Twilightfall - The Energy Of Soul

Twilightfall

The Energy Of Soul

by Matt Coe at 13 August 2014, 3:03 PM

Eastern European countries appear to be a fertile breeding ground these days in terms of Heavy Metal. A repressed society for so many years suddenly being free to create and explore their feelings can produce some potent musical offspring. Hailing from the Ukraine, the Melodic Death/Thrash Metal act TWILIGHTFALL started in 2010 and took their time working up the material that would comprise this debut album “The Energy of Soul”. At 7 songs, the 39 minutes of compositions possess a fierce attack, the quintet preferring to inject melody on the music side while vocally being very harsh and extreme.

The quartet do not chose the obvious high end, happier harmonies when they display their melodic tendencies. For the title cut and “A Mirror of Dreams and Reality” you can feel as much KING DIAMOND and CANDLEMASS coming through as the affinity for CHILDREN OF BODOM or IN FLAMES. Guitarist Wortherax also does double duty for the main vocals, and he has a raspy, gravelling growling nature that it surprisingly clear – it’s difficult for me to place who he sounds like, but rest assured he is not a cup the microphone and unintelligible voice used for underground amusement. Bassist Freyr lays down some thick riff overtures on another highlight, the semi-speedy “Welcome to New Day” where keyboard parts give off a neo-classical attitude.

A heavy production, professional execution and instinctual songwriting equals a debut album that kept my interest from first note to last – and that’s very rare in a genre that can be repetitive due to how much harmony aspects each act chooses to concentrate on. TWILIGHTFALL are an act that prefer to keep the prowess parts to a minimum, instead aurally focusing their attention on each individual arrangement and letting their music breathe based on atmosphere. “The Energy of Soul” will obviously strike the right chord for those who love Melodic Death/Thrash, but I think it has the possibility to gain wider appeal beyond its genre roots.