7 Horns 7 Eyes have busted out of the gate with their debut Throes of Absolution on Century Media Records, and it's a pretty damn good one at that. They are being labeled as a 'progressive, atmospheric death metal' act, and I guess that's fairly accurate. The band places some really tasty and well thought out keyboard soundscapes that lurk in the background behind a wall of pummeling rhythms and crushing, often times technical guitar work. The growling vocals are also very well done, at times sounding like vintange Dan Swano from his Edge of Sanity days.
Many of the tunes here on Throes of Absolution are in the 5+ minute range, and allow for the band to really create the mood and atmosphere. "The Hill Difficulty" has some doom elements, as thunderous riffs, lead harmony guitars, and ominous synths permeate the mix, while other cuts like "Cycle of Self", "Divine Amnesty", "Phumis: The Falsehood of Affliction", and "Delusions" tend to veer off into technical and progressive death metal territory. "Vindicator" is a real textured track, with elements of early Opeth and Rush, while the closer "Regeneration" brings the prog to the forefront, complete with gorgeous layers of keyboards and lush acoustic guitars.
Pretty solid stuff all around from 7 Horns 7 Eyes, My one complaint here is that the vocals tend to be very one dimensional-the growls are well done, but there's just no variety to them at all. Some passages where screams or even a few clean melodic vocals could have done wonders to mix things up a bit. I know some folks feel that clean vocals can ruin an extreme metal album, but there are enough atmospheric and melodic sections of Throes of Absolution were a well placed clean vocal section really would have worked nicely. Otherwise, this is a tasty debut that shows a heap of promise from this young band.
Track Listing
1.Divine Amnesty
2.Phumis: The Falsehood of Affliction
3.The Hill Difficulty
4.Cycle of Self
5.Delusions
6.A Finite Grasp of Infinite Disillusion
7.Vindicator
8.The Winnowing
9.Regeneration
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