Somewhere in-between the soft spoken emotion of finger eleven and the brooding musical nuances of Tool, lies the CT-based act, Still Life. Utilizing a vicious yet sensitive new metal sound mixed with faint touches of hardcore and spaced out melody, they manage to construct 9 heart wrenching tracks which play heavily on various emotions and tug at the listeners heart strings like a sullen albeit demented puppet master.

Using warm midrange vocal tones to guide the way, group front man Millie can quickly bring to mind finger eleven, yet there's a deeper and darker side at play. Almost as if some evil demon is lurking within him, Millie's words can seem heartfelt and melodic and then shift headlong into a cold and calculated demeanor without warning, belting out throaty screams and agitated energy that is an unexpected yet welcome contrast to the humble nature in which he usually is immersed in. Guitar work is intriguing, using various effects to spin its web of sonic imagery, while also implementing a tepid distorted crunch to help kick the explosive driving chorus riffs into the listeners skull as if it was on the receiving end of an aural nailgun. Backed with an impressively consistent rhythm section, the bands music is well layered and lacks no experimentation as various textures and thundering rolls are utilized to sculpt vast and intriguing landscapes of sound which come chockfull of intense scenery.

Their talent for writing romantic yet fiercely aggressive song structures is top notch and the material they have laid out on this stellar effort is a pleasing listen through and through. With constant buildup's, slick musicianship and a wide variety of influences, the group shine on almost every track on this effort and do so in a genuine manner that doesn't feel contrived or stereotypical, something which in today's world of clones and stereotypes is truly no easy task. Surely though, there are still a few complaints, the most notable of which being that some of the tracks fail to generate any immense interest or capture any startling momentum, but these moments are almost overshadowed completely by the times when the band hits their stride, like they do on the tracks "Five Angels Above" and "Christopher Walken". Easily one of the most gifted acts to emerge in recent times, Still Life are a band who's life span will be long and fruitful if they keep on the path which this release has chosen for them.
(4.5 / 5)