Tears on tape, on cd, on vinyl (maybe later on)…too many tears as a great man used to sing. The theme is tears…the result brings tears! If “Tears On Tape” has been described as much anticipated, one can easily declare it as a flop. Quite possibly, it might not be such a predictable album. Experimental…? Well, maybe but not a successful one. The production is really good…no problem here. But the 12 songs revolve (all of them) around a mediocre, mid tempo and don’t do justice to a band that has raised the bar high and came close in creating its own sound.
From a compositional standpoint, the album is not bad it is average. The remarkable guitar solos are lost or diluted by the heavy Sabbath-esque riffs. HIM’s love of Black Sabbath is well known and documented but it is a totally different thing to do a cover on a Sabbath tune and trying to recreate Iommi’s trademark sound.
All in all, “Tears On Tape” is a pale and mediocre record…that’s my humble opinion. Nevertheless, if you want to purchase it, you’d better choose the deluxe edition that includes 6 bonus tracks and a DVD that captures the band live at the Finnvox Studios playing its biggest hits.
