The End, it's over, curtain: the EP released in 2019 seemed to bury The Old Dead Tree for good by releasing few previously unreleased tracks. Since The Water Fields in 2007, the progressive metal band with gothic and death influences hadn't released anything but had been toying with our hopes by reappearing from time to time for a few concerts. Did the pandemic that struck during one of these tours, turning the stage life of The End EP upside down, play its part? Should we read the title of Second Thoughts as a confession? In any case, The Old Dead Tree has been reconsidering and is now ready to sprout anew with a real comeback, seventeen years later, and a line-up that has been slightly reshuffled but still features mainstays Manuel Munoz on vocals, Nicolas Chevrollier on guitar and Gilles Moinet on bass.
"No one really knows what life will bring... nothing's impossible": the lyrics of the opening track Unpredictable have a slightly meta flavour and a sense of awareness. Nothing lasts, let's not dawdle, nothing's impossible, here's the proof: in 2024, we have the pleasure of rediscovering this universe made up of poignant melodies, melancholic strains and triumphant guitars. What was predictable, however, was that The Old Dead Tree would continue in the more melodic vein that suits them so well, putting aside the death/doom jolts for a while and even taking on a few pop influences. It's in this balance that the band find their grace, between elegance and catchy formulas, giving their singer the space to express the full extent of his talents. There's plenty of material for irresistible hits (Story of my Life is a relentless earworm).
We're not denying it : it's when the light dims and the atmosphere gets heavier that you feel most at home. Fortunately, from Don't Waste Your Time onwards, The Old Dead Tree become more sullen and spread their spleen. The conquering chorus, the mournful guitar laments: that little touch of Paradise Lost / Katatonia, only more combative, hits the spot. In the game of crushing melancholy, Luke imposes his poetry and his heaviness with the help of a melody that gives it the intensity of an epic drama and acrobatic reliefs between intimacy and explosions full of emphasis: it's powerful and theatrical. Solastagia could also be adapted as a musical, with its choirs, crazy piano, jostling emotions and precarious balance between light and shade: here again, it's top class. Meanwhile, the growl is back on The Lightest Straw, Without a Second Thought and OK (again, a dizzying rollercoaster): there's a bit of Dark Tranquillity in the bark of this old tree, with all that implies in terms of biting, telluric and apocalyptic wickedness that shake all the emotions trapped between the branches.
Second Thougts manages to move forward and look to the future while tapping into our nostalgia. Roots and buds, so to speak, for The Old Dead Tree is definitely budding. Spirited, varied, rich, narrative (the way I Wish I Could and The Trap follow each other evokes a gothic tragedy in an old isolated building and gives us perhaps the most haunted moment of the album: we revel in it), this return is a success. Ironically, the album ends with Terrified, the track with which this comeback began: several times, you get the impression that The Old Dead Tree are well aware of the special bond their audience has with their history, their dramas, their hopes, and that the band don't try to hide their emotion. It's also what makes this work so touching. ‘I don't know what to do now’ sings Munoz in Story of my Life: well, sing now! Everything will die eventually, so let this old tree live for a while and may the shade of your old branches continue to bring us comfort for years to come.
