Eternal

Album Review

On their 2011 album, released ten years after their debut, Karmacoda demonstrate that they've become stalwarts of their own particular scene, inspired into existence by trip-hop and finding their own easygoing way around downtempo music inspired by Massive Attack's slow mood-out crawls. If the opening duet "If You Give It to Me (Our Summer of Love)" feels like a riff on "Safe from Harm," via the kind of duets that the group the Sky Cries Mary used to specialize in, it's all done elegantly well. However, it's just as noteworthy that Eternal doesn't stay solely in that vein, instead staking out a claim on various approaches and styles around their central musical axis. "I Am Just Not Listening Any Longer," with Heather Pierce's voice singing closely into the mike while the piano sets the downbeat, reflective, but not completely somber tone, is a strong effort, a classic statement of soul-burnt emotion, while "Feel the Weight" isn't all that far behind, with a sweet, buttery chorus. The dreamier flow of "Into Each Life," with plush guitar parts feeling like silk clouds against distant string parts, takes things into more of a Philadelphia International vein than anything else, while "In a Little Bit," starting out with no beats at all, almost feels like a really dark downturn about to be unleashed. When the electric piano part helps smooth it out a bit, along with Pierce's singing, it's a bit of interesting chill and repose instead. "Repair and Beauty" ends it on a nice combination of moodier beats and a more inviting, welcoming feeling thanks to Pierce; it's a fine way to wrap things up.