Lantern For A Gale

From Adversity

Written by: PP on 18/07/2015 09:50:24

A few years ago Northern Irish melodic hardcore band Lantern For A Gale released a highly promising EP called "Lands More Hostile". It sourced its inspiration from old school Shai Hulud material, i.e. the origins of the melodic hardcore genre with dynamically flowing melodies contrasted by heartfelt screaming that never made its way into the clean territory.

Their debut album "From Adversity" pretty much picks up from where the EP left off, delivering more old school melodic hardcore that instantly brings to mind Shai Hulud's two pioneering releases "Hearts Once Nourished With Hope And Compassion" and "That Within Blood Ill-Tempered". Coarse screams dwell just on the edge of being indecipherable, and metallic riffs predate early 2000s metalcore bands like As I Lay Dying with the occasional tranquil section to provide breathing room for the otherwise relentlessly aggressive soundscape. Oddly, the band have chosen to re-work "The Future" by Leonard Cohen into their own format, but it's rather different from the original, now sounding like a Shai Hulud song instead. And if you think I've mentioned the latter band too much in this review, well, I haven't. This is the biggest problem for Lantern For A Gale: they're emulating a band so notoriously successful and seminal that they fall short in most categories when compared so directly side-by-side.

As a result, "From Adversity" feels like a subpar release. But it is also that even when compared to their EPs which at least had a few instances where beautiful melody nicely complemented their late 90s metalcore approach. Here, the musicianship and vocals are harsher and carry less momentum, so most songs end up sounding too anonymous for their own good. It's not bad, but it's not exactly memorable.

6

Download: Shelter, Captain, From Adversity
For the fans of: Shai Hulud, Dead Hearts, Hollow Earth
Listen: Facebook

Release date 13.03.2015
Self-Released

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