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Sentiments

Dystopia

Written by: AZ on 07/06/2013 00:26:17

Hello ladies and djentleman! I have something to soothe your soul. It is a record representing all that is trendy in metal music nowadays. Yes, I am talking about growls, heavy palm-muted power chords, melodic keys that make up for the otherwise lacking melody and … breakdowns! You guessed it – breakdowns and down-tempo parts are falling like rain here. So my advice for you is to take your musical umbrella if you wish to follow me into this review.

I guess I started off on the wrong foot. Well the problem here is that even if I switch my foot a.k.a. become breakdown-friendly, I would still scratch my head wondering; “Why did I pick up “Dystopia” in the first place?”. Maybe because of the massive amount of resemblance between Sentiments and Born Of Osiris (both music-wise and by the number and role of band members)? Nope, BOO has a more distinct sound and complex compositions. Could be the ingenui... nope it's definitely not that. Guess I was intrigued by the use of keys on the record.

There are several key places where this record makes a face plant in cement. First – sound. If not a sought-for effect, the cymbals could definitely use some re-adjusting in the mix. This would be very beneficial especially for all of us wanting to know what the other instruments are doing while the drummer is hitting the cymbals. Next comes composing. It is the main downfall of this record. The band has clearly followed their heroes (check the For The Fans Of Section) by the example they set in their songs. Holding too close to the stereotype of a very heavy deathcore band, however, gives no benefits. On the contrary – I am constantly having the feeling that I am listening to a lost Born Of Osiris EP.

I must confess that I never had trouble picking a song for the download section further down on the review page. I guess there is a first time for everything. Honestly I had to listen to the album multiple times (more than I initially intended to) to find a song that could represent the content of “Dystopia” at its best. Although there are some catchy tunes along the lines of the record (like the intro of “Neglect”), it was definitely a struggle to pull the needles out of the haystack.

Sentiments is a band that may or may not leave a trace in your mind. I recommend to check them out and decide for yourself. My take on “Dystopia” in short – heard it all before.

Download: Neglect
For The Fans Of: The Browning, Architects, Alpha Centauri, Born of Osiris
Listen: Facebook

Release Date 31.03.2013
Self-Released