Review: Desultory - Counting Our Scars

Band: Desultory
Album: Counting Our Scars
Year: 2010
Genre: Death Metal
Country: Sweden

Desultory actually got their start in the early 90s. The band, hailing from Stockholm, disbanded after 3 albums in the mid 90s but reformed in the later part of the last decade. Counting Our Scars is a lot like Evocation's newer stuff. And by that I mean its death metal with very melodic underpinnings. To say this is pleasing to the ears is an understatement.

So the album is sort of on the short side as far as how many tracks it has, only 9. But the length of the songs makes up for it.  Most are above 4 minutes but below 6. My big only complaint would probably be this too. The songs, while good, at times just feel a little too long for their own good. Still, they are all good. Each song contains strong riffing. That seems to be what the band went for, heavily riff driven death metal. Every song can stand alone and be great, but when you put them together the album as a whole knocks it out of the park. While the songs have a sort of samey kind of sound you won't really be mistaking one for another.

I really like the vocals of Klas Morberg. He has a harsh throaty growl that registers somewhere in the mid range. its not too high but not really low either. It does get a little monotonous I will admit but its not a serious mark against the band or album. Unless I suppose you don't enjoy the sound he goes with, in which case this isn't for you.

The drumming is pretty good as well. There are blast beats used sparingly, but just enough that you know Thomas Johnson means business. But when they are used they are put to good use. And another cool thing? You can hear Johan Bohlin's bass through the whole album! So happy about this. It would be cool if he were given a little more leeway and didn't just follow the guitars but these days with this kind of music the bass almost seems to be an afterthought so I'm just glad I can hear it.

Counting Our Scars offers solid death metal chock full of melody. You can put this up there with other releases in this growing phenomena in the world of death metal like Those Once Loyal (Bolt Thrower), Apocalypse (Evocation) and even last years On Divine Winds by Hail of Bullets. You get the punchy meaty riffs of death metal with the sweetness of catchy riffing. I really like the style the band uses on COS and it is something I see myself listening to a lot in the future. It could easily be a gateway album for those who find other stuff just a little too harsh for their ears. I'll be waiting impatiently to see what Desultory comes up with next.

Score: 8.5/10
Standout Tracks: Leeching Life, Counting Our Scars, In A Cage

Review: Evocation - Apocalyptic

Band: Evocation
Album: Apocalyptic
Year: 2010
Country: Sweden
Genre: Death Metal

During the mid to late 00s we began to see the new wave of old school Swedish death metal bands begin to permeate the death metal scene. With these new bands came a few who were both new and old. Evocation is a death metal act who released a few demos in the early 90s before going on hiatus. The band later reformed and started releasing new material and Apocalyptic is their sophomore effort.

While Evocation plays in the style of Entombed and Dismember (crunchy guitar tone and all) they are also a bit unique. Why? Well they also seem to take queues from mid 90s melodic death metal as well. Most specifically you can hear some At the Gates Slaughter of the Soul type stuff in the guitar riffs. So we could say musically Evocation is 2 parts Stockholm death metal and 1 part Gothenburg. But don't let that worry you, the Gothenburg influences it isn't the flowery folk/power metal stuff of bands like In Flames but the thrashy guitar harmonies of AtG. I personally enjoy this greatly.

Sweet Obsession kicks off the album with a fast picked intro that calls to mind the hallmark Sunlight Studios buzzsaw guitar tone the Stockholm bands are known for. Evocation seem to be masters of creating pleasing yet aggressive melodies that are catchy without being pretty. Every song on the album is a winner in my book. Psychosis Warfare showcases the band's ability to seamlessly blend the conflicting OSSDM and melodeath sounds perfectly. The band plays mostly mid paced death metal but they occasionally slow down here and there like on Its All Your Fault.

Expect a lot of the fast snare hits from drummer Janne Boden which isn't too different from what you hear on SotS. He also throws in some nice blasting here and there as well but doesn't do it the whole time. The Swedish bands always seem to know just when a blast is most effective rather than blasting the whole song long like many of their American counterparts were prone to do. I can hardly hear the bass of Martin Toresson but I do feel what I do hear is him giving a helping hand to the low end by following the already crushing guitars.

Vocalist Thomas Josefsson has a very strong voice. It is a bit on the higher side and he wouldn't sound out of place in a Carcass clone band imitating the brand of vocals Jeff Walker popularized. At times he will let out a lower proper death growl which sounds just as good.

