Shadows Fall

This is an immense Album by shadows fall its heavy its solid and its catchy and relentless its really good another top album for this year in the metal world everyband seems to be releasing the best albums of their careers all of a sudden its really good my only downpoint would be the vocals are pushed slightly to far back behind the guitars however its otai its still great to listen to it makes the guitar riffs heard more brilliant get it as soon as possible

Long story short it's a great album, its typical Shadows Fall (a good thing). I recommend it ffor any Shadows Fall fans (especially those who have heard and like their earlier stuff). Threads of Life still remains my favourire of their albums (as different vibe to all their others and Jonathan Donais's guitaring is particularly amazing on the Threads Of Life album) but ths album definately my second favourite featuring great guitaring, its proper metal indeed:)

Bought as a prezzie for my son, he was delighted with it.

Shadows fall in 2009 have some really stiff competition in the metalcore scene with Killswitch engage, Unearth and Devildriver already this year released outstanding records, it was surely going to be a challenging 2009 studio session for these guys, with more pressure to deliver to the same stakes as their previous albums "War within" and "Threads of life" than ever, it was interesting to see how the album would look upon it's release.Luckily what we have here is a release that falls to the better half of the shadow's back catalogue as usual brian's amazing vocal range simmers and captures the right balance of pitch exactly where is needs to be. In true spirit the trademark growl during the riffing of "king of nothing" (surely the best track here.) Showcases shadows at their true best, lyrically the subject matter is more personal than before, which adds a bit more depth than what many of us are used to by shadows, some will surely be able to relate i'm sure!..."The taste of fear" and "Picture perfect" also deserve a mention, each possessing enough muscular power to break a wall, it's hard to imagine any of these not striking a cord with fans, and technically it appears the band have moved up to the next level with some incredible drumming and bass in particular. The producution is as good any released this year also.So all round then, i find this a very structured and thought out album indeed, a new direction was not on the cards for these guys when they went into the studio, a step-up from "Threads" in musicanship and muturity in the songwriting is clearly what was aimed for, and to be fair they have delivered well, especially in such a crowded metalcore market some are likely to find this album "average" due to not many ideas being freshly integrated, i find this an inaccurate assessment and honestly believe this should rightfully stand along side the best of 2009 in any metal catagory.It's tight, it's shiny and avoids the generic pitfalls some other bands have sucommed to since they started out almost a decade ago, metal fans couldn't really ask of more from shadows than this, it's really a necessity and should belong on any metalheads collectors shelf. 4.5 Stars overall (Excellent.)

The Massachusetts based Shadows Fall offer a unique brand of Metalcore tinged Thrash Metal. With plenty of guitar solos and a considerable nod to the 1980s but a strong melodic element the band straddle the line between classic and modern rather comfortably; it may not be to everyone's tastes, but if you like this sort of music Shadows Fall are one of the most vital and important bands out there.At first listen this album didn't grab me, it just passed me by and (with the exception of `King Of Nothing,') didn't seem as interesting as the band's last three albums, but on the second listen I noticed the real step up in musicianship on display here, The guitars have never been this fast or technical and the drums are even more powerful and authoritative than before. The band just seem to have kicked up a gear as musicians each seeming to have a more complete mastery of their instrument than on any previous album. The vocals have similarly never sounded better with the vocals on the songs `Embrace Annihilation,' and `Picture Perfect,' being particularly strong.Also worth mentioning is the brilliant production, the guitar sound is so good it is hard to believe and the same can be said for the drums. This is all well and good, but a good production is pointless without a good set of well written songs.First of all, the song `King Of Nothing,' featuring a guest vocal performance from Randy Blythe is maybe the best song Shadows Fall have every written it is so perfectly catchy and it is heavy in just the right way making it an absolute joy to listen to, and when you factor in the improved musicianship and the previously mentioned production you've got a real gem on your hands.Other highlights include the fast and typically intense `War,' which features some very powerful drumming and a brilliant breakdown, and `A Public Execution,' which is grows better with each listen.In fact this can be said of every song on the album, the more you listen to it the more you like it, all the clever drum fills and vocal hooks make themselves known and after a few listens the album feels like a real classic. If you like Shadows Fall you simply will not be disappointed.