The first press of the CD comes as Collector’s Edition in Digipack, limited to 1000 copies.
With the fifth full-length record, Unreqvited takes the listener on a soulful symphonic journey into the heart of winter.
“Empathica” is a cinematic experience of melancholy and majesty, as beautifully woven layers of delicate pianos and strings accompany triumphant post-rock refrains. Ethereal clean vocal melodies soar above snow-capped mountaintops as the anguished screams howl from the deep icy valleys below.
On “Empathica” Unreqvited continues to stretch genre-defining boundaries, delivering a picturesque melding of Atmospheric Black Metal and Symphonic Rock for fans of both genres.
Release date CD: May 22nd, 2020
Release date LP: tba.
Reviews:
"Overall, the composer here who shall remain anonymous raises the roof here with “Empathica” to impossible heights. He is very structured in the way he composes the music but that is nearly preposterous when you consider the amount of layers he uses along with the sheer number of different instruments. Gorgeous melodies abound…to the point that is nearly overwhelms you. I haven’t been moved by an album like this so far in 2020, and at nearly half way through the year it has to be mentioned as a contender for “album of the year." " - 10/10
http://www.metal-temple.com/site/catalogues/entry/reviews/cd_3/u_2/unreqvited-empathica.htm
"I don’t think “Empathica” was just aimed to be music but to create a full sensory experience that wraps itself around you and doesn’t let you go. I could even fall asleep listening to it. This album breaks any prejudice one may have towards black metal or metal in general and I certainly advise throwing an ear at it regardless of your genre preferences. Just hit play, and for 48 minutes later you’ll be adrift in a dimension I can’t define." - 9/10
http://www.metal-observer.com/3.o/review/unreqvited-empathica/
"All told, Empathica is an exercise in radiant winter surrealism, a display of shimmering, brilliant soundscapes both pristine and vast, harnessing the particular elevating, epiphanic sorrow that only UNREQVITED can materialize."
https://blackmetaldaily.wordpress.com/2020/05/21/the-heart-of-everwinter-a-review-of-empathica-by-unreqvited/
"I’m incredibly happy to share that I don’t think this record excels in just one area; with some of Unreqvited’s previous releases, I felt the quieter moments far surpassed the louder. Here, they’re melded together so beautifully that they achieve a harmony and a dissonance. [...] For all this, along with the fantastically hazy and flexible production, Empathica is a record worthy of its lofty descriptions; it is emotive, free-flowing, and succinct. It doesn’t just balance all its elements— it melts them together into an ethereal journey that it’s album cover accurately reflects with its high peaks and vibrant colors. It’s not your local elitist’s black metal, and it doesn’t want to be."
https://www.sleepingvillagereviews.com/reviews/unreqvited-empathica-review
"Letztlich hat UNREQVITED es mit seinem fünften Album ein weiteres Mal auf beeindruckende Weise geschafft, den schwierigen Balanceakt zwischen der Erhaltung der eigenen musikalischen Essenz und dem Streben nach neuen Formen des Ausdrucks zu meistern." - 8/10
https://www.metal1.info/metal-reviews/unreqvited-empathica/