If Evocation had just been another Dismember or At the Gates rip off band this probably would have been a rather boring album. But the fact that they use the templates laid by both bands puts them in a very unique spot giving them a niche for those who enjoy both sub-genres. While I enjoy the 90s output of Dark Tranquillity, At the Gates, and In Flames, this is true melodic death metal played the way it was meant to be. And not only does the band have a foot planted on both sides of the fence, they are damn good at it!

Score: 9/10
Standout Tracks:Psychosis Warfare, Sweet Obsession, Infamy

Review: Bleeding Through - Bleeding Through

Band: Bleeding Through
Album: Bleeding Through
Year: 2010
Country: USA
Genre: Metalcore

Metalcore gets a pretty bad rap at times but there are a few bands who stand out above all others. Bleeding Through happens to be among the elite of the metalcore scene. It mostly has to do with the fact that they meet an almost perfect blend of both metal and hardcore. Where most metalcore bands play plain boring and ultimately simple (beyond belief at times) hardcore with some metal elements thrown in.

First I need to mention I have The Truth and This Is Love, This Is Murderous but skipped over Declaration. If you've heard anything before Declaration you know BT is basically a mix of At the Gates styled melodic death metal, Hardcore, and some regular ole death metal.

But here you can tell the band are taking a heavier influence from black metal these days. A big reason is the keyboards and their role in the music. They provide a lot of atmosphere and a little melody like you would expect from some black metal bands. But it is also in the riffs. Most songs have hyper fast riffing that could be mistaken for something a proper black metal group would play mixed among the breakdowns and thrash riffs. Anti-Hero has a few instances of this, the tremolo riffs and they are sprinkled in different spots on the album. And the soloing is more fleshed out than on previous albums. They are both more numerous and interesting to listen to. Just take a listen to the solo in Divide the Armies.

Brian seems to have almost completely abandoned his lower growls for a higher pitched scream. I've never had a problem with his style and actually enjoyed his lows so I have to admit the higher sounding growls he uses here grate a little with me. They aren't a deal breaker and not even necessarily that bad its just a little high for my taste at times. The cleans are hardly there anymore as well. On Salvation Never Found, Divide the Armies, Light My Eyes, and Distortion Devotion they pop up but for the most part sparingly. I enjoy what they did here, only using cleans when they make the music better rather than going the formulaic route of just stuffing them in during the chorus.

The drumming is also really good too. There is a lot of blasting throughout the album but it isn't overkill, there is just enough. The bass is no where to be found of course but oh well.

With their sixth album Bleeding Through have created a heaping mass of aggressive, angry, and well put together metalcore. They've put together a number of different genres successfully and pretty seamlessly at that. While there are only a few tracks that stand out based on the style most of the album follows (Light My Eyes, Distortion, Devotion) they are just as good as anything else here and don't suffer for it. On their self titled the band has solidified their position as belonging to the small number of metalcore bands that you can be proud to listen to.

Score: 8.5/10
Standout Tracks: Light My Fire, Anti-Hero, Salvation Never Found

Review: Mutiny Within - Mutiny Within

Band: Mutiny Within
Album: Mutiny Within
Year: 2010
Country: USA
Genre: Progressive Melodic Death Metal

This band (and album) seemed to not be received very well by some people in the metal community. I honestly cannot figure out why! Sure it isn't "brutal", but not all bands have to be. Mutiny Within play some blend of progressive melodic death metal but you wouldn't be far off calling them progressive/technical power metal with harsh vocals. Either way the melodic tag is what really fits the band best.

This album has a number of good things going for it and one of them is singer/growler Chris Clancey. Clancey has an incredibly strong singing voice that is sort of in the vein of power metal in that it is usually done in a higher register. This guy can really belt it out for sure. A lot of the songs are done in cleans only, the strongest probably being Undone. He also throws in growls as well and while they aren't as strong as his singing it doesn't really sound forced. He seems to pick and choose the right moment to let out a scream so they aren't just shoved into songs for the sake of having harsh vocals.

Next is the music itself. The guitar riffs bash your brains out with melody. I mean a number of these songs could easily be put on the radio and become popular. Don't get me wrong they are absolutely a metal band but listen to songs like Undone, or Forsaken and you can see that the band clearly had the ability to become something big in the metal scene. The guitar playing is sort of technical in that it can be complex at times while keeping a thrashy speed. But as for speed as a whole the album is all over the place, but they were composed so that they flow well.

