Son Of The Mourning ‎– Eulogy CD

Son Of The Mourning ‎– Eulogy CD

"Eulogy is the latest offering from Son of the Mourning, the Salford based prog metal band. I guess you knew that from the title though.

It is seven track album which in my opinion starts quite slow. Not slow in a tempo sense, but slow in an unengaging sense. Its first track, Leech Mistress, is quite underwhelming. I would go as far as to say I did not like it. It feels a little like the drums are put to the forefront of the track to push it along but it detracts from some solid guitars. An album like this needs a big rousing opener to keep people invested but this, simply put, is not.

However….Things pick up as the album progresses. The second track Glowing Orionid has awe-inspiring guitar work and it really moves the energy up a gear.

The third track made me glad I had kept going, as I was rewarded with Skinbox. This is where the album should have begun and is definitely the best of this release. This is the high energy, ‘smash up your Ibanez on your Marshall Stack and then regret it five seconds afterwards’ track. If you skip tracks make sure you come here. It is the one that would be released on a seven inch if CD’s and Steve Jobs hadn’t killed the vinyl single.

The rest of the album moves along well and has some nice ebbs and flows, and definitely left me pleased that I took the time to listen to it. Make sure if you listen to it, to check out the last few minutes of Carpe Diem, it is really emotive in a Sanatorium, Metallica way.

Overall there are a lot of positives about this album and I liked it. The detracting elements for me are that the drums are way way to imposing in most tracks and it is quiet apparent that whoever arranges the songs LOVES blast beats. The background vocals are a little strange also. They don’t really gel with the tracks in my opinion. It is more like, every once in a while another band member has something to say and you hear a faint voice break into the track, instead of really contributing to the lead vocals. Or perhaps that is the intention? If so…hats off!

However, this album does for me what it should. Once you get over the first track the album really builds momentum and the tunes stick inside your brain for a few hours. That for me is the real acid test for a well written and composed set of tunes.

This band was not on my radar before this album but I will certainly remember them and look out for what comes next. I also think that most of these songs would be awesome to hear live." - Son Of The Mourning