Waking the Dead by NFD
NFD fires on all cylinders again, roaring across gritty sound moors that few souls tread and leaving an unmistakable trail of elegy in its wake. Crowning the self-reinvention process initiated by the 8-track EP “Reformations” in 2013, the London/LA-based band has now released its 3rd long-playing, entitled “Waking The Dead”, whose ten tracks make Goth-Rock crossover an art. NFD’s manoeuvres towards its darkest, dusty musical genesis can be easily perceived in this new album, along with some memorable traces of their previous work, above all from “Dead Pool Rising” and “Deeper Visions”. Even though it’s a present-day approach to roots made by a band at its prime, which has been able to morph its original essence into revamped sonic forms, more lush, steely and crisply clean. Furthermore, the keyboards, samples and sequencers have a prominent role in these songs, working their chemistry with the intertwining guitar lines so that an eerie atmosphere takes root. This is not only a perfect complement to the electrifying sound core, but also an accurate enhancer for the purgatorial imagery’s plausibility, particularly the processed chants and symphonic arrangements. Hence the singer, guitarist and composer Peter “Bob” White (ex-Sensorium), the bassist Tony Pettitt (founding Fields of the Nephilim member and co-leader of The Eden House), the rhythm guitarist Chris Milden (Lahanya), the drummer Luca Mazzucconi (Lahanya) and the lead guitarist James McIlroy (ex-Cradle Of Filth) have made, in my view, their most complete and compelling record so far. […]
