Astralborne are a band that has already appeared on the blog several times but only in further listening lists so far. So I’ve decided to correct that wrong and

4 years ago

Astralborne are a band that has already appeared on the blog several times but only in further listening lists so far. So I’ve decided to correct that wrong and give them their own post; they certainly deserve. Astralborne, all the way from Ohio, make the kind of melodic death metal which has been deemed as deceased, and not wrongly so, by most fans of the genre. However, in their skillful hands, the genre lives again, channeling the same kind of grandiose riff and evocative atmosphere that only good melodeath can channel. This makes Eternity’s End, their latest release, an incredibly fun and uplifting album. Head on down below for your taste!

What’s not to like, really? “Attending the Funeral”, the first proper track on the album, gets everything you need to know across; that first opening riff is just good old melodeath, fun and sweeping, as are the vocals. The galloping riff that anchors the middle of the track alongside the tight drums keeps the momentum of the track going ever-forward, making sure we stay engaged as the track revolves around its verse-chorus-verse structure.

That structure is perhaps the most common pitfalls of current melodic death metal, creating a pattern that can be boring and strenuous on the ear. But Astralborne are more clever than that and break things up in the track’s second half with some more intricate and unexpected track structure. Multiple bridges and a killer solo which uses dual guitar in a great way keeps things fresh and interesting, all the way to the track’s end. That’s Eternity’s End in a nutshell then: great, true-to-source melodic death metal that gets in there, gets the job done, and adds in many cool ideas to boot. So, what are you waiting for? Get on this!

Eden Kupermintz

Published 4 years ago