Sonrise
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| Sonrise | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Studio album by | |
| Released | 1995 |
| Recorded | 1995 |
| Studio | |
| Genre | |
| Length | 45:27 |
| Label | Petroleum |
| Producer |
|
| Alternative cover | |
 Cover art for the 2005 re-issue | |
Sonrise is the debut studio album from the Norwegian Christian metal band Schaliach. It was released in 1996 through Petroleum Records to a mostly positive critical reception. In particular, the guitar work from Ole Børud was praised. In 2005, Momentum Scandinavia re-issued the album with an additional track - "Purple Filter", that originally appeared on a compilation album.[1]
The style performed by Schaliach was variously described as doom metal,[2][3] death metal,[4][5] melodic death metal,[5] death-doom,[6] Gothic metal,[5][7] black metal,[5][7] and progressive metal.[8] Likened to a "metal symphony", the music is strongly influenced by classical music and was compared to that of Metallica as well as Dream Theater, Threshold, Shadow Gallery, and Teramaze.[2][6][8] The instrumental track "Coming of the Dawn" is accompanied by piano and string instruments.[2] The overall sound of the album was described as similar to Amorphis.[6]
The lyrics on the album are explicitly Christian, drawing heavily from the Bible and referencing Christ and the love of God for all of humanity.[2][6] "You Maintain" is written from the perspective of God pleading with an unbeliever, and "A Father's Morning" from the perspective of God speaking to a wayward Christian.[4] Though an instrumental, "In Memoriam" is dedicated to unborn children who were aborted.[4]
Critical reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Matt Morrow | 90/100[4] |
| The Phantom Tollbooth |   [6] [8] |
| Rock Hard | 4/10[7] |
Sonrise was received very well by most critics. Alex Cantwell from Chronicles of Chaos described the record as "excellent doom with a distinct Norwegian flavour."[3] HM writer Matt Morrow in their review of the 2005 re-issue rated the album 90/100 and called the album a "classic". They expressed the opinion that while Sonrise "may not have been the best the genre has ever seen, but the emotion that a band with a brutally heavy sound and growled vocals could convey was quite impressive."[4] Josh Spencer from The Phantom Tollbooth rated that album four-and-a-half out of five, calling the duo "astounding!"[6] While they felt that the production value and overall sound was not at the same level as Amorphis's Tales From the Thousand Lakes, it was great enough for them.[6] Shari Lloyd, also of The Phantom Tollbooth, said that they were not disappointed, and they gave the album a four out of five.[8] Lloyd stated that though growled vocals are not usually their style, on Sonrise they did not mind them since the music was the main focus.[8] Rock Hard was far less favorable to the album, rating it 4/10.[7] They considered Schaliach boring and that the sound on the album was muffled and mashed together.[7]
Yngve Litleskare Leine of the Christian youth magazine Itro noted that the instrumental track "Coming of the Dawn" was described by a reviewer as "praise without words".[9] Metal Injection opined that the angel statue depicted on the 2005 re-release is a metaphor for how the band carved "a tribute to the divine" out of mostly hard and heavy music.[5]
