I hope I will be forgiven for my initial disappointment with this album. I know, it's my own fault, but a band with a name like Veil of Maya - the accidental namesake of one of Cynic's most legendary songs - automatically led me to expect jazzed up progressive death metal. Those expectations were not met, as I was met with technical deathcore with a touch of djent instead, and the inevitable feeling of disappointment kicked in.
However, having shaken off the initial disappointment and having given the album several more spins, I of course ended up appreciating the album, because it is actually quite good. Placed somewhere between deathcore and technical death metal, Eclipse features music which is both technically advanced and also quite brutal. Taking the listener through a maze of blasbeats, djent-ish grooves, metalcore breakdowns of the more interesting kind, and bursts of advanced guitar complexities, Veil of Maya definitely challenges the listener who likes technical brutal music while at the same time appealing to those who prefer the br00tality of deathcore. To me, this is a positive experience - for some reason only very few of the bands that are labeled deathcore bands appeal to me, so I really appreciate it when I stumble upon a release associated with deathcore that appeals to me, and this one definitely does.
Amidst all the brutality and br00tality, Veil of Maya throw in melodic elements - either in the form of melodic synth effects or in the form of inclinations towards more melodic metalcore along the lines of Killswitch Engage (without the clean vocals though) - just check out the title track, 'Winter Is Coming Soon', and 'Vicious Circles'. There are also elements on this album that remind me a bit of Obscura's Cosmogenesis, and a track like the dissonance-rich 'The Glass Ride' features a Middle-Eastern rhythmic drive, and there are even some black metal-like elements in the also djented up 'With Passion and Power'.
Eclipse combines technical death metal with deathcore and djent. Thus, it should appeal to fans of those genres (conversely, if you hate djent and deathcore, you might not like this album). In any case, it ia characterized by a band who are skilled musicians and have a knack for exploiting the power of groove as well as the power of brutality and aggression - and I would say that the label "prog/tech extreme metal" suits this release very well, so if you are a prog/tech extreme metal fan, you should check it out.
Track listing:
1. 20/200
2. Divide Paths
3. Punisher
4. Winter Is Coming Soon
5. The Glass Slide
6. Enter My Dreams
7. Numerical Scheme
8. Vicious Circles
9. Eclipse
10. With Passion And Power
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