shows why fans of Gabriel and the Apocalypse will celebrate this record just as much as goth and industrial fans. There are still other songs that serve to support that statement, too, including ‘Mazarine.’
‘March of the Dolls’ and ‘Colour of Winter’ are both key examples of what makes the Ghost Parade a record that Gabriel and the Apocalypse’s fans will celebrate. That is due to the songs’ musical arrangements and their lyrical content. Each song presents its own identity through its arrangement. One arrangement is an aggressive, full-force composition that greatly enhances the defiant statement presented in the song’s lyrical content. ‘Colour of Winter’ is the polar opposite (no pun intended) of ‘March of the Dolls.’ Both musically and lyrically, this song is the kind of work that any goth fan will appreciate just as much as the band’s more seasoned fans. While both songs show clearly through their musical and lyrical content what makes The Ghost Parade a piece that audiences will celebrate, they are not the only songs that will do so. ‘Mazarine’ shows in its own unique way what makes The Ghost Parade stand out, too, beginning with its musical arrangement. This song’s arrangement is a mid-level hard rock piece that boasts a hard rock/industrial hybrid sound. It isn’t the full-throttle piece that is presented in ‘March of the Dolls’ or even the more brooding ‘Colour of Winter.’ Rather it could be argued to be the closest to mainstream accessibility that the band reaches in this album. Keeping that in mind, this arrangement could be the best chance that the band has at mainstream success in this album. Of course the song’s arrangement is just one half of what makes the song stand out, just as with the other discussed songs. The song’s lyrical content is just as important to note as its musical arrangement.
The musical arrangement presented in ‘Mazarine’ is a key part of what makes this song stand out. It is perhaps the closest that the band comes to mainstream accessibility with its new album. As important as the song’s arrangement is to its presentation, its lyrical content proves to be important in its own right. Lyrically speaking, it will likely have audiences thinking and talking more than any other of the album’s songs. At one point she sings what seems like an ode to someone else, but at other times the song seems to touch on a wholly different matter. When that metaphorical language is coupled with the song’s semi-mainstream musical arrangement, the whole of the song becomes a work that would fit easily alongside the likes of Lacuna Coil, Evanesence and so many other more mainstream goth/industrial acts. It is just one more example of what makes The Ghost Parade stand out. When it is joined with ‘March of the Dolls,’ ‘Colour of Winter’ and the rest of the album’s offerings, the album in who proves without a doubt to be, again, a work that goth and industrial fans in general will appreciate just as much as the band’s more seasoned fans.
The Ghost Parade is a work that regardless of audiences’ familiarity with Gabriel and the Apocalypse, will appeal to goth and industrial fans in general just as much as it will the band’s more seasoned fans. That is evident through all three of the songs discussed here. It is also evident in the album’s other offering. All things considered, The Ghost Parade is a work that goth and industrial fans will celebrate” right alongside the band’s fans. It is available now in stores and online. More information on The Ghost Parade is available online now along with all of the band’s latest news at:
Website: http://www.gabrielandtheapocalypse.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/GabrielandtheApocalypse
Twitter: http://twitter.com/GATA_band
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