Paths Of Possession - The End Of The Hour
Paths of Possession is not my favorite band ever and THE END OF THE HOUR is certainly not on my “regularly played” list, but the band is not all negative. The release is just not my personal style. The CD opens with very straight riffs and the accompanying guitar leads layer lightly on top. It sounds to me like Paths of Possession read a book or something about how to “play metal” and when they practice playing they like to just riff away with no sense of metal art. There are some seconds of the first track that are a little different, but the leads are worthless as metal, certainly not brutal, and the track has a few moments that sounds like something ripped off from Decapitated. In fact, I would even say that the lead tracks are something right out of a heavy rock band from the early 90s or something, except even bands like Alice in Chains and Pearl Jam burn more creativity through any one song from their most popular CDs than Paths of Possession exhibits on all of THE END OF THE HOUR.
I can not make an absolute value judgment on Paths’ talent because I have only heard this particular CD, that would be absurd. I am not saying of course that THE END OF THE HOUR is totally boring, I do find my self bouncing my head up and down a little, but I will not think of this album when I am wondering which of my thousand + albums I might play to satisfy my musical desires. And despite having some not too horrible track names, “I Am Forever,” “Poisoned Promise Land,” and “Engulfing The Pure” (a truly great title in my humble opinion) are just a few, Paths of Possession’s THE END OF THE HOUR is not heavy enough, it’s like they like the idea of metal instead of actually writing and playing; the CD’s lead accompaniment guitar is almost non-existent (although there is so much of it) in terms of tension creation amidst the songs; and the CD lacks any important sound that jumps out of any track. It’s like a work of metal conservativeness or something. There is NOTHING BALLS-OUT anywhere in the CD and thus THE END OF THE HOUR fails to chime that death knell it wants so hard to ring.[embed]
I can not make an absolute value judgment on Paths’ talent because I have only heard this particular CD, that would be absurd. I am not saying of course that THE END OF THE HOUR is totally boring, I do find my self bouncing my head up and down a little, but I will not think of this album when I am wondering which of my thousand + albums I might play to satisfy my musical desires. And despite having some not too horrible track names, “I Am Forever,” “Poisoned Promise Land,” and “Engulfing The Pure” (a truly great title in my humble opinion) are just a few, Paths of Possession’s THE END OF THE HOUR is not heavy enough, it’s like they like the idea of metal instead of actually writing and playing; the CD’s lead accompaniment guitar is almost non-existent (although there is so much of it) in terms of tension creation amidst the songs; and the CD lacks any important sound that jumps out of any track. It’s like a work of metal conservativeness or something. There is NOTHING BALLS-OUT anywhere in the CD and thus THE END OF THE HOUR fails to chime that death knell it wants so hard to ring.[embed]
1. Memory Burn
2. The Ancient Law
3. I Am Forever
4. In Offering On Spite
5. Pushing Through The Pass
6. Poisoned Promise Land
7. Ash Is Falling Rain
8. The End Of The Hour
9. As Sanities Split
10. Engulfing The Pure
2. The Ancient Law
3. I Am Forever
4. In Offering On Spite
5. Pushing Through The Pass
6. Poisoned Promise Land
7. Ash Is Falling Rain
8. The End Of The Hour
9. As Sanities Split
10. Engulfing The Pure
