Right from the start, this album gives off a rather unfortunate American metal-core feel, sort of in the vein of Darkest Hour or As I Lay Dying. Granted, I do like some of the bands in this style, with the previously mentioned in that small group I like, but it is a very touchy style of music to play when embedded into the metal world, where bands like that are frowned upon by the metal elite. But By Night pull off a convincing album with their full length debut. Nothing spectacular, mind you, but still good for what it is.

The biggest reasoning for the metal-core feel is the vocals. When I first heard the vocalist, I had to do a double-take to make sure I had the right album playing. I did. There are the full-band chants here and there, just like with metal-core. Actually, the vocalist does lone-chants. But, the vocals are actually not that bad. Yes, they are the coarse screams, but they work. The start-stop riffs are there. The attempt at being technical is there. Among all the clichés, though, melody and beauty sneak their way through. They really give the album texture, and that’s the reason this album isn’t bad. It does flow well, though. And there are good songs on here, namely “One and the Same,” “Unseen Oppression” and “Completed.” Plus, there is an instrumental, “At the End of the Day,” that is very good, and is a great departure before the fantastic closer “Dead or Confused,” which is also a really good song and their best attempt at being technical. It’s the other songs that hurt the album. They are just too ‘core sounding to be really good for a metal album. As I said, there are good metal-core bands out there, they’re just hard to find. The musicianship is good. Seems like they slip here and there, but they got their thing down, and I believe they’ll create an album that is better than this.

So, in the end, if you’re a metal-core fan, you’ll like this. You’ll definitely like this. If you’re an elitist, STAY AWAY!!! If you’re a casual fan, listen and decide for yourself. If you’re like me, it’ll get it’s random spin here and there, because even the so-so album has it’s day in the limelight sometimes.

[This review was first published on the now defunct scandinavianmetal.info webzine]