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On disc: Anterior



Echoes Of The Fallen - Mike Thompson - 9 stars


www.myspace.com/anterior







Echoes Of The Fallen

Echoes Of The Fallen
(Metal Blade - 2011)


Welsh melodic death metallers, Anterior, received good reviews for the 2007 debut This Age Of Silence. They present here the sophomore album, Echoes Of The Fallen.

I'm never quite sure what to expect these days from melodic death metal bands... most of them turn out to be mis-tagged metalcore bands and if they escape that trap then they're just, well, average as hell. Needless to say I didn't expect much from Anterior, what with my home country not being exactly renowned for its contribution to melodic death metal. Well, guys, thank you so much for giving me hope!

With Echoes Of The Fallen the quintet have released an album that can actually compete with the classics of the early Gothenburg scene. Each and every song is riveting, with plenty of stunning lead guitar work amidst the chunky riffs to tantalise your aural receptors. Taking the lead from this renowned hotbed of melodic death metal the Welsh lads have released an almost perfect album that is most reminiscent of Damage Done-era Dark Tranquillity with vocalist Luke Davies having a voice easily the equal of Mikael Stanne.

Ok, so if you were nitpicking you could say that this album really does nothing new for a genre that has been absolutely inundated with average-at-best copycat bands since the early days but that would be extremely harsh. Echoes Of The Fallen is an album that fans of melodic death metal will adore and will attract even those, like me, who grew tired of the genre many years ago. Destined to be a classic.


9 stars

Mike Thompson
 

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