02. Sands of Time
03. Empyreal (Part 1)
04. Empyreal (Part 2) (Instrumental)
05. A Serpent's Tongue
06. Awakening
07. Kingdom of Solitude
08. Where the Sky Ends (Instrumental)
09. Dystopia
10. Apparitions
11. Altered States of Consciousness
12. Beyond the Resurrected
13. Eclipsed
14. From the Edge of the Earth
I must start by admitting to having gotten this album over a month ago and sitting on this review for a while. It's always a good idea to mull over your thoughts on something and, in the case of music, spin an album a few more times so you can have a fairer review. But for a few reasons I felt this particular album had to mature a bit more in my mind to make a better assessment of it.
I actually bought this CD on a whim: I had never heard of the band but somehow the cover caught my eye. I briefly previewed it in store and it sounded "good" which is probably as far as you can go by listening to 1 minute samples.
This is apparently Sylosis' second album and I read that their debut was quite well received. I don't really know if they kept their overall sound across albums but what I can say is that this is a hard album to peg in style terms. Although the album can generally be described as riff-heavy Thrash, you frequently get hints of metalcore, progressive metal and even melodeath. This may look like too much is happening for its own good but it's not really the case. The album sounds quite cohesive and at a whopping 73 minutes in length there's plenty here to take in.
The opened "Procession" sets the tone for the album: plenty of fast drumming and fast melodic riffing will bring a smile to the face of Testament fans while the slower interludes with layered vocals nod more towards the melodeath crowd. It has to be said that with Sylosis you don't get a clear alternation between growling and clean vocals as Scar Symmetry or Raintime do. And here's my sole point of contention with their overall sound: the singer generally opted for a slightly screamo/core approach that is really not my favourite style. I tend to prefer my thrash with raspy but clearer vocals more in the vein of Chuck Billy (Testament), old Hetfield or newcomers Evile. This is, of course, a matter of personal preference and your mileage may vary. It has to be said that the vocals are done with care and a good amount of feeling so it's not like they suck or anything, but it's only fair that I stress that I had to wrestle a bit with this when doing this review and that I feel that this album would be better served with a different vocal delivery.
While the songs aren't exceedingly distinct from each other for the most part, every single one of them is very well structured, with enough flow change to keep things interesting. You'll keep being surprised by syncopated drum fills that hint at progressive elements and relieve you of the double-bass drum rut that grabs most extreme metal albums. Upon repeated listens you realize that there really is a lot of thought put into the 14 songs to keep you engaged throughout. Halfway through, when attention tends to decline, the band offers us "Where the Sky ends", a beautiful instrumental that brings back memories of old Metallica and breaths a second wind into the listener. Unlike most albums, the song quality is consistent throughout and the 8 minute closer "From the Edge of the Earth" may very well be the best song on the album with it's melodic passages and fusion-influenced middle solo.
It's rare that I listen to a full album for the first time in one sitting as I did when I first got it, especially one this long. And it's very rare indeed that well over a month later I still listen to an album as much as I do this one. Yes, I would have picked a different vocalist, but when an album is this resilient I am forced to admit that the vocals issue is, comparatively, a minor thing.
A true contender for album of the year in my opinion.
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