Customer Reviews

Against the Elements

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Against the Elements is a great album. It's not a rip-off of either Metallica or In Flames (the greatest band in creation) It's a nice blend of both I suppose. I do, however, prefer the screaming to the more clean vocals. Luckily, more screaming is done in this album than in their watered-down second release "Insect Song". All in all, this album is worth the money. Make sure to listen to Embers Astray, which I think is the best song on the album. On the final track, The Riddle of Steel, it seems as though the drumming is too loud, but that may just be me. Buy this album. Now.

If you love In Flames, this is a must have cd. This cd hits with melodic ryffs and outstanding vocals. Any true metal lover will appreciate a cd of this magnitude.

Perhaps my take on this album is a little different than the rest of the reviews is because my first exposure to BTE is when I saw them open for Blind Guardian at the Palladium in Worcester, Massachussetts on November 19th, 2002. I was blown away.. as were the rest of my friends with me. All of their songs sound much better live and they played Riddle of Steel, which Shawn Gallagher said they don't play live very often. They were the second best band that played that night (out of four: BTE, Blistered Earth, Symphony X, and Blind Guardian.. obviously Blind Guardian was the best). I can't wait to see them live again.

Beyond any element of expectation that American metal might be outdated, Beyond the
Embrace harken back to the bygone era of true-to-form progressive thrash while carving
their own niche against the grain of new millennium metal.

BTE's MetalBlade record's debut has the feel sonically of a glorified demo tape while
comprised of ten tracks of musical excellence, which effectively combine the elements of
old school speed metal and the modern melodic death metal ideal with progressive

musicianship. In just a matter of the first three cuts alone, one can experience the full
breath of potential BTE have to offer.

It is not just biting off the bone of either the Gothenburg, Sweden metal scene or the elder
statesmen from the Bay Area metal which makes BTE notable. It is the simple fact that
they have embellished, quite successfully mind you, on both concepts to create something
that is as much akin to the new-school of underground extremity embodied by the current
New England scene as it is uniquely their own orientation of originality.

The instrumental dynamics find the band moving from quiet, classically inspired, acoustic
passages to blisteringly bombastic, technically proficient passages in one sweeping stride
and setting up blazingly caustic chaos capable of melting into memorably melodic metallic
passages.

Vocally, the contrast is equally as impressive, with aural imagery from eating-glass
guttural girth to a more rock radio friendly serenade. As a matter of fact, the overall
execution on the first three tracks alone, paired with the masterful writing and
musicianship underneath, fully demonstrate beyond the shadow of a doubt Shawn
Gallagher's potential.

The downside to the MetalBlade record's debut is the lack of production overall, as some
of the levels feel a tad unbalanced and devoid of the sonic wash necessary to really move
speaker cones. However, the ideas more that carry through the near demo quality

recording.

Battle against all the elements of psuedo-metal musicianship and embrace the beginning of
BTE's career as they look to establish themselves among the new wave of American metal
mavens.

What an incredible piece of work this album is. This is one of my favorite cd's now and I haven't even owned it for more than a week.Shawn Gallagher is an excellent singer remniscent of a young James Hettfield,Brian Fair(Shadows Fall) and Anders Friden(In Flames).An excellent display of old-school thrash and melodic Gothenburg style metal.The guitars work is breathtaking and goes in every direction of the fretboard with amazing scales, tremolo picking and hammer-ons and pull-offs that will make you wonder how six guys could create music with such perfection and magic."Drowning sun" is also one of the best instrumentals I have heard since Metallica's Orion and other songs like "Mourning in Magenta" and "Rapture" show that metal also takes alot of intelligence and talent and not just any scmuck with a guitar who knows power chords and can scream could make good music.This will definately leave you with your jaw-dropped and your eyes will open to the sound of progression as you take a journey "Against the Elements". A must have

...

