Sworn to a Great Divide is the seventh studio album by Swedish melodic death metal band Soilwork. The album was released on 19 October 2007 for Europe and on 23 October 2007 for the US, both through Nuclear Blast. Everything aside from vocals was recorded at Not Quite Studios in Helsingborg. This is the only album to include Daniel Antonsson on guitar who replaced founding member Peter Wichers after his late 2005 departure. It is also the last album to feature long-time guitarist Ola Frenning who left Soilwork in February 2008.
| Sworn to a Great Divide | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Cover art by Seth Siro Anton | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 19 October 2007 | |||
| Recorded | 3 February – 26 May 2007[1] at Not Quite Studios, Helsingborg, Sweden (except vocals) | |||
| Genre | Melodic death metal, alternative metal, metalcore | |||
| Length | 41:57 | |||
| Label | Nuclear Blast | |||
| Producer | Peter Wildoer, Klas Ideberg & Soilwork | |||
| Soilwork chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [2] |
| Stylus | (B-)[3] |
Sworn to a Great Divide was Soilwork's biggest commercial success at the time of its release, selling approximately 5,000 copies in its first week in the U.S., charting at No. 148, and reaching No. 2 on the Top Heatseekers. The album in its entirety was put on Soilwork's MySpace on 10 October 2007.
Due to other commitments, Devin Townsend only produced the vocal tracks. The remaining production duties were in the hands of Ola Frenning and Peter Wildoer. While speculation led many fans to believe this would be a sequel to the intense Natural Born Chaos, Sworn to a Great Divide instead continued the band's more commercial progression, further deviating from the bands melodic death metal roots.[citation needed]
Promotion edit
"Exile" would become the album's single released on 3 October 2007. A music video was made for the song and shot in Gothenburg.[4] The song was also made available to download for use in Guitar Hero II on Xbox 360 on 15 October 2007. The album's title track would also find significant airplay on heavy metal satellite radio following its release.
Reception edit
Sworn to a Great Divide has been treated to largely positive reviews. AllMusic's Thom Jurek noted that despite upset expectations of a stylistic sequel to Natural Born Chaos, the album has "absolutely nothing to complain about." Jurek praised vocalist Björn Strid as well as the album's layered and melodic style. He concluded by calling it "well done, carefully executed, and aggressive enough to satisfy fans, while offering some new textures, spaces, and compositional elements to add depth and dimension to an ever-evolving sound."
The album received perhaps a more extreme review from Stylus which considers Soilwork's style a heavier incarnation of Nirvana and modern emo groups. It also speculates the song title "20 More Miles" as a possible "marketing move." Yet, in the same hand, the review considers Soilwork to "sound slightly 'more metal' than before." Sworn to a Great Divide is also praised for its catchy hooks, guitar harmonies, and Strid's outstanding singing abilities. It ends by stating, "That this falls under metal, as does Slayer and Sunn O))), is a credit to the music's breadth and resiliency."
Track listing edit
All lyrics are written by Björn "Speed" Strid
| No. | Title | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Sworn to a Great Divide" |
| 3:33 |
| 2. | "Exile" |
| 3:49 |
| 3. | "Breeding Thorns" | Frenning | 3:55 |
| 4. | "Your Beloved Scapegoat" | Frenning | 3:58 |
| 5. | "The Pittsburgh Syndrome" |
| 2:46 |
| 6. | "I, Vermin" | Frenning | 3:38 |
| 7. | "Light Discovering Darkness" | Frenning | 3:50 |
| 8. | "As the Sleeper Awakes" |
| 4:18 |
| 9. | "Silent Bullet" | Frenning | 3:26 |
| 10. | "Sick Heart River" | Karlsson | 4:12 |
| 11. | "20 More Miles" |
| 4:38 |
| No. | Title | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Martyr" (also in limited CD+DVD digipak edition) | Strid | 4:17 |
| 13. | "Sovereign" | Karlsson | 4:24 |
| No. | Title | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Overclocked" |
| 3:41 |
| 13. | "Sovereign" | Karlsson | 4:24 |
| No. | Title | Album | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Studio Report – Not Quite Studio" | ||
| 2. | "The DevLab" | ||
| 3. | "Exile" (video clip) | ||
| 4. | "Follow the Hollow" (live at Z7 in Pratteln, Switzerland) | Natural Born Chaos | |
| 5. | "Rejection Role" (live at Z7 in Pratteln, Switzerland) | Figure Number Five | |
| 6. | "One with the Flies" (live at Z7 in Pratteln, Switzerland) | Stabbing the Drama | |
| 7. | "Bastard Chain" (live at Z7 in Pratteln, Switzerland) | A Predator's Portrait | |
| 8. | "Nerve" (live at Z7 in Pratteln, Switzerland) | Stabbing the Drama | |
| 9. | "Stalemate" (live at Z7 in Pratteln, Switzerland) | Stabbing the Drama | |
| 10. | "Millionflame" (live at Z7 in Pratteln, Switzerland) | The Chainheart Machine | |
| 11. | "As We Speak" (live at Z7 in Pratteln, Switzerland) | Natural Born Chaos |
Release history edit
| Country | Date |
|---|---|
| Europe | 19 October 2007 |
| United States | 23 October 2007 |
Chart positions edit
| Chart (2007) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Finnish album charts | 19[5] |
| Swedish album charts | 25[5] |
| German album charts | 37[6] |
| Austrian album charts | 57[5] |
| Swiss album charts | 74[5] |
| French album charts | 136[5] |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 148 |
Personnel edit
Soilwork
- Björn "Speed" Strid − vocals
- Sven Karlsson − keyboards, sampling
- Daniel Antonsson − lead, rhythm guitar
- Ola Frenning − lead, rhythm guitar
- Dirk Verbeuren − drums
- Ola Flink − bass guitar
- Guest
- Per Aldeheim – arrangements on "Light Discovers Darkness"[7]
References edit
- ^ "Archived copy". soilwork.org. Archived from the original on 27 November 2010. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ Jurek, Thom. Sworn to a Great Divide at AllMusic
- ^ "Stylus review". Stylusmagazine.com. Archived from the original on 21 March 2013. Retrieved 11 April 2013.
- ^ "Sworn to a Great Video". Soilwork.org. Archived from the original on 26 August 2007. Retrieved 4 August 2007.
- ^ a b c d e "SOILWORK – SWORN TO A GREAT DIVIDE (ALBUM)". Finnishcharts.com. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
- ^ "Die ganze Musik im Internet: Charts". Musicline.de. Retrieved 11 April 2013.
- ^ "Soilwork – Sworn to a Great Divide (Ltd. Edition) (CD, Album) at Discogs". Discogs. 19 April 2006. Retrieved 11 April 2013.