Customer Reviews

Fallout from the War

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Two years ago, Shadows Fall broke-out of the metal underground with "The War Within", and by releasing "Fallout From The War", Shadows Fall are officially letting go of Century Media and moving on to greener pastures. Considering they want to transition to a major label as soon as possible, releasing an album which is a collection of b-sides, reworked older songs, and cover tunes isn't a very surprising move for the band to make. And nothing on "Fallout From The War" should really leave Shadows Fall fans in shock and awe, either. Just like the songs on "The War Within", these b-sides are full to the brim with bullying riffs, pounding drums, and frontman Brian Fair's wailing (occasionally singing) voice. But what is surprising is that these songs hold up as well as, maybe better than, anything on that 2004 album!

The first six tracks are "The War Within" outtakes. Opener "In Effigy" is fueled by a propulsive, metallic, chugging guitar lead and fast drum work (including a powerful double bass). "Will To Rebuild" continues in that same vein, with both guitarists playing blazing leads and fiery riffs as they seemingly compete against each other, and Jason Bittner lays down some swift, heavy drum patterns. "Haunting Me Endlessly" is another intense thrasher. Track five, "Carpal Tunnel", slows things down for a little while and features some nice, clean singing, but even this song has some more heavy riffs and a somewhat wild solo. The proceeding two songs, "Going, Going, Gone" and track seven, a re-recorded version of the decade old "Deadworld", both boast explosive, catchy, muscular rhythms and blistering guitars.

"This Is My Own" is this disc's only b-side from Shadows Fall's 2002 album, "The Art of Balance". This song is backed by catchy, strong, churning riffs, and an almost thunderous rhythm.

The three remaining songs are newly-recorded covers, and Shadows Fall picked some rather interesting artists (bands who have inspired them over the years) to pay homage to. "December", originally done by Old Living Witness, is highlighted by some good, very melodic singing. "Mark Of The Squealer" (a Leeway cover) is pretty heavy (it has buzzsaw riffing and a fairly long solo), but, when compared to the other songs on here, it's fairly mid-tempo and melodic. And, lastly, "Teasin' Pleasin'" is quite an odd way to close the album. This song, which was originally done by Dangerous Toys, is definitely the most interesting and memorable of the covers, because it's very weird and even funny.

"Fallout From The War" is not an essential purchase for those who are new to or are casual fans of Shadows Fall, and it definitely falls into the "contractual obligations" category. But, all in all, this is a great companion disc to "The War Within", a terrific inclusion in every Shadows Fall collection, and a great snack for fans to listen to until the band's major label debut hits shelves sometime next year.

Shadows Fall have done it again. This is by far the heaviest album I've ever heard by these boys from Massachussetts. This definitely won't leave my CD player for awhile.

As previously mentioned, Fallout From The War is a companion disc to The War Within. By comparing between the two, you can really tell the difference. The War Within is more technical in terms of guitar playing than Fallout From The War. Fallout From The War is heavier & faster than The War Within. The War Within has more & longer guitar solos than Fallout From The War. The list goes on and on.

I would've given this 5 stars if it weren't for the last song, Teasn', Pleasn'. It's an okay song, but I felt like it wasn't a good song to close with. The other 2 covers, December & Mark Of The Squealer, are really good though.

Stand-outs include: In Effigy, Will To Rebuild, Going Going Gone, Deadworld, December, and Mark Of The Squealer.

Is it just me, or does every CD get some Amazon reviews with words like "Best yet!" or "Best since *name of some old classic of theirs*"

This is not Shadows Fall's best. Not by a long shot. In fact, it might be their worst if you treat it like a full length album.

Just because it's not really a full length album - it's more a collection of random pieces here and there. Not really B-sides, but more sort of "Oh, yeah, here's a little more." In Effigy and Going, Going, Gone are the gems here, but aside from that, this is all very disorganized.

Of course, The War Within was one of the best metal records in a while and that's the good news - with an album as good as that was, the left-overs and "Oh, yeah, what about this..." tracks are better than they'd be otherwise.

But cut the hype. 3 stars because I keep putting the CD in to hear "In Effigy" again.

This is the best album to date from Shadows Fall. I love listening to these guys. They are a very tallented bunch. I didn't think they could improve on "War Within" but they proved they have what it takes to go far and put out quality music. If you are a fan of ANY of thier other albums, get this one. You will put the others on the shelf and carry this one wherever you go.