The drumming is straight up melodeath style but a bit more inventive than the norm. There is a good bit of double bass but there is some variety as well so it doesn't become boring. The bass is mostly inaudible accept for a few parts of the album where it is given the center stage for a moment or two (like at the start of the second verse of Images). There are also some keys and they are put to good use never really being pushed over the rest of the band but making it known they are there.

This album is a great piece of melodic/death metal and if I were to describe it the best I could say is that it sounds like an American version of Scar Symmetry. Maybe Roadrunner fumbled the ball with this band but there is no reason why they didn't become much bigger than they did and unfortunately they are now on hiatus. With strong vocals and music with a massive amount of melody its really a shame Mutiny Within were looked over by most in the metal community.

Score: 9/10
Standout Tracks: Undone, Lethean, Forsaken, Year of Affliction

Review: Hail of Bullets - On Divine Winds

Band: Hail of Bullets
Album: On Divine Winds
Year: 2010
Country: The Netherlands
Genre: Death Metal

I love Hail of Bullets so to say I was awaiting On Divine Winds is to put it lightly. ...Of Frost and War had become one of my favorite death metal album and the band itself harkens back to the simplistic groovy style of Bolt Thrower, war themed lyrics included!

Where on the last album HoB seemed to be almost a shadow of Asphyx with their doomy sections on this release they had cut back significantly on the doom and gone for straight mid paced death metal. Sure there are still slower parts but as a whole the album moves along a bit more quickly than before.

There is an undeniable groove to the riffs constructed here. You have the main riff of Operation Z or the easy to headbang to Guadalcanal that has a sort of bounce to the verse riffs. Like I said the slower numbers are still there, To Bear the Unbearable is kind of the epic ending track and like Berlin from the last album it marches along slowly. Tokyo Napalm Holocaust has a few chuggy sections that sound absolutely bad ass as well but a lot of the song crawls and those more speedier sections are almost separate climaxes.

Martin Van Drunen as always brings his A game. He has one of those growls where as soon as you hear it you know exactly who it is. On ODW he belts out line after line of lyrics pertaining to the Pacific theater. I like what the band has going here with the different theaters of war they are exploring with each album.

As always the production is massive. Dan Swano over at Unisound Studio once again did the mixing/mastering. The guitar sound is thick but not in the way you usually think. They sound like a freight train more than anything else. The mix is done pretty well and the guitars/vocals are up from with the drums not far behind. The bass guitar for the most part is no where to be found, maybe I just don't have it up loud enough though. But I think if they gave Theo Van Eekelen more room and a higher spot in the mix they could improve the heaviness of their sound even further. I always loved how Jo Bench filled out the bottom end of Bolt Throwers sound and it would be cool if that was done here as well.

On Divine Winds is an improvement on the foundations HoB laid with OFaW. This is sort of a defining record where they drop the Asphyxisms and do their own thing. Now their own thing might sound really close to what Bolt Thrower was doing but this doesn't bother me one bit. This band still has their own identity though and a sound that is quite their own. This along with God Dethroned's album is easily one of the top releases of 2010.

Score: 9/10
Standout Track: Operation Z, Tokyo Napalm Holocaust, Guadalcanal, Full Scale War

Review: God Dethroned - Under the Sign of the Iron Cross

Band: God Dethroned
Album: Under the Sign of the Iron Cross
Year: 2010
Country: The Netherlands
Genre: Blackened Death Metal

This was my introduction to God Dethroned. In fact the only reason I decided to check out this album was because I was looking for war themed death metal. God Dethroned play blackened death metal so there is an excess (though not in a negative way) of ripping fast riffs and blast beats.

To add some atmosphere the album starts with what sounds like a German radio message as drums and guitars slowing fade in. Storm of Steel is probably the best track on the album though its hard to say because it is all so good here. The riffs while often pretty fast paced are very melodic for the style of metal being played. In fact that is one of the big things I enjoy about UtSotIC, there is so much melody fused with the brutality that the riffs and vocal/lyric lines stick with you long after you've finished listening.

Whats more the album is only 36 minutes long. Tracks like Storm of Steel, Fire Storm, The Killing Is Faceless, and The Red Baron all are memorable headbangers with excellent riffs and face melting lyrics about WWI combat. To add to the combat theme there are small sound bytes taken from Saving Private Ryan of some of the battle scenes. Fire Storm has the sounds of a tank being blown up with machine gun fire in the background, Chaos Reigns At Dawn takes from the scene where the Germans are firing a heavy weapon at allied troops tearing them to pieces. This all adds to the war theme giving an extra bump to the atmosphere.

