The Lost Ones

Bloodred is a studio entity forged out of Oberstenfeld, Germany in 2009 by a man named Ron Merz. While the struggle to find musicians has been a tough one, Ron did enlist the help of Alexander Krull (Atrocity, Leaves' Eyes) to not only record the debut EP The Lost Ones at Mastersound Entertainment Studio, but also handle the drums for it as well. With an initial release on digital format, a physical medium was planned to follow sometime in August of this year. But do the two songs that make up The Lost Ones really stand out?

The influence from bands like Moonsorrow and Emperor are easily felt in the grander Melodic Black Metal touches each track has. "Spirits of the Dead" acknowledges this right away in the mid-tempo hooks that quickly fade in. About thirty seconds later, you're met with steady blast beats and plenty of energy in the guitars that bring some additional emotion towards the end as the keyboards and choir like vocals force their way to the forefront. "The Lost Ones," however, is a more aggressive cut. The sleek audio and guitars offer a some more venom to the mix in spots, though the main verses are more your traditional Melodic Death Metal material that doesn't quite have any real moodiness to them at first. As you reach the end, the two worlds do start to mesh together, ending on a subtle grandeur that is just stronger than the catchy material just prior.

For a debut EP just under ten minutes, The Lost Ones isn't really that bad. While musically different, both share similar structures in that they start out with a much richer or emotional experience, giving way to mildly catchy hooks that transition back into a grander conclusion. If only the first and final parts of the song made up the middle, this would be a far more memorable experience really. But, overall, The Lost Ones is still worth checking out for the promise that is on display that hopefully will be nurtured a little further by the next outing.

Review originally posted at Apoch's Metal Review.