Fields of the Nephilim- Fallen

In 2002, amidst much confusion, Jungle records released what they hailed as the triumphant reunion album by Fields of the Nephilim. In reality, this wasn't necessarily the case. The band, recording under the name The Nephilim (minus the "Fields of") and sounding more like Carl McCoy's post-Fields dark metal band The Nefilim (alternate spelling), sent a few finished tracks and demo/in-progress tracks to the label over what was apparently a significantly long period of time. The record label, understandably tired of waiting for them to finish an album, decided to take what they felt were excellent finished tracks and string them together into a 40-minute album with pieced-together artwork and apparently without the band's permission. They did an amazing job. Fallen sounds like a planned studio album, with each song perfectly flowing into the next and everything fitting together like a jigsaw puzzle.

The album contains ten tracks, although three of them are more like interludes or intros. "Dead to the World" is a really cool album opener that slowly builds in intensity as it flows from sounds samples and melodic rock elements to pounding metal and leads into the album's single "From the Fire", a slow-paced rocker with an intense epic metal chorus and Carl's trademark growled vocals. "Thirst", sort of a 2 ½ minute interlude, is an excellent driving epic metal track with some great riffs and pounding drums.

Then we get to "Darkcell AD", which I believe is a finished track previously released on a single. It's a mellow, moody track that's probably the least metal-influenced, but also perhaps the least memorable, track on the album. It is, however, followed by a constant string of great songs. "Subsanity", starting with atmospheric guitar quickly gets off to a start with pounding drums that lead into a faster-paced metal track with processed vocals and occasional old-fashion double-bass metal drumming…not to mention a great chorus guitar riff reminiscent of some of the melodic Fields material from the old days. "Hollow Doll" is more standard goth rock fare, and apparently a favorite among old Fields fans. Full of moody guitar, driven by bass, and complemented by atmospheric synth strings, it's sure to please old-school goth rock fans.

Next comes the album's title track, "Fallen". With epic keyboards, metal power chord riffs, and great reverb drenched vocals, "Fallen" is an intense emotional ride. Then comes what is probably my favorite track on the entire album, "Deeper". It's a slow-paced, almost catchy metal track with plenty of brilliant power chord riffs and a great drumbeat that might even have you bobbing your head. This leads into "Premonition", sort of a short intro to the album's final song. It's made up of layers of reversed loops, driving drums, and an underlying chord progression. Despite simply being sort of an instrumental intro, it's really top notch stuff. The final track, "One More Nightmare", is essentially an industrial metal remake of the Fields of the Nephilim classic "Trees Come Down". A much heavier version driven by electronic drums and full of samples, it's probably one of those instances where old Fields fans will either like what they've done with the track or prefer the old version. It's really a great track, though, and provides an excellent end to the album.

So there we have it, an album of mostly demos and unfinished tracks assembled by their record label and released without their permission that is arguably as cohesive and strong as anything Fields of the Nephilim and The Nefilim have released. There are occasional sound flaws or odd mixes that reveal that some of the tracks are demos or contain "working segments" that were meant to be replaced, but the overall recording quality and production are quite good. Despite the fact that the band has said that they are working on a finished album and don't really condone this release, fans will definitely want to pick it up. If these are what they're calling demos and unfinished tracks, the finished product will likely be amazing.