Review Summary: Heavy , dark and emotional album with great orchestration and atmosphere. A nice recommendation for death/doom fans.
Shattered Hope is a death/doom band from Greece. Their debut album 'Abscence' was one of my greatest discoveries as a music fan. The fact that in Greece even a Greek band have minimal feedback makes this album even more important in my music library. Between those seven tracks you will find great melodies full of pain and gloomy lyrics.The use of violin is one of the album's highlights. Highly recommended for Anathema (old days) and My Dying Bride fans.
The intro song is 'Amidst Nocturnal Silence'. It gives you clear signs of how the album will be. The growls are heavy and the slow music gives an hypnotic tone in the song. 'Vital Lie' is the second song. It has some great outbursts and an awesome violin riff as the outro. 'Enlighten The Darkness' is the average one of the album. It has a nice atmosphere but it gets boring after a few listens. 'Yearn' is the up tempo song of the album , combined with some creepy synths in the background is one of the good moments of 'Absence'.
'A traitor's Kiss' is a song that it could be a part in Anathema's Crestfallen EP. A creepy intro and some screams in the middle of the track makes you think of songs like 'They Die' or 'The Sweet Suffering'. After this we have 'Lament In F# Minor' which is an instrumental song/violin solo , a melody of despair as the intro of the last 18 minutes long song. 'The Utter Voice' is probably the best song of the album and one of the greatest doom metal songs I ever heard.Full of emotions with awesome atmosphere. There are aggressive outburst in this song that are greatly combined with the sadness that comes out from the violins and pianos. The outro is definitely one of the best parts of the album. Intoxicating and with a dose of hope..(?)
Abscence have some of the deepest sounds I've ever heard in my life. Only flaw of the album is the 'Enlighten The Darkness' which is a bit boring. Doom metal is based on the darkness of ourselves. Sadness is a part of life that we can't avoid. Shattered Hope took this sadness and turned it into a masterpiece.
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