The Sun Explodes - 3 Track Demo
When hearing the opening track for the first time, you would be forgiven for expecting a run of the mill vocal scream fest to batter your ears over the top of a very good guitar riff which follows a just as good synth intro, complete with harmonised guitar lines.
You would be surprised to find out you are wrong, as the vocalist soars in with some great melodic vocals, even reminding the listener of some Pink Floyd esq moment at one point. The song throughout is mid tempo, which works well, as any faster would ruin the strength of the guitar lines.
Weigh Your Sins is probably the standout track on the demo. A good catchy chorus with some spot on vocal harmony and some very well player guitar solos, even if at times some of the layers get a little lost in the mix.
Definitely deserves a second (and third) listen.
The Game comes in and it seems the band have swayed more to the traditional song writing structure with more vocal lines than the opening song. One point which could be picked up on is the clean sounding guitars, which although played proficiently enough, could benefit from a bit more texture in the sound department, although this is a minor point. The final chorus takes into an uplifting moment before bringing us back down to earth with something I’ve never heard, a synth beatdown….which is actually better than it sounds on paper.
The Fake is our final song, and after an opening section leads us into a great riff, reminiscent of Lamb Of God which leads the song forward nicely then back into a chorus. Yet again the guitars take lead and do a great job with the sweep picking. Some parts have a He Is Legend flavour to them with repects to the rhythm and guitar lines. The Fake politely shows us the exit with some great vocal harmony and a piano/guitar outro.
Overall this is a solid demo, the drums and guitars are well played, the vocals are always in tune but at points could do with some added power behind them. In regards to the mix, the individual layers themselves would sound great but unfortunately get a little lost in the grand scheme of things. A good use of melody and layers, with Weigh Your Sins being the one track you would probably play again.
HNR Rating: 7/10
You would be surprised to find out you are wrong, as the vocalist soars in with some great melodic vocals, even reminding the listener of some Pink Floyd esq moment at one point. The song throughout is mid tempo, which works well, as any faster would ruin the strength of the guitar lines.
Weigh Your Sins is probably the standout track on the demo. A good catchy chorus with some spot on vocal harmony and some very well player guitar solos, even if at times some of the layers get a little lost in the mix.
Definitely deserves a second (and third) listen.
The Game comes in and it seems the band have swayed more to the traditional song writing structure with more vocal lines than the opening song. One point which could be picked up on is the clean sounding guitars, which although played proficiently enough, could benefit from a bit more texture in the sound department, although this is a minor point. The final chorus takes into an uplifting moment before bringing us back down to earth with something I’ve never heard, a synth beatdown….which is actually better than it sounds on paper.
The Fake is our final song, and after an opening section leads us into a great riff, reminiscent of Lamb Of God which leads the song forward nicely then back into a chorus. Yet again the guitars take lead and do a great job with the sweep picking. Some parts have a He Is Legend flavour to them with repects to the rhythm and guitar lines. The Fake politely shows us the exit with some great vocal harmony and a piano/guitar outro.
Overall this is a solid demo, the drums and guitars are well played, the vocals are always in tune but at points could do with some added power behind them. In regards to the mix, the individual layers themselves would sound great but unfortunately get a little lost in the grand scheme of things. A good use of melody and layers, with Weigh Your Sins being the one track you would probably play again.
HNR Rating: 7/10
