This is the second album from neo-prog/prog metal outfit Eden Shadow, released in 2016, who are a trio based around Ryan Elliott (vocals, guitar, keyboards) with Alex Broben (bass) and Aled Lloyd (drums). Although the three of them are the sole musicians on four of the six songs, they are joined by some others for the other two, most notably the famed Theo Travis on flute and saxophone. What really works on this nearly sixty-minute-long album is the syncopation, and the way that the three musicians tie it in so tightly, almost moving into mathcore territory. The arrangements are solid, and the production quite superb, but that just isn’t enough.
From the off I found that I was struggling with Ryan’s vocals. It is not that he is a poor singer, but just that he doesn’t seem quite right for the style of music that is being played, and I found it quite jarring. Added to that the songs are nothing more than okay, and I found myself wishing that there was an outside influence in the studio to push the ideas that really worked, and give guidance. But, as always, views on music are subjective as opposed to objective and there are plenty of people who seems to say that this is the best thing since sliced bread, so all I can say is that it doesn’t work for me.
