Enshroud "Mortal" Album Review

  A band shrouded in Mystery and somewhat an enigma within the Irish Metal Scene  following on from their excellent debut album Darkness Grips Us All Enshroud have been working dilligently in the background on their absolutely mind blowing new album Mortal ,the wait for this has been more than worth it, this ticks all the right boxes for a modern classic, also there's a real life story behind this release ,a concept straight from the heart that will grip your attention from beginning to end,lets get into this epic offering.

 We're treated to the relentless Dust To Dust ,the emotion throughout this will give you an idea of what's in store on the rest of the album setting the tone perfectly, the crushing grooves of Frailty are another indiciation of how this band can mix the heaviness with emotionally charged passages ,there's a little interlude half way through that builds the emotional atmosphere to another level,at times it almost feels like all the energy and will drains from the body.

  When you think there's some respite from the emotionally charged elements it only serves to get progressively more so with the absolutely sublime A Fate For No One this really pulls at the heartstrings and leaves nothing left unturned, it's amazing how they can convey these sort of feelings through the music alone and then those soaring vocals just grip like a vice and don't let go, the relentlessness of  Infestation potrays alot of anger combiined with the already emotional atmosphere within this release, War Within hints at some sort of inner struggle to accept the consequences of what's happening ,once again this really delivers some thought provoking feelings and drags you further along this emotional rollercoaster, things begin to get even more emotionally charged on the passionate and soaring Safe In Forever it almost feels like there's an acceptance that you're going to loss something and are resigned to the inevitable end but at the same time there's an anger that refuses to let go.

The inpending horrors become a little more obvious the further into this offering ,this is abundantly clear on Decay,although not as pacey as previous tracks this has a level of darkness that really hits like a tonne of bricks emotionally,like the going through all the pain and suffering you've had to endure from a terminal illness, that inevitable end comes in the form of the beautifully tragic Fallen Time this is were the emotions escalate to the a plateau so high you can't even comprehend the hurt and loss that's about to take hold of you,it's like you're going tthrough some sort of nothingness that leaves you feeling so numb and empty.

  When i first heard that Enshroud were going to be releasing a second album to say i was excited was an understatement but nothing prepared me for the magnitude of feelings and emotions running throughout this release,at times i found it hard to get through the album without feeling some sort of emotion or attachment to the overall theme within this album, it's hard to fathom how magnificently the band conveyed the feelings and emotions throughout the writing process of this album and the whole album itself, this is definitely one of the best releases within the Irish scene this year,an absolute tour de force of  an album.

 RATING: 10/10

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