Towards the Twilight

I listened to this record first time when I was 14 on a crappy magnetic tape in my falling apart Sony Walkman and I was just blown away by the music. I heard of Dark Tranquillity and In Flames at that time and while I saw some parallels in sound the music felt very distinct. Even at this day when I am 23 this album feels great and by all means I see it as an original record that deserves its own place as one of the albums that shaped the genre. The melodies and riffs musicians play don't have much to do, besides fast picking and extreme vocals, with records of that age from bigger bands. The lyrics itself is a masterpiece full of abstract images and symbolism I believe that many people don't pay attention to. More likely out of laziness to decipher words or read the lyrics, which are, in fact, easily available on-line. Some songs are stronger than the others but what unites them is passion. Desire to create fast, very melodic music full of heart and meaning. Especially I love the guitar duo and their harmonies. There's not much classic Thrash Metal riffs and more atonal harmonies that are just fun to listen to and follow not unlike in Black Metal. Technically it's not a hard to play music but it's very effective. After this album the sound of the band switched into more technical Thrash Metal mostly abandoning the roots. It feels like they did everything they wanted, couldn't yet realize in Sylphlike, but felt important in the style and just moved to a different path later on. This album is truly a gem of Melodic Death Metal. If you like modern metal-core and later albums of In Flames you might not like it but if you like Dawn, earliest records of In Flames and the first two albums of Dark Tranquillity you will be filled with joy and adrenaline. P.S. Sylphlike is a great collector's record too with a much more raw and less professional style but fun and full of heart nonetheless.

this was an excellent album. it didnt catch my ear right away but after listening to it in the car a couple times i was able to hear a lot the brillance this album has to offer. the first track is my favorite, very catchy towards the middle of the song. track 3,5,6 ahh hell they are all great tracks. worth a buying if you are into melodic metal, sample for yourself and see.

Night In Gales might not be the most original band in the world but they are loaded with talent. This cd contains nine tracks in the "Gothenburg" vein that sounds a little bit like In Flames and At The Gates mixed together. They mix it up somewhat with "From Ebony Skies", which is a mellow sounding song with whispered vocals and high pitch screams alternating over the great guitar work. They usually keep it fast and technical though, and the songwriting is very good. If you like these guys check out: Soilwork, Dark Tranquility, At The Gates, Darkane, Arch Enemy, Gardenian, Amon Amarth, the Everdawn, In Flames, Hypocrisy, Shadows Fall, Amorphis, Opeth, Death, and Carcass.

I purchased this cd after hearing a bit from Night In Gales... various tracks from various albums. However, upon listening to it, I was promptly bored. Repetitive and plain, nothing really interesting on it. I think I would have been better of with Nailwork. Try that one, or go with Enlsavement of Beauty (yeah!! haha) Good enuf band tho...

I bought Towards the Twilight not long after it was released, due to the comparisons to the Swedish melodic death metal bands I was already familiar with. Upon listening to it the first time, I heard a lot of the elements that I enjoyed about bands such as In Flames and Dark Tranquillity, but despite the similarities, something seemed lacking. I recently popped this CD in after not listening to it for many years, and am better able to put my finger on its shortcomings. It's not so much that Towards the Twilight is derivative of its Swedish counterparts - the music owes as much to Iron Maiden as anything - but the execution isn't quite at the same level. Not having heard Night in Gales' later albums, I don't know if there was the same progression from the standard Gothenburg dual-lead-guitar sound as with Dark Tranquillity from The Gallery to The Mind's I, for example, but it's as if there was a specific effort to avoid having both guitarists play the same thing, leading to what I can only describe as "awkward" guitar parts. Stopping short of actual dissonance, there seem to be conflicting melodies that drone along without any hooks. The songs meander without much apparent focus, never quite delivering anything truly memorable. If nothing else, Towards the Twilight might be an interesting listen for someone who is 1) a diehard melodic death metal fan who wants EVERYTHING in their collection, or 2) someone fairly new to the genre who wants to hear a German band's take on an overwhelmingly Swedish-dominated sound, prior to getting watered down over the past decade. Maybe the following albums from Night in Gales are stronger and show the band improving on the songwriting front, but Towards the Twilight just doesn't stand up to works from better-known bands.

Night In Gales sounds like they belong in the New Wave of Swedish Melodic Death Metal, but they're from Germany. Fans of Dark Tranquillity and In Flames will almost definitely like this.

The is loads of talent musically on this CD and lots of atmosphere and emotion through out the songs. The problem is the music grows boring fast and leaves the listener feeling like nothing stood out.I personally didn't care for Nailwork or Thunderbeast and the clean vocals on some songs but Towards The Twilight is at least an attempt to break the mold of those sleep inducing CD's.