By-the-books metal with an exotic flair
The Vision Bleak return once again from the metal-rich Germany to release their third studio album, The Wolves Go Hunt Their Prey. Despite being labeled “horror metal,” The Vision Bleak sound very much like a standard gothic metal band. Mid-paced, chugging songs filled with epic male vocals dominate the album, with some Egyptian ambiance and exotic scales making an appearance as well. In fact, the album seems to have a very interesting concept – The first few songs deal with feral children raised by wolves, but after the third track the album takes a turn to ancient Egypt. Perhaps the link is the Egyptian pharaoh Psammetichus I’s experiment to discover the origin of language using feral children? At any rate, the lyrics must be interesting to tie these themes together (unfortunately none were included with the promo copy).
While the subject matter is certainly interesting, there’s little else that makes this album stand out. Besides the Egyptian ambiance mentioned before, the small bit of metalcore influence in the guitar riffs is really all that separates it from a standard gothic metal album. Of course, just because it isn’t pushing the envelope doesn’t mean it’s not good. At first glance, the album may seem mediocre, but it seems to get better every listen. While it would be a stretch to call anything about the album outstanding, it would also be hard to find something degrading to say. Just be prepared for plenty of low string chugging, deep clean vocals, and the occasional borderline-cheesy chorus.
The bottom line is that The Vision Bleak will gain listeners out of personal preference rather than outstanding songwriting or innovation. The Egyptian influence does serve to help separate them from the pack, but bands like Nile have taken this concept so far that The Vision Bleak pale in comparison. Nevertheless, those interested in this type of metal will no doubt be very happy with the release, but those not interested in the genre will find little to attract them.
| Reviewer: Josh Coppola Added: August 27th 2007 |
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