Re-recordings: they’re a tradition for metal at this point! Numerous bands in the genre have seen fit to look at past works and decide that they need another take for one reason or another. Maybe to try to match up to the scope of their original vision a little better than the first attempt, like Dimmu Borgir with Stormblåst. Sometimes, it’s done as a means to celebrate an anniversary while stuck in a rights dispute, like Paradise Lost recently did for Icon. Or maybe, like Exhumed redoing Gore Metal, the band wanted to try to correct some perceived errors after years of honing their craft. Whatever the reason, metal bands love giving their albums a second look, and that’s just what Sigh has decided to do with I Saw the World’s End – Hangman’s Hymn MMXVV.
While they aren’t the biggest name in metal, Japan’s Sigh has always been highly respected for their avant-garde spin on black metal. Truth be told, I never dug into them as deeply as I should have (an error I do plan to correct), but I had always heard good things about the original take on this material, 2007’s Hangman’s Hymn – Musikalische Exequien. Composed as a sort of dual tribute to German thrash and German classical music, this re-recording is my first exposure to the material, and it is absolutely wild. The metal elements shine through in frantic, deranged vocals and blackened thrash riffs largely operating at breakneck speeds, while the symphonic elements vary from choruses referencing the Requiem liturgy to wild stabs of synthesized orchestras. The balance of those elements will vary from track to track, but much of the I Saw the World’s End (as I’ll refer to it for brevity) presents as a two-pronged attack of metal and orchestra.
Off the bat, one thing I really appreciate about I Saw the World’s End is the way Sigh has structured the album. It feels like a properly composed symphony with acts broken up by quieter interludes and a sense of paced out, rising and falling drama. Motifs are established early on that carry through the album, such as progressions from “Me-Devil” and “The Memories as a Sinner” popping up multiple times across the back half of the album. There’s also an interesting effect in how the orchestral elements early seem to fight for attention from the metal side of the equation, while later songs like “Rex Tremendae / I Saw the World’s End” (a personal favorite) feel more unified in their thrust to heighten emotions as the album wraps up. Maybe it was intentional, or maybe it’s a matter of me not really being accustomed to this dense blend of metal and orchestra, but it feels very cool regardless.
All that being said, I must admit that my first listen or two to I Saw the World’s End were not easy-going. At first, I wasn’t even sure how much I actually liked the album. Don’t get me wrong, the blackened thrash backbone of this album is packed full of stellar riffs, and the odd song where the symphonics take a clear backseat like the “In Devil’s Arms” (that Iron Maiden-esque riff is probably my favorite on the album) had my heart from the first play. But other tracks like “Death with Dishonor” or “Me-Devil” had me wishing that I could hear a version with just the metal. But after several listens, it really clicked that Sigh‘s approach here is so grandiose and unhinged that it would be silly to hear the album without those elements. Those orchestral stabs give “Inked in Blood” so much force, those strings in “The Master Malice” such elegance, that it’s just better to just revel in the chaos that Sigh is summoning.
The question that remains, then, is if I Saw the World’s End is a marked improvement over the original Hangman’s Hymn or not. I did go back and give that recording a spin just to see what I thought, and to give a total cop-out: it’s really going to be up to the individual listener. Personally, I think the re-recording is actually a little more to my own taste. The guitar tone is thicker and chunkier than the original, which gives a lot of songs a massive amount of heft. Meanwhile, the symphonic elements are pushed back a little bit on I Saw the World’s End, keeping them prevalent while letting the riffs remain the dominant element while the original felt inversed. Mike Heller’s drumming on the new version is an absolute delight; the guitar solos are marvelous, and any excuse to slap an Eliran Kantor painting on another album is a worthy endeavor. Maybe I Saw the World’s End feels a bit more condensed and blocky than the airier production of Hangman’s Hymn, but it feels like Mirai and Dr. Mikkanibal approached I Saw the World’s End with deep love and succeeded in making the rerecording a worthy endeavor that does enough to set itself apart.
Sigh doesn’t have anything to prove with I Saw the World’s End, but I came away from my several listens deciding that it was an absolute blast of an album. It’s a sweeping work chock-full of high drama befitting its orchestral influences, while also being a straight ass-beater of a metal album with attitude galore and riffs that would snap a neck just as quick as any trip to the gallows. Sigh‘s not a band that’s interested in writing metal for casual listening, and I Saw the World’s End might not click on the first listen, but once you’ve untangled its dense web, it really stands as a masterwork of metal and symphony. So, step up the stairs, it’s your turn to meet the hangman.