I feel the need to preface this review by stating for the record that not only have I met the guys in the band a couple of times, but I absolutely LOVE this album, and I do truly wish for BEYOND THE EMBRACE to succeed. This is probably not going to be the most un-biased piece of metal journalism you've ever read. So, with that said: they're one of (if not the) most deserving, yet unnoticed, unrecognized, underrated, under-hyped, under-publicized bands that currently exist in the metal scene. With half the promotion they should be getting, this band would be going places. Against The Elements is catchy, accessible, aggressive, overflowing with energy, and yes, even scorching at times. Considering that the band has existed for just a touch over 3 years and this is their debut album, the fact that no more than a handful of metalheads in the world even know about them is to me, a criminal act punishable by death!

Now that I'm done ranting, let's talk about why this album is so damned good. There has been some criticism bandied about that BEYOND THE EMBRACE isn't original at all. That BEYOND THE EMBRACE is merely "another clone" melodic death metal band. That BEYOND THE EMBRACE isn't all that "far removed" from IN FLAMES or IRON MAIDEN. Well, to set the record straight, unlike many of their contemporaries in the underground, BEYOND... has never proclaimed to be reinventing the wheel. Ever. They wear their influences on their sleeves for the world to see and hear, and wear them proudly. Personally, that's a refreshing attitude to hear a young band take. Vocalist Shawn Gallagher previously told me that they set out to "just bring back a traditional metal sound." And they do just that. BEYOND THE EMBRACE is just a group of kids (yes, kids; new drummer Kevin Camille is the elder statesman at only 30; the other 5 members are in their early-to-mid-20s) from New Bedford, Massachusetts. Kids who grew up like many of us, listening to IRON MAIDEN, METALLICA, IN FLAMES, QUEENSRYCHE, DARK TRANQUILLITY, AT THE GATES and the like. The only difference is that they're in a position to create music and keep the longtime fan favorite style alive...with a twist.

Twist? Huh? Yeah, BEYOND... has a 3-guitar attack, and I'm not talking about Jannick Gers-being-kept-on-because-Steve Harris-feels-bad-type-of-attack either. Oscar Gouveia (who also writes a large chunk of the band's music), Alex Botehlo, and Jeff Saude comprise the core components of the BEYOND THE EMBRACE sound. Which is largely characterized by ripping lead guitar work, dual guitar harmonies right out of 1987, and the more uptempto thrashy technical prowess made famous by a certain scene in Goteberg, Sweden circa 1994. Just when you think they've run out of spare tracks to make their sound even more full, along comes Adam Gonsalves with his rumbling, melodic bass lines to finish the recipe. So what about the songs? Can they write? Judging by the sheer ferocity of "Bastard Screams," which is marked by an intensely passionate chorus, incendiary lead guitar and trudging breakdown, or "Mourning In Magenta," which demands radio play thanks to its near punk-like vocal pattern, damned catchy chorus, and sadistically saddening lyrical content, or "Rapture," complete with downtuned riff-heavy madness and thundering rhythm section, or "The Bending Sea," a speedy, whirlwind of a thrashfest that will surely get any pit going, I'd say yeah, they can write. And let's not forget "Drowning Sun" or "The Riddle Of Steel," the 2 instrumentals they chose to include, a bold move for a veteran act, let alone for a band no one knows about on their debut album. The former, a placid, melancholy island in a tranquil sea of despair; the latter, an angry, tribal shout at a god who no longer answers. Yeah, they can write. Because it comes from their hearts. There's love on this album.

Finally, I want to comment on the musical talent that's so evident on Against The Elements. The guitar trio, the bass, the drumming, are all a finely blended engine, with each member an important cylinder providing 1/6 of the juice behind this metal beast. If there is anywhere where there's room for improvement, it's in the production. To be fair, the band self-produced this album, but at times, even the most skilled ear would have trouble picking out all 3 guitars. And at other times, it seems as if entire pieces of the drum kit are missing (the cymbals in particular are very weak). BEYOND THE EMBRACE will surely benefit from having a pro twisting the knobs on their sophomore release.

I knocked the final rating down just a notch due to its barely noticeable production faults, but that is it. Sometimes, music doesn't have to be insanely complex to be good. Sometimes, music doesn't have to be rebelliously inventive to be good. Sometimes, music doesn't have to make a statement to be good. Sometimes, music just has to be good. This is.

