Katatonia Discouraged Ones Vinyl LP Orange Marble Colour 2023
1. I Break
2. Stalemate
3. Deadhouse
4. Relention
5. Cold Ways
6. Gone
7. Last Resort
8. Nerve
9. Saw You Drown
10. Instrumental
11. Distrust
Katatonia was formed in Stockholm, Sweden in 1991 by Jonas Renkse & Anders Nystrom & have risen from their early beginnings in dark death/ gothic doom metal, to become one of the leading acts of the metallic rock/prog scene, in an illustrious career spanning over three decades & twelve full-length studio albums.
'Discouraged Ones' was recorded in 1997 at the infamous Sunlight Studios by Fred Estby & Tomas Skogsberg (Entombed, Dismember) & released the following year. 'Discouraged Ones' saw a new direction change with the epic compositions of old replaced with stripped down, compact structures to make room for new vocal harmonies courtesy of Jonas Renkse (who also played drums on the album), putting an end to the growling vocal style from prior releases & giving the band a broader appeal which only helped their trajectory towards being established on the global stage.
Upon release, 'Discouraged Ones' was seen as somewhat of a breakthrough opus for Katatonia which undoubtedly planted the seeds, stylistically, of what the band evolved into & represent to this day, even though more progressive elements were integrated over time. Overall, 'Discouraged Ones' is a pinnacle of dark, gothic rock/metal excellence combined with ethereal, trance-like intensity.