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On disc: Dread The Forsaken



Unbound - Claudia Ehrhardt - 7 stars


http://dread-rocks.com







Unbound

Unbound
(Nightmare Records - 2010)


There aren't many bands from Guatemala, and for me it's the first time to listen to Guatemalans - even if with AndrOmedA we have already reviewed a band from Guatemala.
Dread The Forsaken are presenting their debut Unbound now via Nightmare Records. The quartet tries to combine different styles and pay tribute to bands who influenced them. The opener Give Me Wounds shows elements of thrash and power metal plus some progressive elements, all presented in a modern sound. Perhaps not the best way to open up the album... Darkest Days is based on traditional heavy metal spiced up with some alternative rock elements. Not bad, but a better production and some outside producer would have done them good. The heavy Walk With Me is a thrashy power metal track, perhaps a little bit too predictable... A bit more aggression and a more powerful sound would have helped this one. Singer Gordon Tittworth (Images Of Eden) is adjusting to the different sound, but can't add the aggression some songs need. The spoken word parts are few, but sound forced... With Wasted Youth they have a catchy riff-based tune which sticks out. Some passages seem to be influenced by hard rock while other passages - like the riffing - are pure metal. At Wasted Youth the short guitar solo sounds strange... it's the guitars sound as much as the shredding which seems out of place. Dread The Forsaken is partly taking you back to the 80's. At Dead Chances they add some thrashy riffs and due to the gang shouts it gets a slight punk / hardcore touch... At Unbound, the closer, the spoken words don't fit in my opinion... On the other hand it lacks aggression... It's like they hesitate to go all the way...
For me it sounds more like a demo and I guess it's a demo they recorded to shop for a deal and which got overdone. Some ideas are very interesting, but due to the sound they can't show the potential. Sometimes they try to add too much different elements which makes some songs sound a bit chaotic. I recommend to focus more on the basics and to work with an outside producer next time.


7 stars

Claudia Ehrhardt
 

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