Echoes Of Eternity
As Shadows Burn

After their first work, the good "The Forgotten Goddess" from 2007, much more was expected from Echoes of Eternity. Instead, punctual as a Swiss watch, here comes the misstep. The Californian band regresses, unable to present a sound that captivates the listener, despite good individual technique. The death metal rhythm section does not pair well with the "clean" voice of the beautiful singer Caterine Boucher who, on her part, is certainly talented but rather monotone throughout the entire album's duration.

"As Shadows Burn," released in September 2009 and published by the German Massacre Records, disappoints the expectations set by the band's previous works. The album is too homogeneous, overly repetitive, with songs that all travel on well-defined coordinates: fast and powerful rhythm section, vocals in the foreground, and riffs borrowed from death metal. The entire platter is therefore lacking in pathos, failing to fully engage also due to a lack of alternative solutions. Everything is standardized and seems too calculated.

Technical abilities are present and showcased, as well as songs that won't be hailed as masterpieces but are still enjoyable. They are evidenced by the opener "Ten of Swords" with its screeching riffing, the more elaborate "Descent of a Blackened Soul" or "Memories of Blood and Gold" with a vaguely oriental flavor. The concluding instrumental "Funeral in the Sky" is quite out of place, reaching towards doom territory. The five Americans also try to up the ante with power, but tracks like "Twilight Fires" and "Letalis Deus" only highlight a strong desire to mix genres without succeeding in the intent. And so the album flows through songs that are all too similar to themselves, enveloped in a general aura of monotony.

Ultimately, this As Shadows Burn offers very little. It is an honest work, where good technique emerges and nothing more. Much of it feels already heard, and the musical proposal, lacking variety, does not favor the listener, who finds themselves overwhelmed by a sea of perfect, fast, rough riffs but scarcely exciting.

1. "Ten of Swords" (3:55)
2. "A Veiled Horizon" (3:34)
3. "Memories of Blood and Gold" (3:46)
4. "The Scarlet Embrace" (4:10)
5. "Descent of a Blackened Soul" (5:18)
6. "Twilight Fires" (4:08)
7. "Buried Beneath a Thousand Dreams" (4:19)
8. "Letalis Deus" (3:32)
9. "Funeral in the Sky" (7:12)