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A Forest Of Stars - A Shadowplay For Yesterdays



8 | 198 votes |
Release date: 20 July 2012
Style: Atmospheric black metal

Owners:

173 have it
22 want it


01. Directionless Resurrectionist
02. Prey Tell Of The Church Fate
03. A Prophet For A Pound Of Flesh
04. The Blight Of God's Acre
05. Man's Laughter
06. The Underside Of Eden
07. Gatherer Of The Pure
08. Left Behind As Static
09. Corvus Corona (Part 1)
10. Corvus Corona (Part 2)
11. Dead Love [bonus]

The best Black Metal album of 2012

Additional info
Release dates:
Germany/Austria: July 20, 2012
Europe: July 23, 2012
North America: August 14, 2012
Everywhere else: July 23, 2012

Formats:
- Jewelcase CD. Budget edition with 8-page booklet and no extras.
- Digipak CD. Premium edition in 3-wing Digipak with 20-page booklet. Including bonus track "Dead Love".

- Artbook 2CD/DVD. Collector's edition in 28 x 28 cm hardcover book with 48 pages. Including bonus track "Dead Love", bonus CD with two exclusive cover songs, and DVD with "Gatherer Of The Pure" video clip. Limited to 1000 copies.

- Gatefold 2LP. Vinyl edition with 12-page booklet and poster. Including bonus track "Dead Love". Limited to 500 copies.

Recordedat the Gentelmen's C;ub & the Coach House between August - December 1891.
Except Mr Bishop's trap kit, which was recorded by Robert Hobson at http://www.silent-city.co.uk.

Produced & engineered by Henry Brondson/The Gentleman. Mixed & mastred by Henry Brondson.

With: The Projectionist - Live lighting & imagery, moving pictures & animation.
Cover design & illustration: Karolina Szymkiewicz.
Layout, design & lithographics: Grum.
Scratchings: Curse.
Photography: The Projectionist.

Guest review by
Auntie Sahar
Rating:
9.2
Let me tell you what I believe is the ultimate measure of a band's talent: how many genres they can blend together into a mass fusion of sound, while at the same time sticking to the core base of the primary genre from which they come. A Forest Of Stars have already proven themselves masters at such a technique with 2008's The Corpse Of Rebirth and 2010's lesser-acclaimed (but still impressive) Opportunistic Thieves Of Spring. And here they are in 2012, ready to split the black metal camp in half again with another stunningly outlandish album. The thing about the band that one should take note of is that they never do the same thing twice. True, they have managed to craft a distinct sound that can genuinely be called "theirs," yet (much like Enslaved) this sound is always being embellished upon. On A Shadowplay For Yesterdays, we see it evolving into a much more folklore-ish territory, with the Victorian themes we all love and know the band for being taken to a new height.

Read more ››
published 21.10.2012 | Comments (8)

Maybe, maybe, more accessible than their previous two offerings, yet still completely unique, A Forest Of Stars didn't disappoint at all with this new gem of an album.



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Comments page 2 / 2

Comments: 45   [ 1 ignored ]   Visited by: 797 users
01.03.2013 - 16:31
Ellrohir
Heaven Knight
Congratulations on being best black album...this one deserves it
----
My rest seems now calm and deep
Finally I got my dead man sleep


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26.03.2013 - 07:41
Rating: 9
Metal_Buff

Succeeds in combining beauty and black metal in a way few others do. Some of the most memorable and original stuff I've had the pleasure of coming across... I think the vocals of Mr. Curse are indeed challenging, but they are absolutely perfect for creating the atmosphere of distress and delivering the dramatic flair that the music needs. I must get the digipack version so I can delve into this in it's full glory!
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13.04.2013 - 18:36
Rating: 9
Spacerunner

Black metal phenomenon.
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21.04.2013 - 17:22
Rating: 9
NocturnalStalker
Metal Addict
I think that A Forest Of Stars can be called Current 93 of black metal scene. I mean it as a great compliment.
----
"And we are not who we think we are
We are who we're afraid to be"
- Lux Occulta "The Opening of Eleventh Sephirah"
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07.05.2013 - 02:14
Rating: 8
Daggon
Underpaid M.D.
I gotta say this release is quite different from their previous albums. It is a very enjoyable album, it's beautiful, with a special atmosphere. I liked the addition of more clean vocals, but still I miss the Black metal style at some parts.

A natural evolution for a band that seems unstoppable at making what they want.
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"Les vers savent qu'ils n'ont pas d'ailes, c'est pour cela qu'ils se cachent sous terre"
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03.01.2014 - 09:12
Rating: 6
BloodJuNkie
Of Egypt
"A Prophet For A Pound Of Flesh" is the only song i like!
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14.09.2016 - 19:55
Bad English
Tage Westerlund
A different and I liked most in last song female vocals, it was amazing, maybe best song ever from this band
----
Life is to short for LOVE, there is many great things to do online !!!

Stormtroopers of Death - ''Speak English or Die''
apos;'
[image]
I better die, because I never will learn speek english, so I choose dieing
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14.09.2016 - 20:33
3rdWorld
China was a neat
Written by Bad English on 14.09.2016 at 19:55

A different and I liked most in last song female vocals, it was amazing, maybe best song ever from this band

How does this compare with their latest then? Any similarties soundwise and qualitywise?
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14.09.2016 - 21:47
Bad English
Tage Westerlund
Its equal in genre but a bit different avantagre arrangements s
----
Life is to short for LOVE, there is many great things to do online !!!

Stormtroopers of Death - ''Speak English or Die''
apos;'
[image]
I better die, because I never will learn speek english, so I choose dieing
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12.02.2021 - 13:03
Desha
delicious dish
Still their best
----
You are the hammer, I am the nail
building a house in the fire on the hill
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12.02.2021 - 15:13
Rating: 9
Darkside Momo
Retired
Written by Desha on 12.02.2021 at 13:03

Still their best

Second best if you ask me (Beware The Sword You Cannot See takes the cake for me), but really excellent anyway!
----
My Author's Blog (in French)


"You must stay drunk on writing so reality cannot destroy you"

"I've lost too many years now
I'm stealing back my soul
I am awake"
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12.02.2021 - 15:26
Desha
delicious dish
Written by Darkside Momo on 12.02.2021 at 15:13

Written by Desha on 12.02.2021 at 13:03

Still their best

Second best if you ask me (Beware The Sword You Cannot See takes the cake for me), but really excellent anyway!

That one is a tiny bit uneven to me, since almost all the best songs are in the 6-parter. But it's really close for me between these two, definitely.
----
You are the hammer, I am the nail
building a house in the fire on the hill
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23.06.2021 - 14:30
Rating: 8
BennyMetGer

Their sound is very interesting,
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28.12.2022 - 15:43
Rating: 10
Karlabos
Meat and Potatos
This album is still their best work and still phenomenal after all these years

No wonder I gave it a 10 back then.
Still a 10
----
"Aah! The cat turned into a cat!"
- Reimu Hakurei
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29.12.2022 - 09:38
Zap
Guest
Written by Karlabos on 28.12.2022 at 15:43

This album is still their best work and still phenomenal after all these years

No wonder I gave it a 10 back then.
Still a 10

Wow that's funny I just listened to this yesterday evening and was gonna comment more or less the same thing. I hadn't listened to it in a few years. Such a weird album, in a good way.
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