Style: Melodic Death Metal (harsh vocals)
Review by: Matt
Country: United States (Florida)
Release date: 13-09-2020
The hardest part of writing reviews is often the “for fans of” section. It seems easy, yet all of us here draw blanks at least half the time probably. Luckily, Lascaille’s Shroud quickly made me think of Edge of Sanity… which isn’t a bad place for your band to be.
There are some differences, of course; While both bands play proggy, atmospheric melodic death metal, Brett Windnagle isn’t as attached to his 70s synths or sudden epic twists as Dan Swano. This project also has a doomy side, which manifests mostly on the title track here. I find the slow passages better than the faster stuff, mainly because melodeath riffs aren’t Windnagle’s strong suit. While the riffs play a role structurally and work fine in that sense, they feel basic and unexciting, like maybe guitar isn’t his main instrument or something. It’s hard to quantify what makes a good riff, but these don’t do it for me (except “Wounds” 6:00 I suppose.) On the other hand, the writing is quite good on a macro level, with well-managed tension and release, motifs that run though the whole album, etc. The songs stay entertaining for their double-digit runtimes, making Wounds an overall success.
Special mention should probably be made that although this is a “One Guy – Everything” Bandcamp release, it hasn’t suffered for it at all. The mix on this is great, the fake drums don’t sound fake, and Windnagle’s harsh vocals are awesomely brutal. While I’d like a deeper dive on the guitar parts, he’s definitely got the chops as a writer and producer. Wounds is still ultimately sort of a budget EoS or Opeth album, but hey, it’s pretty solid. I’m having flashbacks to Godgory as well, if anyone remembers them… Some parts can make you say “that’s it?”, yet the keyboards and overall flow have a way of tying things together. It goes to show that one’s arranging skills are probably more important than the raw ideas, overall.
Recommended tracks: Wounds
Recommended for fans of: Edge of Sanity, Godgory
Final verdict: 7/10
Related links: Bandcamp | Metal-Archives page
Label: Independent
Lascaille’s Shroud is:
Brett Windnagle – Everything
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