But there are two really epic tracks here. The self titled song has an excellent clean sung portion in the middle while the drums blast. Soon its over and the song gets back to its massively heavy sound. On Fields of Death and Desolation comes in at 7 and a half minutes with a long intro that builds up to the heavier part. This song isn't so much about being "brutal" or heavy but once the intro is over it definitely displays that. Half way in the song goes back into riffing slowly with harmonized leads in almost the same way it began. There is some pretty nice soloing in this section as well.

Henri Sattler is an awesome vocalist with his gravely yet sharp growling. The drummer blasts like a heavy machine gun rat a tatting away. The bass drumming also sounds pretty heavy on a bass heavy sound system, I love listening to this album in my car. Under the Sign of the Iron Cross is a brutally awesome album that melds Bolt Hammeresque military/war themes and melody with speeds verging on black metal. This was easily one of my favorite albums of 2010 and you shouldn't miss out on the masterpiece created here.

Score: 9/10
Standout Track: Storm of Steel, Red Baron, Under the Sign of the Iron Cross, The Killing Is Faceless

Review: Ghost - Opus Eponymous

Band: Ghost
Album: Opus Eponymous
Year: 2010
Genre: Heavy Metal

The Swedish band Ghost have been getting rave reviews from most in the metal press. At first I couldnt understand exactly why. I mean I heard a couple tracks off of Opus Eponymous while listening to the Reqiuem Metal Podcast's Best of 2010 podcast episode, but I wasnt quite sure what all the hype was about. The songs were good but I think it took listening to the album as a whole to recognize how impressive this release is.

The guys play in the old school stylings of Mercyful Fate and Blue Oyster Cult. The BOC influences really are the most noticeable to my ears. I mean if you have heard Don't Fear the Reaper (and who hasnt?) you have a good idea what this album sounds like. But I think all the tracks here are on the same level of awesomeness as DFtR.

The album starts with the ominous Deus Culpa which is an instrumental done completely with an organ. It reminds me a lot of the stuff often played in churches. All of the material on Opus Eponymous is extremely catchy and chalk full of melodies. The songs Ritual and Satan Prayer are the two at the forefront of this masterful show of melodicism. Death Knell is at times a more plodding and borderline doomy. The use of keyboards and effects near the end of the song are pretty cool too.

Speaking of keys, I usually HATE keyboards but they add dont hinder the album at all and the album wouldnt be the same without them. The bassist plays some sweet riffs and I can happily say he is plenty audible for the duration of the album! In fact he is given the spot light in a few songs (Prime Mover especially and at the start of Con Clavi Con Dio).

As I mentioned earlier the album is ultra catchy and credit must be given to who ever wrote the riffs here. The guitarists have created some really impressive throw back music that isnt just a clone of old school heavy metal but would fit perfectly in that time period. It is by no means technical in any way shape or form but it isnt meant to be.

The vocalist of Ghost sings with a natural way about him. He doesnt sound like he is forcing it and seems completely comfortable where he is. That would be bad news if his voice sucked but the guy has got an awesome voice. It reminds me even of the vocalist from the BOC.

If I were to describe this album in one word it would be: fun. Whether its the hokey satanic lyrics, the halloweenish atmosphere, the sing song vocal melodies, or the captivating music, this album is plain ole fun. I mean this would be great music to throw on around halloween and get into the spirit. Ghost have created a masterpiece of retro metal here but to beat this with their sophomore album will be a massive undertaking. One thing is for sure, the metal masses will be impatiently awaiting whatever new material they have waiting for us in the future.

Score: 9/10
Standout Tracks: Ritual, Satan Prayer, Elizibeth

Review: Rotting Christ - Aealo

Band: Rotting Christ
Album: Aealo
Year: 2010
Genre: Melodic Black Metal

I can understand why the name Rotting Christ would be off putting to most. But you would have to hear Aealo in order to really appreciate what this Greek band has to offer. Put the name aside and let your ears do the judging!

This album has been my introduction to the band and it has been a great one. Starting off with the track of the same name, Aealo, you can hear how the band melds the music of their homeland into their interesting style of melodic black metal. As you listen to the track you are greeted with women wailing and an almost tribal chant near the end.

These different chants and the female vocals do a lot to submerge the listener into the Greek culture RC injects pretty heavily into the songs. I also really enjoy how the Greek language is used at times it adds more to the atmosphere. Especially in the start of Demonon Vrosis.

