This
very talented band was introduced
to me by my dear friend Hellena Michailidiou
from Metal Zone, who is a skilled
scouter of underground bands. I could
hardly believe her enthusiastic words,
but she was absolutely right. This,
first, effort is simply impressive.
The Ango-Greek trio of Scar of the
Sun is difficult to be ranked, though
many previous reviews classify them
as gothic metal. Keep it in your mind
as a clue, but do not take for granted,
as the band blends numerous other
kinds. The three tracks of “Self
Revelation..." have as starting
point the love of the band for Paradise
Lost and then they go on and meet
Amorphis, My Dying Bride (and their
inheritors, such as Swallow the Sun),
Lacuna Coil and Evereve. In times
they are so reviving that I would
make a parallelism with the fresh
sound that the Australian The Eternal
have delivered during the last years.
Their mix is done in a very smooth
and gently way and under their personal
lens. You will strive to recognize
already known forms of music. Take
for example the opening part of “I
Lost", which is based on a melodic
power/death metal riff, like an In
Flames one. It has been brought to
meet the forms of the band and delicately
is incorporated with the main track
which evolves to the heaviest of the
three. I do not have words to describe
the magnificent “Disposable"
with the discrete electronics and
the simple, yet addictive chorus (note:
a guest appearance by Marios Iliopoulos
-ex Exhumation, Nightrage- performing
a solo enhances the overall result).
I would request more care on the production,
which is sometimes thin, and on the
vocal performance. I know that the
band works hard on these two issues.
Most notable is the fact that the
famous Rhys Fulber is producing the
bands debut album, but with no further
details available for the impatient
readers. The artwork is simply the
best I have seen from a Greek metal
band, especially in the underground.
This post-nouveau art approach and
the excellent use of typography are
concluding this small piece of art.
To summarize, despite minor deficiencies,
this is an excellent debut from a
band that has raised our expectations.
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