The Art of Balance may have grabbed listeners' attention mercilessly, their second album Of One Blood remains the unsung hero of Shadows Fall's collection. Ranging from thrash to death metal and Gothenburg, no band has released an album quite like this. Riffs are again unique, technical, and harmonized to percfection. Jon Donais shreds his best solos ever in songs such as Of One Blood and The First Nobel Truth. Other tracks list Pure and Revel in My Loss are savagely brutal with a raw atmosphere. Only two albums into their careerm Shadows Fall had already mastered the art of covering both the insanely heavy and technical and the beautifully melodic ends of the spectrum.
This album, although a great one, cannot stand up to the later releases from the Shads. The brutal yet catchy riffs that are Shadows Fall's trademark are present, as are the soaring lead patterns and shredding solos. But it doesn't have quite the consistent quality of the later albums. Songs like Fleshold seem to be veering into BTBAM style tech-metalcore, not a style that fits Shadows Fall well. Other tracks force melody, such as the terrible Root Bound Apollo. Other tracks, such as Montauk, just suck. But that's not to say it's terrible. Crushing Belial, Of One Blood and To Ashes are all superb tracks that are highlights of Shadows Fall's career. Ultimately, this is an inconsistent release from Shadows Fall, but still has many excellent tracks that will keep you listening for a long time.
