Summer Dying "Beyond the Darkness Within" CD
[self-released]
Hmmm... based on the band name, the album title, the visuals, and the fact that every song here clocks in at more than six minutes, I was expecting something slow and doomy. Not the case at all. Instead, this is melodic Swedish styled death metal from Michigan. It's part "Slaughter of the Soul", part "Lunar Strain", and then there are some other things happening as well. Every now and then there's a more traditional dual guitar harmony straight from the Iron Maiden handbook, some of the riffing is slower and much heavier (usually maintaining that melodic thread), and the solos are definitely a bit more emotional than is often the case with this particular style. There's also a lot of vocal variation - everything from high screams to midrange growls, to singing. It's not so bad, but I don't understand why the songs are so long, because there's honestly not that much going on to warrant such lengthy tracks. They sort of start to shed some of the melodic Swedish vibe in favor of a heavier direction towards the end of the disc, and I like that stuff a lot better. I wish the whole CD was like that, actually. They're just not doing anything new with the Scandinavian style of playing to separate themselves from everyone else. I'd mess with the mix a little bit here. The vocals are too loud in most cases, often to a distracting degree, and from what I can tell the bass playing seems pretty fuckin' creative, but it's way too hard to hear. The guitar tone is sort of choppy, but it would work fine if the mix was evened out and the playing was a bit more consistent... Actually the performances need a little bit of tightening up across the board. The drumming falters in a few spots, some of the guitar solos sound out of tune, the singing vocals sound a little forced and held back, etc. I like the artwork on the front cover. It's weird because it sort of looks like a painting but I'm pretty sure it's some sort of computer generated or computer altered imagery. Not bad. I'm not that into the fonts they used for the band logo, or especially the title of the album, but what can you do? The back cover also looks a little strange because the "black" areas are more of a gray color, so things don't blend properly. Inside the booklet are all of the lyrics and a thanks list - crammed in with small fonts. It's a bit bland, but the fonts are much better here, and everything is legible. The lyrics aren't bad, they could use some work, but they're okay. Most every song just deals with personal sorrow and things like that, with passages that question religious faith popping up on more than one occasion: "Where is this God to which you pray, All my fears unanswered prayers, Forever washed away, I see no light no sign of hope, Through this world of hate, A mind full of rage a heart full of pain, I await the final day..." This band's strengths really rest with the slower, heavier riffs that remain melodic without relying on typical dual guitar harmonies. I would get rid of the singing vocals and focus on nailing a huge, forceful, thick recording and then work on writing slightly shorter (or at least more diverse) compositions more along the lines of "Forever Lost". They're in an odd situation because they're not at all generic, but at the same time they just don't jump out at all... (6/10)
Running time - 46:58, Tracks: 7
[Notable tracks: Forever Lost, Broken Soul]
Summer Dying - http://www.summerdying.com

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