Beyond the Embrace has released the one with this cd. Their previous release, Insect Song, was a kind of ummm.... kind of album, with it not being great but not being bad. But, this time around they hit it right. They perfectly combine clean vocals with brutal screams and do it right all the time. I am not normally a fan of clean vocals but here it seems almost essential, like the cd wouldn't be the same without them.

As for the instrumentals, they are very good and in some songs (Rapture, Bastard Screams, Embers Astray) they are really well done, with catchy riffs and solos that will be in your head for days and days. The drumming is spot on and at some points can be downright insanley fast.

The tracks are really well done, and perfectly placed:

1- 5/5- A great 5:30 opener, with a perfect ending.
2- 3/5- Not my favorite, with mostly clean vocals, just not that great.
3- 3/5- Just one of the songs that seems to take up space....
4- 6/5- Awesome, awesome song, with a chorus that actually has meaning and emotion put into it, with lines such as "I spit and the sun, and the moon!!!!.... I'll take my pain, and walk the path, drenched with the blood of the angels!!!" Awesome, powerful stuff.
5- 4/5- Their first instrumental on the cd, very good with nice acoustic guitars with great drums.
6- 4/5- Great title track with a catchy chorus.
7- 3/5- Just another space-filler....
8- 4/5- Well constructed with long verses and a good guitar solo in the middle.
9- 15/5- The BEST song on the cd, with non-stop brutal vocals followed by an excellent melodic chorus, then comes another great verse followed by the guitar solo, which is really good, then puts it away with the repeat of the chorus. A real masterpiece of a song.

So, if you haven't already, go to the store and pick this one up, definetly worth a listen.

Pretty cool. Does exactly what it says on the tin. Nothing new. Still good though. Highlight track - Mourning in Magenta- Its good. Better than In Flames in some points, completely different in others. Its basically an American In Flames, but the guys have a had a few more guitar lessons! Hehe. More impressive on the leads, and the rhythms are pretty good too. Thats enough guitar talk for now! With this being a first release and the band being realtively small, it still has the distinct odour or being a bit amateur. Production and some of the writing etc. No offence meant by that, its just the vibe I get. Although I can't help thinking thats just some stigma Ive subconsciously attached because I know they are just starting out. If you are a fan of the whole Gothenberg melodic death scene (particularly In Flames), buy it, it might not become your new favourite cd (its no Wages of Sin) but you wont regret it.

Heavy Melodic Death Metal and this time it's from America. The singer sounds identical to In Flames when doing the DM thing. The raspy, semi-clean vocals remind me of Shadows Fall and nothing like James Hetfield growl that a previous review was trying to lead me to believe. Most importantly, the guitar work is very excellent (not Children Of Bodom or anything). Instead of wasting three guitarists (like Iron Maiden in B N W), they make a wonderful Heavy sound with lots of solos and technique. Definately a 5 star album !! Equal to Clayman, Colony, and Whoracle if not better.

I recently tuned in to the local college radios Friday night Metal show (not hair metal, REAL METAL) and I thought my ears were playing tricks on me. IN FLAMES procreates with old METALLICA to create BEYOND THE EMBRACE, a band I assume is from outer space, though Massachusettes is probably more on the mark. On what I assume is their first album (I'm doing it again), BTE unleash a furious melodic thrash metal album that deserves considerable attention. The singer goes between an Anders Freiden(IN FLAMES) death metal growl and a James Hetfield, circa Justice, voice with such accurracy I thought I was hearing things. There are 2 instrumentals one laid back and acoustic with an electric edge and the other an excersize in trade off solos. Oh yeah, there's THREE guitarists.
While the production leaves a bit to be desired, every thing pales in comparison to Devin Townsend's first Ocean Machine album, this is worth your time if you like quality melodic thrash. While BTE mixes classic In Flames with Metallica, French newcomers Lyzanxia mix a rawer melodic death with Megadeth. I wonder who will fill the other two slots in the Big Four/Melodic Death movement that seems to be returning. Good things do come around again.