Although I wasn't a particular fan of The War Within to begin with, this seems like a pretty solid record for a bunch of toss-outs from the album. I would probably even go far enough to say that these songs actually compromise a better album than The War Within. More thrash. More brutality. Some good harmony lines in there and the drums are constantly fast. If you're into Trivium or any old school thrash (Metallica, Megadeth) than get this. Even if you don't like it, it's worth a listen.

I cannot say that I have benn following this band since stardom, but when I heard "what Drives the Weak" on my local rock station almost two years ago, I was hooked. Therefore, when I saw this new album sitting on a shelf at my local bestbuy, I did not hesitate to purchase it. This is album has made its mark on almost every playlist on my ipod. My favorite tracks by far are "Going, Going, Gone" and "This is My Own". "Gone" has some of the fastest kick drums around and a furious guitar line that screams thrash. "This is My Own" contains several of shadows fall' famous start-stop tempo changes and a chugging main riff through the refrain. All in all, an excelent album. I also enjoyed the three covers on this album; hearing a new-age band play old-style music is pretty amazing to me.

Shadows Falls new release "Fallout From the War" is definitly the missing link between "Somber Eyes to the Sky" and "The Art of Balance". Let me just say right now that this release is FAR heavier than "The War Within" or "The Art of Balance". This new album contains less Metalcore influence and more Thrash and Melodeath. I've loved all of Shadows Falls albums but this might just be my new favorite. I cant stop listening to it. It hasnt come out of my CD player, and if it does the only reason is to go into my CARS CD player! Next time you're in Best Buy, or another CD store dont forget to pick this one up!!!

i have listened to this album 3 times through now since yesterday. it is definitely a good, fairly solid album. you can never really go wrong w/ shadows fall anyway, so of course it's going to be worth your money. i gave it four stars because it has, at the very least, 4 excellent songs. in effigy, haunting me endlessly, deadworld, and december are the tracks i really dig the most. deadworld has finally come into great form, and it's awesome the guys decided to give it one more go around. december is an excellent cover, i was so glad to hear a great band like shadows fall get ahold of it. the two originals i mentioned would sit on the war within very well. everything else is just ok. definitely get the vibe this is an "extra" for us fans, but i'm not going to complain. diehards will already have it, everyone else go buy it b/c i said so.

I just bought this CD about an hour ago and gave it a listen. In typical Shadows Fall form, it is brutally heavy and precise. However, breaking the mold from the pattern of CDs, it didn't seem to break any new ground for them. I understand that this is a companion to The War Within, but most of the songs sounded as if they had gone through a Shadows Fall song machine. I hate to say this, but even the solos sounded like afterthoughts. I've heard some Shadows Fall solos that completely blew my mind, but for Jon & Matt, these seemed like they improvised them after 2 days straight of staying awake. It was odd, because I had to look down every so often to see if the song had actually changed or not. I'm a big fan of diversity in my recordings, so it could just be me.

Let me point out, however, that Jason Bittner proves why he was voted #1 metal drummer over the past few years. His drumming on this CD reminded me of the Slipknot concert I went to about a year ago...except that it was catchier. He masterfully shows his technical skill, playing a million miles an hour and executing double bass beats and blasts that would make Chris Adler jealous. The way that he does this AND is able to make a beat that you can tap your foot to...he's great. I was going to give this CD 3 stars (I make it sound like it's a horrible CD...it's not. It's good, but just not up to par with other Shadows Fall recordings), but after hearing Jason's drumming, I bumped it up.

Summary: If you are a true Shadows Fall fan, pick this up. It'll be necessary for your collection, and it has the distinctive markings of their other recordings. If you are on the borderline anyway, I'd say wait until it goes on sale. It's worth money just to hear Jason's playing anyway.

As others have noted, this is really Jason Bittner's shining moment, he's unreal. The songs are all good, they sound like what they probably are, outtakes from the last 2 albums, but it's a testament to this fine band that these outtakes are so good! And the fact that they covered an Only Living Witness song ('December') alone makes me admire them more. If one kid who loves SF goes out and picks up some OLW (one of the most criminally underrated metal bands of the 90s) then SF will have done a great service. Wonder who did vocals on that one though, because Brian Fair has a totally different kind of voice, and if that's him singing, then they've Pro-Tooled him to death. Still, great song, and kudos to the Shads for showing some love to a band that probably influenced them when they started. So, to summarize, definitely worth adding to your collection if you're a huge fan, if you're a casual fan, you can probably wait for the next full length!