VEIL OF MAYA — Eclipse (review)

VEIL OF MAYA — Eclipse album cover Album · 2012 · Deathcore Buy this album from MMA partners
4/5 ·
Time Signature
Divide paths...

Genre. prog/tech d(j)e[ath](n)tcore

I hope I will be forgiven for my initial disappointment with this album. I know, it's my own fault, but a band with a name like Veil of Maya - the accidental namesake of one of Cynic's most legendary songs - automatically led me to expect jazzed up progressive death metal. Those expectations were not met, as I was met with technical deathcore with a touch of djent instead, and the inevitable feeling of disappointment kicked in.

However, having shaken off the initial disappointment and having given the album several more spins, I of course ended up appreciating the album, because it is actually quite good. Placed somewhere between deathcore and technical death metal, Eclipse features music which is both technically advanced and also quite brutal. Taking the listener through a maze of blasbeats, djent-ish grooves, metalcore breakdowns of the more interesting kind, and bursts of advanced guitar complexities, Veil of Maya definitely challenges the listener who likes technical brutal music while at the same time appealing to those who prefer the br00tality of deathcore. To me, this is a positive experience - for some reason only very few of the bands that are labeled deathcore bands appeal to me, so I really appreciate it when I stumble upon a release associated with deathcore that appeals to me, and this one definitely does.

Amidst all the brutality and br00tality, Veil of Maya throw in melodic elements - either in the form of melodic synth effects or in the form of inclinations towards more melodic metalcore along the lines of Killswitch Engage (without the clean vocals though) - just check out the title track, 'Winter Is Coming Soon', and 'Vicious Circles'. There are also elements on this album that remind me a bit of Obscura's Cosmogenesis, and a track like the dissonance-rich 'The Glass Ride' features a Middle-Eastern rhythmic drive, and there are even some black metal-like elements in the also djented up 'With Passion and Power'.

Eclipse combines technical death metal with deathcore and djent. Thus, it should appeal to fans of those genres (conversely, if you hate djent and deathcore, you might not like this album). In any case, it ia characterized by a band who are skilled musicians and have a knack for exploiting the power of groove as well as the power of brutality and aggression - and I would say that the label "prog/tech extreme metal" suits this release very well, so if you are a prog/tech extreme metal fan, you should check it out.

(review originally posted at seaoftranquility.org)
Share this review
more

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

Review Index

Member Zone

Username:
Password:
Stay signed in

Metal Subgenres

Artists Alpha-index

MMA TOP 5 Metal ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
Master of Puppets Thrash Metal
METALLICA
Buy this album from our partners
Paranoid Heavy Metal
BLACK SABBATH
Buy this album from our partners
Moving Pictures Hard Rock
RUSH
Buy this album from our partners
Powerslave NWoBHM
IRON MAIDEN
Buy this album from our partners
Rising Heavy Metal
RAINBOW
Buy this album from our partners

New Metal Artists

New Metal Releases

The Goblin Sessions Heavy Metal
THEM
Buy this album from MMA partners
Tormenta De Arena Metalcore
VORAGO
Buy this album from MMA partners
Infinite Metalcore
FUTURE GHOST
Buy this album from MMA partners
Heretic Melodic Death Metal
SUNCINDER
Buy this album from MMA partners
The Skull Burned Wearing Hell Like A Life Vest As The Night Wept Mathcore
FRONTIERER
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Metal Online Videos

Future Ghost - Wolves (Official Music Video)
FUTURE GHOST
Bosh66· 1 day ago
Future Ghost - Nemesis Game (Official Music Video)
FUTURE GHOST
Bosh66· 1 day ago
Harrowed TwentyTenVideo
HARROWED
Bosh66· 3 days ago
Sunmancer - Realms of Dilemma (Official Visualizer)
SUNMANCER
Bosh66· 8 days ago
Sunmancer - Lower Cavalier (Official Visualizer)
SUNMANCER
Bosh66· 8 days ago
More videos

New MMA Metal Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Metal News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us
Follow us on Twitter Become a Facebook fan RSS Feed