Tuesday 17 December 2013

Maidens - Eve of Absolution - Album Review




Eve of Absolution cover art

Maidens is a Post Hardcore/Sludge/Doom Metal from Milwaukee, WI, USA

The members are:

Brian R: Guitar
Nick W: Bass
Brian B: Drums (Chris B currently filling in!)
Shane L: Guitar

Earlier this year, Maidens laid down 30 minutes of hammering doom metal with Eve of Absolution. Throughout the album it begs the listener to slowly bang their head with each crushing riff. While layered and dynamic the record captures the band in a very natural way, maintaining the essence of their sound without obvious studio trickery.

The record eases you into the first track Beginnings: Rebirth, which quickly turns into a dark and battering song. Our Splendor, Our Antiquity follows with the most rhythmically dynamic song on the album, with cutting and jagged riffs. Things take a major-scale turn with Lands of the Blind, contrasting the down-tuned guitars with a happier melodic tone, a la Pelican.

With Discord: Storm on the Horizon the album takes another turn, with a droning, fuzzed out bass, atmospheric guitars and sparse drumming. The devastating bass and fun with delay pedals continues this instrumental stretch in the album's namesake, Eve of Absolution. The mix and recording quality of this album shines here as the instrumental tracks hit just as hard as the ones with vocals - a trick difficult to pull off without sounding over-compressed.

The vocals return on Upheaval: She Has Abandoned Us, a slow waltz of baritone sludge, typical of their Midwest indie-metal roots. The album concludes with The Calm, The Silence, another pounding and epic song filled with lament and dread. This is a sledgehammer of an record, and if you get the chance to see these guys live, you should. If not, this album truly captures the experience.

Written by Ben Bowman

A great album from an excellent band. You can download Eve of Absolution from BandCamp Buy Now Deal.

Check The Band From Links Below

Facebook
MySpace
Last.fm
maidens.bigcartel.com
BandCamp