Brutiful_ViXn
Reign In Metal
Zodiac :  Metal Reputation : 88
Join date : 2012-01-05
Location : Vacationing in Hell
 | |  Relentless - Souls Of Charon (2013) Album Review | |
Relentless - Souls Of Charon (2013)
Do Or Die Records -- Running Time 34:53
When I saw the band name, logo, album title and artwork I had high hopes about the debut album from Chicago, Illinois band Relentless. Whether, these days, at just under thirty five minutes in length you can call it an album and not an EP is another matter but anyway! Knowing that Do Or Die Records are a small independent label out of Chicago and this is only their third release I also did a bit more research than usual seeing what other people thought about the Doom laden Heavy Metal that Relentless offer. Pretty much all the reviews I've found have been favourable with special mention going to new female vocalist 'Carlee Jackson'. It should be mentioned that I did this before actually listening to the album!
Suitably intrigued I sat down with my pad and pressed play!. Now, I do like a bit of doom every so often. Pentagram, Electric Wizard and others are mainstays in my collection and of course the band who can probably be described as grandfathers of the genre Black Sabbath (let's be honest they spawned every genre of metal and still do)! 'Trapped Underground' kicked things off and the riff is suitably Sabbath Doom orientated. It didn't sound too bad, if a little unoriginal. Yeah I know, the very nature of doom means that the music can sound unoriginal.
Then Miss/Mrs/Ms Jackson started to sing! Well I'm obviously missing something compared to the glowing words she has received from other reviewers because all I can hear is the dull and lifeless wail of someone that doesn't appear to have woken up properly. Her delivery is in tune, and is done in such a way that I could hear someone like a young Ozzy utilising (she even does the "all right now" thing that Ozzy uses in songs), but it is so bland and listless she sounds like she just couldn't be bothered. In fact she reminds me of a female 'Morrissey' from The Smiths and I'm afraid that is not a compliment. Doom or not I still want the vocalist to grab me and make me FEEL the music and 'Carlee Jackson' does not do that, she just sent me into a deep slumber and it took copious amounts of coffee to bring me around again!
Any redeeming factors that the band have musically are completed laid to ruin by the singing. Even though the songs are simple fare and repetitive, especially the near nine minute 'Forever Damned' which is about four minutes too long, they would have sounded so much better with a vocalist that had even a small spark of life in their system rather than trying to mimic a zombie from Romero's Night Of The Living Dead. I've played 'Souls Of Charon' enough now, I'll not be doing so again!
https://www.facebook.com/RelentlessChicago
https://www.facebook.com/DoOrDieRecords
http://www.doordierecords.org/
Review written exclusively for Brutiful Entertainment by Rick Tilley
www.facebook.com/richard.tilley.351
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