Gods of Eden

It is trite to complain that the music that a band produces does not fit the genre they have been designated on certain pages on the internet. So for the sake of your sanity it is best to assume that Gods of Eden play Technical Melodic Death/Metalcore. Keep in mind this isn't a huffy "They don't play REAL death metal!" declaration but is a point of clarification, and that their debut, self-titled EP is being judged alongside similar works.

"Gods of Eden" actually kicks off the album with a respectable amount of aggression that is immediately quelled once those hideous synths kick in. After that point the song settles into the general theme of the album; current day In Flames/Soilwork replication with echoes of Machinae Supremacy and Blood Stain Child during the more electronically dense moments. The choruses in particular are quite obnoxious through a combination of slowing the song down and using electronically manipulated, layered vocals. The acoustic break in the middle of the song is surprisingly competent but completely out of place. It almost feels like that band wrote the piece at some time during the recording and then decided towards the end that it simply must go somewhere on the EP.

"First Contact" and "Shiva's Dream" could be thought of as extended, alternative forms of "Gods of Eden". Both songs possess a main riff that sounds like a B-side to 'Chainheart Machine' but unfortunately the increased songs lengths do not lead to any interesting song structures. Verse-chorus is par for the course, and both songs manage to ineptly draw out time by having a hideous mid-late bridge of questionable intention. "First Contact" is the most egregious offender with a snare drum breakdown with pan flute sounding synths floating over the top, followed up by a Meshuggah style chug with 90's rave synths. It's repugnant beyond belief.

The production is clinically sterile; the guitars have absolutely no bite, the keyboards and vocals are high in the mix and have a tendency smother everything else. The drums sit nicely in the mix and avoid the usual pitfall of sounding "clicky"; it's genuinely surprising and a rather nice change when you notice them.

Gods of Eden suffer from the typical trappings of modern metal and you can tell that they've listened to a lot of Meshuggah and mid-era Gothenburg melodic death metal. They do not so much as wear their influences on their sleeve but instead a monstrous suit stitched together from the few mangled scraps of skin, the gaps covered with patches of their own delusions about progressive music. This EP is simply re-treading well-worn ground in the hopes of riding on the coat tails of an insipid trend. Here's hoping they produce nothing else.