Browse by Letter A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Buy on Half.com As Hope Dies Birthplace And Burial Site (2002) Undecided Records HMM Rank:   Unless my memory is horrible (and many will tell you it is), I believe this is my first time reviewing an EP. Listening to these things can be very difficult, especially if the band is good. Unfortunately for me, this was the case when I first heard this disc. What I heard on my short journey through this six song, twenty-three minute CD was some fresh, quality melodic death/black metal. I sensed a strong At The Gates influence right from the beginning of the title track, and hints of early Dark Tranquility and In Flames also became evident throughout the rest of the disc. Basically, it is pretty clear that these guys draw a lot of influence from the whole Swedish death metal scene. I also noticed that the song writing is surprisingly mature considering that this is a debut and the band has not yet had time to grow and develop their sound. What's even more impressive is that they managed to win me over even though many other reviews have drawn comparisons to bands that I really don't care for (As I Lay Dying). Anyway, back to the music. The songs are mainly very thrashy, and the breakdowns sometimes have a "hardcore" feel to them (and I normally hate anything that ends in "core"). The vocal delivery is very intense, and the whole high-pitched black metal scream approach compliments the music very nicely. At some points I could actually picture the vocalist gasping for air in the studio after completing a take because of how aggressive the singing is. The dual guitar attack is very well executed, and they both play a large role in the band as they soar through melodic harmonies and provide excellent rhythmic backings for each other during leads. The overall skill level of the musicians isn't the highest I've ever heard, but at least they know what they are doing. The opening track, "Distant Memory", is kind of an odd intro that I don't think fits very well with the rest of the album. It is by no means a bad song, but I think it starts things off on the wrong foot. Since the song is just a piano/synth intro, it put me under the impression that I was going to get some orchestral, atmospheric black/death metal when in reality I got some fairly raw melodic thrash/death metal. Once again, not bad, just unfitting. The next track, however, is where things start to kick in. The song (the title track) is probably my favorite song on the album. It kicks you in the face right from the start and is brutal yet catchy and melodic all the way through to the end. The rest of the album continues in the same vein, and retains that early Swedish death metal feel throughout the whole thing, with occasional hints of "hardcore". I guess you could think of them as an Americanized Swedish death metal group if you wanted, but I'm not entirely sure where they're from. Well, if they are from the U.S. [Yep, from Orange County, CA - Ed.], then they deserve to be mentioned with the likes of bands like Sanctus as proof that the U.S. is not incapable of producing some quality melodic death/black metal. If they're not from the U.S., however, then the past two sentences were pretty pointless. Either way, if you haven't heard these guys yet then I suggest you do so. It appears as though they have a full length album out right now, which I might just have to check out sometime. -- Bill McGuiness Reviewed 03/12/2005 Track Listing 1 Distant Memory 1:59 2 Birthplace And Burial Site 4:00 3 My Words To You 3:41 4 Awaken 3:28 5 To Mend The Wounds Of A Plagued Heart 5:18 6 Letters Of Our Existance 4:55 Official As Hope Dies Website ©2005 Harvest Moon Music