Review Summary: WARNING: Fanboy rant. Written entirely for the purpose of intriguing readers enough to give this band a shot and see if my rant is not at least a bit called for.
Grey Skies Fallen is a rather unknown progressive melodic death metal band from New York. The band’s style is very difficult to describe, this is because there is no other band that could be compared to them (except maybe Opeth, since they play on a similar premises, but even then it’s difficult to compare). The guitars are marvelous, delivering elegant melodies with sweeping guitar solos and crushing atmospheres with heavy riffage. The keyboards standout more then almost all the other instruments in melody and atmosphere. The bass is audible, and well played at that, giving nice grooves to the songs and even dishing out a solo of it’s own every so often. The drums are amazingly fast and precise, and do not fail to deliver brutality or to add rhythm to the breakdowns. The vocals are the most interesting though, considering the singer’s voice parallels Sully Erna of Godsmack (only he growls, and has a much better, more powerful singing voice). But don’t let the minor Godsmack comparison throw you off, because I seem to be the only one who thinks that out of my friends and even then it’s not a bad thing at all.
Without Words, the intro track to
Tomorrow's In Doubt, begins with a very smooth keyboard soundscape and misleads the listener into a sense of harmonic melancholy as the synths are add. The music then intensifies as the drums come in and the atmosphere thickens with the synths. The track bleeds into
The Essence Of Motion, which bursts into an arsenal of blast beats and heavy riffage with quick ‘interludes of keyboard and slower riffs. The vocals then kick in and prove to be versatile in the harsh death rasps. The guitars then lead the track into a sweeping arsenal of flowing progressive melody and brutality as the band shows off their talents selflessly. The song has a very dynamic guitar and vocal aura to it, but the drums are a big standout on the track as well. The track also shows a more groove orientated side of the band.
The third song,
Dream The Day Away, is another heavy hitter, kicking off with heavy guitar riffs and roaring vocals. The song has an overall heavier atmosphere in it, even with the presence of dream-esque synths near the mid-beginning. The big standout is the amazing usage of a flute in the breakdown halfway through the 7 and a half minute long song (it’s probably still synths but it’s definitely a flute tone). The song is easily one of the most notable on the album. The album titled track,
Tomorrow's In Doubt, takes the cake as the album’s greatest hit (although it really is hard to give this album a top three best songs list). The song is impossible to describe all the way through, since so much goes on in the 10 minutes it’s on. The song ranges from heavy grooves, sweeping vocal and guitar melodies, a bass solo, and amazing keyboard performances. Upon finishing this song, I literally had to listen to again right away just to comprehend how amazed I was by this band’s art (and on a side note, it shocks me even more that this band is not a full time or extremely popular by any means, which is a shame cause they deserve the fame almost as much as Opeth does). Again, I am left speechless with the dynamics and balance of this song.
Silent Cry does not fail to live up to the previous track, starting off with some drum ad bass grooves, the song progresses into some heavy death riffs and synths that give the song a much more gothic atmosphere then the previous. The song also has one of the better guitar solos backing up it’s arsenal of sonic attacks.
Let Me Breathe is easily the most emotional track on the album, and still stands strong as a dynamic. more melodic song overall. The song has some very powerful riffs and great bass undertones as well as synth work. Not my favorite track, but still an amazing song at that.
The opening synth/ guitar grooves of
Fragments lets you know early on that Grey Skies Fallen plans to end the album with a bang. The song is one of the most solid and dynamic tracks on the album and competes for the top 3 best songs. The song has some of the most heaviest moments on
Tomorrow's In Doubt, and also some of the most melodic. Overall it has a great range and is a perfect track to listen to to get into this band. The final piece on the album is the instrumental
Reduced To Ash, which is hands down the most beautiful song on the album. From the keyboard intro to the atmospheric synths to the smooth drum lines to the amazing guitar work, this song has it all, and honestly would be less amazing if vocals were present (not to say it wouldn’t still be amazing). As the song ends, you’ll say to yourself “Why the hell aren't these guys on the front of every magazine in the U.S.?!”. Well, maybe not, but that’s definitely what I said.
NOTE: This album is 100% free and legal to download on the band’s website, as well as their other two releases of
slightly less amazingness.
