Review by Rachel Jablonski
Ah, back to the thunderous, pulsating world of metal. After having done a handful of lighter music reviews recently, it is nice to be back. And I couldn’t ask for a better band than Shadows Fall to welcome my return into the depths of metal bliss.
If you’ve listened to knac.com, college based radio, or even some (cough, cough) Clear Channel stations in the past year, you undoubtedly have heard Massachusetts’ Shadows Fall. The hard-hitting act has summoned mass amounts of attention with their fourth release, The War Within. Though the album has received mainstream interest, Shadows Fall is not a toned down metal act nor have they compromised their talents. The valiant guitars, swift tempos, and coarse vocals are well put together with a uniqueness that is not often heard on radio. The band’s slashing, thrashing, smashing sound is a wake up call to the causal hard rock appreciator and is a sweet reward for metal lovers everywhere.
The mass appeal for The War Within is most likely established by the solid guitar work. Ranging from brief acoustic moments to well composed heavy riffs, the strings overpower. “The Light That Blinds” begins the album acoustically; high energy and frantic guitars violently break in and quickly become the focal point of the mix. Adding to the fury are the vigorous beats and double bass drums. The combinations are startlingly fluent despite their combative tones.
Keenly adding to the fluency is the vocal presentation. Though the majority of vocal work is rough, there are many melody lines as well. “What Drives the Weak” is a great example of this with the attention grabbing chorus. Only the cinders remain as another night becomes a yesterday… are the words accompanied by a hauntingly memorable melody.
Shadows Fall has left quite a mark with their latest album The War Within. The release has been a welcomed break for me in the world of music review writing. But I’m not the only one that has been sucked in by the riveting sounds. The band has commendably gained a wide listening audience with their latest effort, educating the more mainstream rock listener while pleasing the every day metal head as well.