There might be one glaring problem with this album though: a lot of it sounds the same. But it might be a problem and it might not. For me it definitely isn’t an issue. You can notice it sounds a little samey but its so enjoyable that I easily forgive the band and I don’t mind hearing these riffs repeated in different ways or chanting recycled.

The only other place where the band seems to stumble is the cover song Orders From the Dead which is the last track on the album. It is a long boring affair where some woman basically rambles on about the end of the world or something to that affect for 9 minutes. She actually sounds like the woman who plays the character of Artemis on It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia haha.

Whoever wrote the guitar riffs did a superb job. Like I said earlier they can sound the same at times but I think there is just enough difference that you can appreciate how catchy and headbangable they are. They are never really thrashy and stay at about a mid pace. They actually sound kind of mechanical at times being very precise.

The vocalist is pretty unique, at least to my ears. His screams are a kind of higher pitch and throaty. He doesn’t usually go too high with them but you can tell when he is trying and overall while his voice isn’t too impressive it serves its purpose and I can’t find any fault with it.

Aealo is a really great album drenched heavily in an ancient Greek atmosphere. The riffs and vocal lines are a joy to listen to and are sure to make you give this one many spins. The last track is really the only misstep that mars an otherwise pleasurable listen.

Score: 8/10
Standout Track: Aealo, Eon Aenaos, Demonon Vrosis, Noctis Era…pretty much anything but Orders From the Dead!

Review: All That Remains - ...For We Are Many

Band: All That Remains
Album: …For We Are Many
Year: 2010
Genre: Melodic Metalcore

Ok I’m going to go through this really quick since there isn’t really a lot of depth to this All That Remains album anyways. I bought …For We Are Many either the month that it came out last year or a month after.

Anyways I don’t know what I was expecting. Maybe hoping for something like TFoI. But this is not TFoI. First off, you are bashed over the head with clean vocals. Though there are a lot of harsh vocals layered (buried) under the singing. Phil Labonte does an alright job singing but I am more a fan of his screams and more guttural death metal type vocals (like on The Weak Willed). So their being more singing was kind of a let down.

A lot of the music itself is really…safe I guess you could say. The intro Now Let Them Tremble… is alright leading into what I think is the heaviest and best song on the album, For We Are Many. This song could easily have belonged on The Fall of Ideals with all the power and aggression of that album. Dead Wrong is another heavy song (maybe the only other?) with speedy verse parts and a generic poppy chorus.

So maybe generic is a good way to describe this album. Outside of those two songs most of the album plays it way too safe and does nothing to separate itself from the rest of the bands in the genre. Sure it sounds undeniably like ATR, but is that enough to satisfy you? Some of the soloing is alright but that doesn’t make up for the formulaic bore that the rest of the material is.

Of course you have your radio friendly songs in The Waiting One, Hold On, and The Last Time. The Waiting One is the ballad of the album and is done completely with clean vocals, with some screams mixed way underneath the singing of the chorus. Probably my “favorite” of the more mainstream songs for its honesty. At least they weren’t trying to disguise it as something its not right?

Mix The Fall of Ideals with more watered down mainstream garbage toned down so your grandma will enjoy it and you have …For We Are Many.

Score: 4/10
Standout Track (Yes there is one): For We Are Many

Review: Darkness Ablaze - Shadowreign

Band: Darkness Ablaze
Album: Shadowreign
Year: 2010
Genre: Melodic Death/Black

Metal Archives classifies Darkness Ablaze as melodic black metal but I think it’s safe to say they stray further into the realm of melodic death than black. Maybe it’s because of the keyboards that are sometimes used to give a symphonic sort of feeling in the background. There are also some viking/folk influences as well.

First of all no, there is no pig in the band. Yes those pig squeals are made by vocalist Theodoros Georgitsaros and yes they are annoying. What? You thought pig squeals are confined mostly to deathcore bands? Me too, guess we were both in for a surprise. Ok so maybe it wouldn’t have been so bad if they hadn’t been used so heavily. There is admittedly another more black metal like higher pitched growl present here and it comes off far better. Next time stick to the highs ok Theo?

The riffs aren’t really all that memorable except in a few places. Listen to Zero, and The Might of Repression: the solos aren’t that involved and really don’t add much to the songs overall. The one in The Might of Repression isn’t terrible. Like I was saying there are a few instances of good riffs on the album. The lead harmonies on Enclosure No. 7 are pretty good. But there is also the fact that the way in which the twin leads are written makes them sound like they are coming from a metalcore band which may or may not affect your feelings about them.

