- Apr 5, 2003
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Eden's Fall
METAL
Eden's Fall - Harmony of Lies
Nothingheart Records - 3447921756 - 2006
By Brandon Strader
Harmony of Lies, featuring possibly one of the best introductions to an album ever, is a fantasticly balanced debut from Eden's Fall, a breath of fresh heavy metal / thrash from Chicago! Mixed by Dan Swanö and mastered by James Murphy, you'd expect Harmony of Lies to be pretty good, right? Right?
On the mixing front, yes - the job is very good! So congrats there, Mr. Swanö, though the main vocals may be a tad loud? It's like the vocals are a bit more present than the music, which is fine and not a problem at all, though the music packs less of a punch due to that! Everything seems to be in the correct place and sounds pretty good! The triggered bass drum sounds kind of odd, and very punchy in the high-end but without much actual bass, however the toms sound great, as do the crashes.
The main vocals here are supposedly clean, however not quite. There's a slight touch of Metallica-esque vocal strength here, although not too overpowering. The backing growls are very well done as well, and are very thick and massive in the mix. The layers are especially exciting and intense throughout Harmony of Lies, and are present a lot of the time, for example the ending of 'Lost Again' which is pretty monsterous, and the chorus section of 'Chemical Dreams' just to name a couple.
Let's not forget the instrumentation! The tapping solo in the intro is like a little snowstorm where each note is a flurry... indeed, the leads are very pleasurable throughout Harmony of Lies, as are the solos! The guitarists really prove they have what it takes here, from the shredding solos to the thrashy riffs. The basslines are not too audible yet they can be heard with enough listening effort, although they really don't branch out too much. The bass guitar here works as a good foundation and it fits the thrashing nature of the music, though.
Overall, the whole political thrash thing has been done so many times... luckily for these guys, they've got enough content and more diverse lyrics to supply an enjoyable listening experience. The acoustic breakdowns are also top notch throughout, and is really something I didn't expect! They took me by surprise. Sometimes I wonder if these guys are influenced by Nevermore at all... probably! A very impressive debut from these Chicago-based thrashers. Surely that 6 year span between the demo and the release of Harmony of Lies gave them some time to refine their skills, and it paid off.
8/10
Nothingheart Records - 3447921756 - 2006
By Brandon Strader
Harmony of Lies, featuring possibly one of the best introductions to an album ever, is a fantasticly balanced debut from Eden's Fall, a breath of fresh heavy metal / thrash from Chicago! Mixed by Dan Swanö and mastered by James Murphy, you'd expect Harmony of Lies to be pretty good, right? Right?
On the mixing front, yes - the job is very good! So congrats there, Mr. Swanö, though the main vocals may be a tad loud? It's like the vocals are a bit more present than the music, which is fine and not a problem at all, though the music packs less of a punch due to that! Everything seems to be in the correct place and sounds pretty good! The triggered bass drum sounds kind of odd, and very punchy in the high-end but without much actual bass, however the toms sound great, as do the crashes.
The main vocals here are supposedly clean, however not quite. There's a slight touch of Metallica-esque vocal strength here, although not too overpowering. The backing growls are very well done as well, and are very thick and massive in the mix. The layers are especially exciting and intense throughout Harmony of Lies, and are present a lot of the time, for example the ending of 'Lost Again' which is pretty monsterous, and the chorus section of 'Chemical Dreams' just to name a couple.
Let's not forget the instrumentation! The tapping solo in the intro is like a little snowstorm where each note is a flurry... indeed, the leads are very pleasurable throughout Harmony of Lies, as are the solos! The guitarists really prove they have what it takes here, from the shredding solos to the thrashy riffs. The basslines are not too audible yet they can be heard with enough listening effort, although they really don't branch out too much. The bass guitar here works as a good foundation and it fits the thrashing nature of the music, though.
Overall, the whole political thrash thing has been done so many times... luckily for these guys, they've got enough content and more diverse lyrics to supply an enjoyable listening experience. The acoustic breakdowns are also top notch throughout, and is really something I didn't expect! They took me by surprise. Sometimes I wonder if these guys are influenced by Nevermore at all... probably! A very impressive debut from these Chicago-based thrashers. Surely that 6 year span between the demo and the release of Harmony of Lies gave them some time to refine their skills, and it paid off.
8/10
Danimal
Inner Beast
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