Strong metal release with some downfalls
Jarek | New Britain, CT | 03/09/2005
(3 out of 5 stars)
"Continuum Hypothesis is the third full length release from Epoch of Unlight. It's the first new material from the band in four years. Epoch of Unlight plays somewhat technical melodic black/death metal. It's not terribly original material but some of the songs on this album work extremely well.
One of the best parts of this album is the drumming. Tino LoSicco, who also drums on the excellent Subterranean Masquerade EP release on The End, sounds fantastic here. The drumming is very fast and prominent on every track. There are also a lot of good tempo changes throughout the songs that work well. If you're a fan of good drumming then you will find a lot to like here. The guitar riffs are also fantastic in some of the songs. Under Starside Skies, Highgate, Abberant Shadows and The Scarlet Thread feature some phenomenal guitar riffs that work in tandem with the excellent drumming to yield some great results. Some of the riffs are simply awesome and the best part is that the band doesn't reuse any of them so each new song feels fresh. There are some excellent solos to be heard in there too, The end of all, Abberant Shadows and The Scarlet Thread in particular feature some quality wailing. The bass isn't as prominent here but it does show it's head from time to time. The Scarlet Thread is the song where all the good elements of this band come together and is the strongest song on this album. The other songs are either hit or miss but almost every has some redeemable feature about them.
One of the problems I had with this album is the vocals. While they are by no means terribly, they are a bit too boring for my tastes. All we get here are standard black metals vocal, the regular growl/yell type vocals common to the genre. This sort of takes away from the overall quality of the music. Even though you're hearing some excellent instrumental work, you just can't help but thing the vocals are bland.
Another problem is that all the songs are in the same vein. I wish the band would experiment a bit more and move away from the all-black metal sound. There are some nice, peaceful seques in The Continuum Hypothesis and Denubrum where the breakneck metal slows down to present us with some proglike breaks. These parts work really well and if the band expands on these small parts of their songs on their next album, that might turn out to be quite a classic.
As it stands, some of the songs sound disjointed. The album itself isn't put together well because while some of the songs work well alone, they don't mesh well with the rest of the album. None of the songs sound the same but there is also a certain lack of originality that prevents this album from being great. Some prog elements would have really added to this already good release.
Overall, this is a very stellar album. The drumming and guitar riffs are the main draw here and both are excellent. The bass is ok but doesn't measure up to the rest. This album would have worked a lot better with some more prog elements and a better vocalist. As it stands, it's merely a showcase for the excellent talents of the drummer and guitarist. It's still a worthwhile purchase because the drumming and guitar riffs make up for the downfalls of the vocalist. I give it a well-earned 3 1/2 stars and recommend it to anyone looking for some above average black metal with excellent drumming."
The Continuum Hypothesis
Murat Batmaz | Istanbul, Turkey | 03/28/2005
(3 out of 5 stars)
"A little online research revealed that The Continuum Hypothesis is Epoch of Unlight's third album. The band has existed in various forms under different names for over 15 years. I haven't heard their previous releases, but The Continuum Hypothesis features new vocalist B.J. Cook (Fallen Empire) who does a fairly good job. The vocals on the album are reminiscent of early 90's Swedish bands playing in a thrash/death style. Comparisons could be drawn to bands like The Haunted and the first Hypocrisy album. Cook mostly screams the lyrics throughout the entire disc -- he has a half-yelling and half-growling kind of delivery. Besides the Swedish screamers, track 8, "Aberrant Shadows", recalls Devin Townsend doing his maniacal high screams over meticulously arranged guitar harmonies. That said, Cook's singing, as the music itself, is a bit one-dimensional, rarely trying something different.
The End Records suggests that Epoch of Unlight is recommended for fans of Kreator, Heartwork-era Carcass, At the Gates and early Dark Tranquillity. Somehow I feel the need to mention references to Lunaris' Cyclic album (without the technical edge) and perhaps Darkane as well. The highlight of the album is, without doubt, drummer Tino LoSicco. LoSicco has written the music and lyrics for all the songs and takes on a definitive role here. The tunes are driven by his pounding rhythm work mixed with odd meters. Joe Totty on bass and Josh Braddock on guitar play around LoSicco's technically challenging drum patterns. The bass is hardly audible, except on the breakdown of the song "Cardinality", which also features an impressive drum solo. Other than that, the bass functions as a complement to the drumming -- it provides a fuller rhythm sound.
Braddock plays raw guitar rhythms, occasionally in a thrash metal vein. There is an excellent riff on "Argentum Era Secui Duos" before the acoustic section that is bound to make you headbang. "Highgate" is a personal favourite because of its dark intro, violent main riff and smooth guitar harmony. There aren't many guitar solos on the CD; but they're far from absent. It's just that Epoch of Unlight impresses more with their subtle rhythm work rather than technically superior instrumental sections.
The one problem with the CD is that it offers little variety. It is pretty straightforward in style; all songs usually start with fierce guitar riffage developed around LoSicco's forceful drum fills and Cook's brutal vocals. Besides the brief bass line on "Quicksilver to Ash" and the acoustic riff on the aforementioned "Argentum Era Secui Duos", all the songs seem standard. They are solid songs, however. Co-produced by noted engineer Erin Farley (Agnostic Front, Overkill), the sound quality is great. Farley also does back vocals on one song. The melodic parts, particularly on "The End of All", really come through displaying an early Dark Tranquillity-ish vocal melody; or the insanely fast double bass drum on "Broken Pendulum" is going to please metalheads for sure. I have to mention that the artwork is the best part of it all though -- an excellent cover art with twisted imagery, lyrics, songcredits and band photo."
Track Listings (11) - Disc #1