Then you have the main riff from the track Reduced to a Beast which sounds like it was ripped out of an Amon Amarth song. The folky elements seep into tracks like Enlightened by Shadows, where there is a nice 10 second acoustic intro before you are sonically raped by squealed vocals, and the interlude called…Interlude! Quite clever weren’t they? The acoustic guitars are used more in Interlude and oddly enough it just might be the best song on the album clocking in at 2 minutes long. Not a good sign. There are some other good electric guitar riffs here as well.

Keyboards, love’em or hate’em they’re there. While in general I usually feel they foul up heavy music the band actually uses it pretty well throughout Shadowreign. Whether they are playing as strings, horns/trumpets, or just providing ambient noise, it works!

One of the most memorable moments of Shadowreign though has to come on the song The Might of Repression. The majority of the song itself is actually what you hear on the rest of the album but there is around 2 minutes in the middle of the song that are actually quite epic. It quiets down and an acoustic guitar plays underneath an almost 80s like ballady riff. Sure the piggy growls are used but they actually lack the squeal which makes it tolerable. After a line is growled it is repeated over a few times with cleans and I have to say this is the part that really kills. Theo’s cleans are really good and are emotional without being wimpy, probably because he seems to sing with a deeper voice.

So Darkness Ablaze really brings nothing new to the table besides having a sweet name that makes no sense. Sure there are cool moments on the album but that’s the problem, they are confined to moments and not entire songs. It comes off as pretty standard melodic death metal for the most part. The vocals really destroy most of the redeeming factors here. Like I said earlier had the pig squeals been used not at all or even kept to a minimum it might have been different. But they weren’t and it makes the album a difficult listen. If you are looking for good melodic death metal (or black metal for that matter) there are far better places to look.

Score: 4/10
Standout Track: Interlude

Review: As I Lay Dying - The Powerless Rise

Band: As I Lay Dying
Album: The Powerless Rise
Year: 2010
Genre: Melodic Death/Metalcore

After the exceptional An Ocean Between Us As I Lay Dying are back with The Powerless Rise. Starting from where AOBU left off the band continues in that same direction. Automatically you can tell the band has gotten a little heavier musically and vocally. Tim’s growls and screams are more guttural and there are far more Death growls incorporated. Or maybe they havent even gotten heavier musically, perhaps just more consistant in their heaviness.

AILD never were heavy on clean singing but they usually kept a number of songs on the album with singing during the chorus. This trend is continued here and Gilbert’s vocals remain as they did on AOBU, not whiny but not terribly gruff either. He finds a medium and sticks with it which does the album ok but I think it would offend far less of the “true” metal heads if he took a more aggressive stance vocally. Tim’s vocals are more extreme than the last album. His highs are better I would say and his lows used much more while going into death metal territory.

Jordan Mancino is excellent on drums. I especially like how he throws blast beats into tracks pretty liberally. They are scattered throughout the album on songs like Without Conclusion, The Plague, and Condemned. He has become one of my favorite drummers in modern metal.

The riffs are all around great. My favorites would have to be the riff that starts Condemned, Upside Down Kingdom (especially during the chorus) and The Only Constant Is Change which has the most epic chorus on the album. But The Only Constant Is Change is also full of good riffs in its entirety. In fact if I had to describe the riffs on this album in one word it would be emotion, they all contain lots of it.

Lets talk about the solos! Back in the days before An Ocean Between Us they were painfully absent until AILD got their new guitarists who seemed to bring more metal into the band. There are some nice smaller solos like in Beyond Our Suffering and Without Conclusion. Even though its not my favorite song, Parallels has the best solo on the album and in that way its sort of like The Sound of Truth from AOBU.

And hey the bass can actually be heard! He (Gilbert) even has some nice bass fills and lines. Just check out the start of Upside Down Kingdom or the start of Condemned where its very audible. It also sounds like they turned his bass up a little more in the mix which is nice considering bands in this genre usually never do anything with the bass.

When all is said and done this album sets a new bar by which the band and others in melodic metalcore will be compared and criticized. The production is just downright perfect, the instruments are played with serious talent, the vocals are heavy and it all is combined to create one great album.

Score: 9/10
Standout Track: The Only Constant Is Change (definitely give this a listen!)