Chapel of Disease : "Echoes of Light"

 

After hearing a ton of interesting things about this album I finally remembered to hunt it down and give it a listen.  The German band is a fairly interesting progressive death metal band, that wacky time changes aside and a penchant for rock n roll riffs are not too far out in left field. They are at times like a less gothy Tribulation. The guitarists are calling the shots here are the guitar is the centerpiece of the title track. The guitar wanders out of pocket very tastefully until things explode with the climax of the song. The guitar kicks things off on an epic scale for "A Death Though No Loss". The midrange rasp of the vocals rides the gallop of the guitar with greater purpose than what kicked off the album. When the guitar goes off into a jam, the tone is stellar and the playing is a wet dream for teenagers who idolize guitarists, even though it is not just shredding for no reason, but serves the song. 

The Sung vocal arrives for "Shallow Nights". They sing well enough, but the guitar remains the star. There is more of an alternative rock feel to the vocals. The guitarist continues to burn the house down here. By the end of the song, the guitar solos would have felt more gratuitous if it were not for the fact that he is so good at what he does. They return to a sharper more punchy rock-minded riff to drive "Selenophile" home. There is some jamming, but it is written with a more economical sense of songwriting. The larger-than-life epic riffing that opens "Gold / Dust" is offset by the more sedate sun vocals. I like the tone of the singing more in this song than in the previous one. 

Some of the phrasing to the last song is influenced by Eddie Van Halen, as much as it is classic rock as a whole. Production wise you are not going to find guitar solos with such a graceful tone. This is a great album well deserving of the hype it is receiving, It is more progressive metal than not, with an emphasis on guitar heroic that still serves the song which is an accomplishment in a genre that rarely uses restraint. I will give this album a 10. 

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