The first thing that’s comes to mind when listening to Eden Maine is how similar they appear to be with ‘Sikth’ and more so, ‘Dillinger Escape Plan’. However, after careful listening it becomes apparent that this album sits right in the middle of the above bands. I feel it has some of the melodic elements from Sikth and the intense brutality of DEP. The most obvious thing that I noticed though was hoe much darker their style is compared to Sikth and DEP, much more to my liking.

The production is of a high standard augmenting Eden Maine’s tightness as a group of very skilled musicians. In particular the drums really impressed me, as they seem to be classed as a lead instrument in themselves as opposed to just a beat maintaining entity. The guitars have some very nice moments creating different moods whilst the bass is the most consistent and solid of the lot to maintain the grooves. The vocals whilst powerful and aggressive could have benefited from some more melody to add to the atmosphere of the tracks. I feel they are just a little bit too monotone for my personal tastes.

Eden Maine have a good sound and execute it very well with this release. If you need something intense with sprinklings of melody and outstanding drums, Eden Maine should be high on your list of purchases.

****

Review by Alan Fullarton

***** Out of this world | **** Pretty damn fine |
*** OK, approach with caution unless you are a fan |
** Instant bargain bin fodder | * Ugly. Just ugly