Crystal Tears

Hellmade

Written by: BW on 16/03/2014 22:50:46

Crystal Tears have graced the Rockfreaks.net pages before, with a review of their "Choirs of Immortal" album getting a decent write up. Since their first album in 2006 there’s been an eight year gap and the odd change here and there. Every album has had a different record label and they no longer have their female lead vocalists, moving to an all male line up this time round. Will this be a help or a hindrance for their style of metal?

The first songs are decent and listenable and “Destination Zero” does offer enough wallop to get your head nodding in approval as well as in rhythm. Solid instruments and for the most part Søren Adamsen does well as the lead vocalist, but there are some parts where the high end screeches seem to be a little off key and maybe even a little off putting, which is a real shame, as I am a fan of melodic guitar work and this first track has it right from the start.

The title track “Hellmade” is a song with a fast paced intro, but subsequently slows down to a more standard affair, resulting in a song that sounds fine on the album, but there just seems to be something missing from it, maybe that certain punch that you expect from something that lends the name to the album itself. The tempo from this one almost sneaks in cleverly and takes over “The Devil Inside” as well. There is a fast 4/4 beat underlying the two and this also brings a small concern over the variety on most of the album, as there just seems to be no emotional adrenalin to kick start things. It feels like the songs have safety in mind and not once is there a risk taken to truly catch the imagination of the listener.

I say this because the next song is more what I’d expect. “Resurrection Suicide” is nicely done from the get go. The finger shifting on the fret and the fast kick drums merge well with the nice chord selection and it is what I would want a metal song of this type to have. The big thing about an album is having that attention grabbing tune. This should have been the main track, as it has more character and more soul than some of the others on here. One of the highlights on here? No question.

There are some little nuggets of greatness in there, like “Under Your Skin” and it’s nice intro to set you into the good track it is and “Ever Alone” with the occasional nod towards the older rock and roll mixing in with the metal they bring to the table. The only downside is that these little bits of above average enjoyment are hidden amongst what has to be an average album. It really isn’t doing anything that hasn’t been seen before and if I were listening to that outside of reviewing it I would probably sit and say that it could be a whole list of artists because the songs don’t distinguish themselves enough to stand out. It isn’t that they’re badly performed, don’t get me wrong, but there is not a strong enough vibe to make you sit back and admire.

When Rockfreaks.net last reviewed an album from Crystal Tears it got a six and a half and mentioned that it would be less, but for the talents of their then singing combination. They’ve now gone and I must also remove something from the past, which will be that half mark. This is an album that shows the odd sign of joyous music, but for the most part you’ll listen once or twice and then forget about it. If they’re going to seriously challenge people’s minds and wallets they really need to start mixing it up a bit and stop using the now worn out standards that bands who aren’t signed normally use to get noticed, as once you get noticed you then have to evolve, not dissolve.

6

Download: Under Your Skin, Ever Alone, Resurrection Suicide
For The Fans Of: Dragonsfire, Crosswind, Icy Steel, Revenheart
Listen: facebook.com

Release date 28.03.2014
Massacre Records



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