Revelation: Discoveries Old and New
Released separately on the same day by Pittsburgh’s Shadow Kingdom Records, Revelation’s …Yet So Far and For the Sake of No One provide a look at one of Maryland doom’s longest running legacies as it was 14 years ago and as it is today. Respectively. Hellhound had the original release of …Yet So Far back in 1995, while For the Sake of No One is the brand new follow-up to last year’s Release and finds the band at perhaps their most mournful yet.
And I do mean mournful. For the Sake of No One — which maintains the Revelation lineup of Steve Branagan (drums), John Brenner (guitar/vocals) and Bert Hall (bass) — starts off with the woeful one-two punch of “A Matter of Days” and “Offset,” both of which creep at a true doom slow pace that just makes you want to hang your head. “Canyons,” the longest song at 9:11, hits hard in both musical weight and emotional content. The groove is solid, and there’s an under-produced feeling that pervades (Brenner handled recording and mixing, as with Release) that only winds up adding to the cult vibe throughout. This is doom for doomers, folks. Novices or anyone craving timing changes or math-metal parts needs to find themselves another boat.
Things do pick up somewhat with the shorter “On a Promotory” in the middle of the album, and there are some surprises hidden on Side B that contrast the straightforward dirge of For the Sake of No One’s forward face. “The Whisper Stream” boasts the record’s best (and maybe most extended) solo from Brenner, a moment of upbeat classic rock in a swirling sea of doom. The last few minutes of the extended “Vigil” have a bumping bass line from Hall and a lead line that speaks to ‘80s style of rock, and the closing title track starts off eerily quiet, only to blindside with yet another cut of the massive doom that typified the album’s first half.
Take away 15 years, add some remastering and … Yet So Far (as in, “So close, and”) finds a more active Revelation — lineup of Branagan, bassist Jim Hunter and guitarist/vocalist Dennis Cornelius (following an initial departure from Brenner) — rocking through nine cuts of riff-led Maryland-style old schoolery. While For the Sake of No One faithfully executes the doom of old, …Yet So Far shows Revelation as they originally lived it. There’s no denying a certain ‘90s crunch to some of the tracks, most of which all but three of which stretch over the six-minute mark, but the band’s style is (or was) well-suited to it. The album feels more live than Revelation today, but that’s more than likely an issue of budget and tempo. “Soul Barer,” “Eternal Search” and “Little Faith” all march considerably quicker than their newer counterparts on For the Sake of No One.
Nonetheless, as …Yet So Far plays on, there’s a samey feel to some of the material that comes up largely absent from the newer work. Revelation are a band who even 14 years ago knew the sound they wanted to make, but the songs on For the Sake of No One seem more intricately written than the more youthful approach of “Morning Sun” or the hard-hitting “Natural Steps.” Either approach works, honestly, and particularly on “Alone,” Revelation sounds vibrant and driven. At least as much as their style permits (wink and nudge).
New or old, Revelation continues to be one of the best kept secrets of American doom. An act whose reunion genuinely brought them into a new era, they continue to progress and inspire while at the same time looking back to from where they came. There is a very specific kind of doom head to whom …Yet So Far and For the Sake of No One will appeal, but in just the right niche of the heavy underground, there’s no arguing that Revelation are the kings of what they do.
Note: Like all of Revelation’s releases (and those of the band’s alternate identity, Against Nature), For the Sake of No One and the original, unremastered …Yet So Far are available for free download on the Bland Hand Records website.
Tags: Bland Hand, Maryland doom, Revelation, Shadow Kingdom
