Sigh bring significant changes to their sound with »Shiki«: Guitarist You Oshima has been fired and replaced by session soloist Frédéric Leclercq (Kreator), adding leads to every track. The drums have been recorded by Mike Heller (Fear Factory, Raven) and sound sharp and energetic. It feels much better written as a whole, with Mirai’s vocals (completely recorded in Japanese) perfectly matching the songs and sounding crazier, almost desperate at times. The overall sound is a blend och classic, Venomish black metal and progressive with lots of avant-garde and orchestal stuff.
The production is modern and polished, with Sigh’s eerie feeling present and with a darker tone. Every instrument is balanced in the mix but the drums, percussion and vocals steal the show. The synthesizers remind of Imaginary Sonicscape (2001) and a lot of elements included since In Somnophobia (2012) are also back. This is probably Sigh’s most consistent and interesting effort in a while, resulting in something rare in the metal panorama. The only other band that comes to mind doing something that could be put under the same tag is Thy Catafalque.
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