Between Roots and Darkness

Despite the long period the band had to record their debut, I think the time was more than justified. Between Roots and Darkness is a solid debut that showcases a mature direction, different sound, and lengthy songs to choose from. The addition of a second guitarist, now becoming a five-man band, clearly helped the music and offered fresher writing, working with the traditional lead and rhythm guitarists’ route. That’s not all. The vocalist sounds much better than before, hearing his powerful, brutal-like death growls. The bass and drums sound as good as they’ve ever sounded.

Across the board, the vocals are amazing. The vocalist found his own vocal style, and it sounds badass. Angry, brutal in some instances, and comprehensible. The guitar riffs in songs like Brainwashing the Unborn are annihilating and catchy, I can listen to them all day long. Between the fast riffs, the slow power chords, and the solos, the guitarists present a handful of variety. It’s a much needed aspect to have strong and, at times, technical bass lines that can overpower the guitars, showing the destructive side of the music. And as for the drums, if it weren’t for the blast beats and the general cymbal work, the performance would’ve been awful to listen.

The record does have some weak spots. For example, the opening song. While it’s catchy and fast, it sounded weak and repetitive compared to what the rest of the record would offer later on. Despite the excellent cymbals work and some guitar sections in Charred and Unburied Flesh, the song felt a little underwhelming. Lamentation of Soul shares the same sentiment, and quite possibly being the worst song with little to no potential.

Overall, Between Roots and Darkness is, again, a solid debut and as solid as one can get with enough potential to improve over the weaker and repetitive songs. The most important thing is that the band displayed their original sound and their variable playing style. Won’t be the last you’ll hear from them, but it’ll take a while. The best songs are Brainwashing the Unborn, Unveiling of Reality, and Close to the Devil’s Borders.