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Within Silence: Return From The Shadows
Within Silence - Return From The Shadows CD Album Review

Within Silence: Return From The Shadows

Melodic/Heavy/Power Metal
3.5/5.0

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Ulterium Records
Review: Craig Hartranft
Added: 25.10.2017

Only two years ago, Slovakia's Within Silence dropped their debut album Gallery Of Life. On the strength of that release, the band was able to perform at festivals across Europe, and also open for Theocracy during their 2016 European tour. Now the young band returns with their second effort, Return From The Shadows.

Within Silence Band Photo

Within Silence

Suffice to say, musically speaking, with Return From The Shadows little has changed for Within Silence. They still compose and perform traditional European power metal. To make matters simple as well as redundant, I recall my comments from the review of Gallery Of Life. "Within Silence's power metal is rather generic, sounding like some twist of Sonata Arctica, Supreme Majesty, and Edguy. Most every song has the galloping power metal pace, a good melody in twin guitar riffs and vocal arrangements, some catchy refrains, and large guitar solos. In other words, it's all the elements you would expect from power metal. You'll hear some piano and synths here and there ... The result is that most of this music is standard stuff, [but] neither new or extraordinary."

Nevertheless, while still common power metal fare, Within Silence attempts to go epic in their presentation. In the center of their album is the massive 17 minute In The Darkness, a large anthem that collapses under its own weight. But the riffs are assertive, the pacing brisk, and the vocal arrangements bold. Then there's the final and title track Return From The Shadows, which may pass as progressive power metal. Again the vocal arrangement is a highlight, but also the beginning acoustic guitar with voice which returns at the midpoint. Throughout the entire album, there's an abundance of strong guitar solos, another constant Within Silence strength. Yet, one still wonders if the band is both progressing and maturing in song composition and presentation. Possibly. But with the abundance of similar power metal bands in the European theater, Within Silence is still just another one.



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The Bottom Line

Suffice to say, musically speaking, with Return From The Shadows little has changed for Within Silence. They still compose and perform traditional European power metal. You've heard this before.

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