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Review Summary: Average musicians playing average songs on an average album. There is one question that has been bothering me for 2 years now, since I bought The End of Heartache. Why are Killswitch Engage such a big deal? That album was a pretty good collection of songs, and wasn't terrible by any means, but there was very little that strayed above average in terms of either musicianship of songwriting. However, the band is one of Roadrunner's hottest properties. So, does as Daylight Dies shed any more light on the question?
To be honest, not really. The opening track obviously has pretensions of grandeur, as demonstrated by the soaring intro (which is admittedly pretty good), but it pretty soon descends into hackneyed riffing (come on, how many times are people going to 'write' a riff than involve peddeling on the bottom string again and again?) and a not actually that great chorus. That said, there is nothing wrong with the song, it is just not that great.
The whole album retains this feeling. The Arms of Sorrow is probably my favorite on the album, due to its interesting verse riff, but it isn't really anything that hasn't been done before. My Curse has a riff that is very reminiscient of Take This Oath, and has a pretty good groove. Eye of the Storm stands out a bit due to the slightly more complex riffage. And that is about all I could really remember having listened to the album all the way through.
As well as being pretty average, it all sounds very similar throughout. Jones has three singing voices high scream, low scream and clean, none of which really changes throughout (also, his clean singing voice isn't as soulful or as good as is oft said, it sounds rather empty to be honest). As a result, the vocals sound very much the same throughout leaving the songs without induvidual sounds. This is also due to the very similar guitar sound and tonality, and the fact that all the melodies could really just be variations of each other.
This is a short review, because there is very little to say about this album. The muscianship is unspectacular, but this wouldn't be a problem if the songs weren't also. At the same time it isn't terrible (please bear in mind 2.5 is not terrible, its average). So, why are Killswitch Engage so big? I guess it must be the media, because there really is very little to hear here that you won't have heard before.
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Album Rating: 3.0
i really like TEOH, take this oath is my favorite killswitch song, mostly because of the intro and riff, and the fact that Jesse makes an appearance on it. This album is not as good as TEOH, but i still like it. i dont agree with the review, but it is pretty good.
| | | Album Rating: 3.5
The melody that's present on this album greatly surpasses anything KSE has ever done and by failing to mention that, I think this review lacked a bit. Other than that, it was short and to the point. Not a bad job at all.
That being said, this is far superior, in my mind, than anything that KSE has ever put out.This Message Edited On 12.20.06
| | | Album Rating: 3.0
i think it's the melody that makes this my least favorite killswitch album. i think Alive or Just Breating is my favorite KsE album, but TEOH follows closely.
| | | Album Rating: 2.7
I haven't heard any of Killswitch's other albums, and I'm not really interested in listening to them, but this was pretty good.
As was the review. You're really pumping these out.
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I liked your review. I know you're gonna get a few "you didn't mention this so your review sucks" comments, but you said exactly what needed to be said and counterbalanced whatever good opinions of this album there might be.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Good review, but to be fair, I disagree completely. Some of the musicianship on here is above average, particularly the drums. In past albums they haven't really contributed anything special, but they've grown tremendously here.
However, I can understand how you wouldn't like this if you didn't like TEOH; both of these albums are very similiar.
Also, am I the only one that thinks that Killswitch could benefit from a few solos? I'm not talking about mindless shredding, but it seems like there are some times that the songs could be better if they had a tasteful solo in there. I mean, All That Remains and Unearth seem to handle them pretty well.
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they don't have the talent to right good guitar solos. don't even bring up the guitar solo in breath life on to end all heartache. that mini solo was not very good at all. i hate to say it, but they really are pretty poor guitarists. the rifffs that they write are never spectacular. none are complex and some seem rehashed.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Sure they have the talent. Have you ever heard their cover of Holy Diver? They throw in a whole other solo. Also, it doesn't sound like they recycle riffs to me.
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
yeah, people acutally copy riffs from KSE
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yes i have heard that and howard has the perfect voice for that song, but why don't they ever write their own song and put in a good guitar solo instead of using 1 in a cover song. oh and yes some of their riffs are recycled. the breakdown on as daylight dies is so fucking unoriginal it isn't even funny. they use it well, but it is still very unoriginal. by the way doesn't when darkness falls and as daylights dies have the same exact meaning. lol
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encmetalhead you listen to panic! at the disco so just stay out of the conversation in which you have no idea what you are talking about. you probably can't even play a guitar let alone know how simplistic the riffs are that this band writes.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
See, we are in agreement that they need to put in a good guitar solo into one of their own songs instead of using it for a cover.
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yes we do agree on that completely. this band can't put out the same album 3 times in a row because it is getting very old. i know when howard was going to switch from screaming to singing almost every time in this album on the first listne. you knew when the chorus was coming from a mile away. they just need to change their song writing and format of the songs.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Agreed, but they are showing more promise in the songwriting. I think they made an improvement over TEoH, especially in the song "The Arms of Sorrow." Also, the bonus track, "Let the Bridges Burn," is really good aswell and they tweak their songwriting just a bit.
Would be nice to see them experiment with some different song structures, though.
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what do you call 85% of "The Arms of Sorrow"?
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
hey DaTwig, did you say there was a bonus track for this album? I didn't know it existed.
as for the review, your opinion is yours, and you said what you thought, which i'm cool with. short and concise, good stuff. my own opinion is slightly different, but that's just cause i'm a big fan of killswitch. i'm not an expert regarding vocals, but i don't think howards vocals are empty - i belong with that group that think he's pretty awesome. and i think some of their best songs are found here (i.e. break the silence, arms of sorrow, eye of the storm) . i think it basically boils down to this - if you're content with the KSE tried and true formula of songwriting, you'll enjoy this album (which i am, so therefore i do), but if you're expecting their sound to metamorphosize into something that'll blow you away with originality, you won't find what you're looking for with this album.
...but yea i shouldn't even speak cuz i have a pretty biased view in favor of this band when it comes to killswitch
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
and DaTwig (again), im down for some killswitch solos. their cover of holy diver is good
evidence of this, i know adam and joel can handle a lil shred! maybe it'll give them
some more credibility with other metal heads who don't take them as
seriousThis Message Edited On 03.21.07
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
I don't really think they should mindlessly shred like some bands out there, but its definitely something they should experiment with more.
And yeah, I didn't know there was a bonus track for the longest time. My brother got a copy of this for his birthday and his had it on there, but mine didn't. The packaging looked exactly the same too except for a tiny sticker. I'm just glad I got a chance to hear it; it's a really good song.
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
nah, i wouldnt want mindless wankery either. i was hoping it would be tasteful, of course. ahaha. i was under the impression joel was the better of the two (technique wise) from watchin the dvd, but when i saw them live and they played holy diver, adam went nuts with the solo. some guitar duels would be kinda cool, if it wasnt over the top.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Cool review, though i actually like this album... some of the songs don't stick out as much on this album as they did on the others... but the main ones that I like gotta be 'The Arms of Sorrow' and 'Break the Silence'. And I was happy that they are still keeping their same sound/style as before... but meh, this is just my opinion i guess.
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