Freya "As the Last Light Drains" CD
[Victory]
This band contains three ex-members of Earth Crisis (Karl, Bulldog, and Erick) along with two new members playing a style that's not unlike the final days of Earth Crisis, but better. It's not exactly what I expected it to be, and I'd be lying my ass off if I didn't say that a lot of what's going on here sounds like the more tolerable side of nu-metal mixed with post-hardcore and metalcore, but the songwriting is still far better than that of Earth Crisis' final work, so... fuck it. Probably the biggest change here comes due to the singing vocals, handled by new guitarist Darian Lizotte, who's a much better singer than Karl (who basically sticks to his patented burly shouting/screaming on this outing). The singing vocals definitely make some of the songs a bit more catchy than expected, but there's a lot of melody musically as well. Sure there are some overly groovy heavy rhythms (notably along with some rappish vocal patters in tracks like "Seize the Day"), but there are some great melodic chord progressions and such as well (see "Negative Infinity"). "Tortured" even reminds me of later Fear Factory to some degree (but not as heavy). The singing in tracks like "April Witch" is a little bit nasally and annoying for me to handle (harming an otherwise strong piece), but generally it's well handled and adds more than it subtracts. The songs are surprisingly short too, with many running less than two minutes and most hovering just at or below three minutes. I think that's actually a good thing, because it keep things moving, and when the weaker songs present themselves they sort of blow right by without holding back the record as a whole. The production is pretty good. It's a little bit hollow in the center, but it's not a huge issue. The drums sound pretty tight, the bass tone is great, and the guitars are pretty clear without lacking distortion. Karl's vocals sound fucking great, too. I think the main thing I'd like to hear is a bit more of the bass dead center. That would beef up the guitars and fill in the gaps, as well as put more emphasis on the bass itself (which is needed here). The layout is all in black and white but it looks pretty good. The cover photo's cool, and most of the other visuals consist of images of cityscapes with subtle textures layered underneath the lyrics. Somewhat surprisingly the lyrics here are entirely personal, there's not really an ounce of politics or any real hint at what Buechner's lyrics used to explore: "It never matters how hard that I struggle, All my efforts seem in vain, Swallow the shards, Fate takes a hammer to my dreams, Swallow the shards, Every try just ends in flames, Make a wish and watch it smashed to pieces..." I never had a problem with Earth Crisis' lyrical message at all, so I mean, I sort of miss that, especially now that there aren't that many vegan straightedge bands out there... but I can also totally respect that the three former Earth Crisis members in Freya have decided to change directions without selling out the lifestyles that they wore on their sleeves for over a decade. A lot of people aren't going to like this, but I can get into it. I think they'll get better with time as well. If you're open-minded check it out, otherwise... skip it and stick with "Destroy the Machines". (7/10)
Running time - 33:24, Tracks: 13
[Notable tracks: Negative Infinity, As the Last Light Drains (Valkyrie), Dead in Her Eyes, Tortured]
Victory Records - http://www.victoryrecords.com

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