Easily the best cd to come out of Maryland - 95%
Written by SirMichaelJ on December 25th, 2007
We all have a sense of the music in relation to where we live. A lot of us want to support local bands, but let's face it, they suck most if not all the time. But every once in awhile you find a diamond in the rough. Being from Maryland I am completely immersed in a shallow hardcore scene that has lost it's roots and is some complete buttfuck of a mix between every core imaginary. But one night while cruising through similar artist on Last.fm I stumbled across Garden of Shadows. I noticed these guys ( and one girl) are from Maryland. A melodeath band, with a chick in it, from Maryland. Being the asshole I am I wrote them off as a gimmick who would attempt to combine the likes of Dimmu Borgir and Cradle of Filth. But since I love my homestate I had to at least give it a chance. And I could not have been more wrong. This band was the surprise band of the year for me, although not releasing a album this year, this release was my favorite album of the year upon hearing for the first time.
The first thing impressed me was the unique style of guitars for the type of intended music. It was a great blend of crunchy riffs, mixed with plenty of clean riffs to create a sense of balance in the music. Next I noticed the vocals were clearly 90% gutteral, the other 10% was actually quite a catchy and well done higher pitched scream, not quite a shriek from a black metal band, but it was similar. The drum work is intensely intricate, being a huge fan of drum work I was finding myself getting lost in the bombastic rythmic pace of the drum work. This was clearly a clincher in the whole mystical atmosphere, able to turn the black and death metal blast beats and double bass on with a flick of a switch, than in a split second go to a subtle yet complicated beat that complimented the rest of the music perfectly. The bass was the most surprising aspect for me really. It has a clear presence and very hypnotic tone to it. This release was meant to take you away to a different place, and the bass is believe it or not is a stand out. On metal albums nowadays that's a real rarity. The keys on this release never dominate, as they never should. Most bands that attempt this type of music go crazy with synths and really ruin the music. Not the case in Garden of Shadow's Oracle Moon.
This is a band that has since stopped making music for one reason or another, but to find such a gem of a cd within the mediocrity of bands today was a treat, and the fact they hail from Maryland made it even more enjoyable. Regardless of the bands location or current status, this album is must own and must listen.
Favorite track: Desert Shadows ( The last 2 minutes of this track make this song really special)
thats fucking awesome dude. well thought out and constructed, which is the sign of attention to detail.
ed, you're right, some do more than others, mainly because they are 2009 releases and done on the date of release, or sometimes before if i get my grubby pirate hands on them. however, lately i've been handling a ton of requests, plus there's no real EARTH shattering releases coming out that i've been told about. kind of a bummer.
Originally posted by sunofalightbulb thats fucking awesome dude. well thought out and constructed, which is the sign of attention to detail.
ed, you're right, some do more than others, mainly because they are 2009 releases and done on the date of release, or sometimes before if i get my grubby pirate hands on them. however, lately i've been handling a ton of requests, plus there's no real EARTH shattering releases coming out that i've been told about. kind of a bummer.
Muse- Resistance.
Sorry, but I cannot put down this album. My favorite release of the year, hands down.
Tried out Blackguard, and I enjoyed hlaf, disliked half. Those synths were killing it for me. Just like Enisferum, Illnath, ect. Love half, the other half has to much crammed into it that sounds fake.
