Being a life-long New Yorker, it's always great to hear the homegrown talent that emerges on the scene, especially when the bands come from practically my backyard. Case in point with Crash Music's new signing from Poughkeepsie, Bless the Fallen, and their debut The Eclectic Sounds Of A City Painted Black And White. No doubt these youngsters have been toiling on the Dutchess County scene for a bit, and it seems that it has paid off as they've gotten a record deal with a reputable metal label. Although the press sheet cites influences & similarities such as Pantera, Iron Maiden, Pink Floyd, In Flames, Darkest Hour, and Between the Buried and Me, you'll not hear a lot of that here. A good guess is that Bless the Fallen started out as a hardcore band and decided to veer off down the metal path, as this CD is full of screaming metalcore vocals, bludgeoning guitar riffs (including some tasty harmony guitar lead work) and relentless rhythms. Things work out best when the band throws in some melodic and tasty guitar parts amidst the pummeling, as they do so well on the monstrous "In Search of Words", a song that could teach fellow upstarts Suicide Silence a thing or two about channeling ferocity in a good way. Once you get about 3/4 of the way through the CD, some of the songs tend to sound a tad similar, and the vocals, while decent and fitting the music, are a bit one-dimensional at times and could use some variety. Still, Bless the Fallen show plenty of promise here, and hopefully on their next release increase the variety some, and maybe build on the monstrous & technical track "Grey and Everything in Between", which for my money shows exactly what these guys are capable of if they let it all hang out. File under "a good start and a band to keep an eye on."
Track Listing
1. Welcome To The City
2. A Modern Masterpiece Of Horror
3. Stepping Away From Defeat
4. In Search Of Words
5. Eclectic Sounds
6. The Fine Art Of Pretending
7. To Be Evil
8. Grey And Everything In Between
9. The Final March
10. Everything Under The Sun
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