FALLEN STARS AND RISING SCARS

This is the debut album from one of the most promising bands I have ever heard of my homeland, Greece. Unfortunately, Wastefall has recently disbanded due to some individual personal reasons. And I say unfortunately because for the Greek metal/prog scene this is an album that created lots of expectations to the fans of the scene and the genre overall. The music balances between modern (even nu- at times) and progressive metal with clear influences, the most distinct being Pain of Salvation. However, in my view, comments like 'POS rip-off' or 'POS copy' don't reflect the rality.

Wastefall's music in FSARS is an interesting mix of melodic and agressive prog metal. The positive with this debut is that it is 'focused' to a certain style; the 'target' is clear. The musicians seem to be highly skilled and the compositions are solid. The vocals, a very strong asset of this record, resemble to those of Daniel Gildenlow but with the addition of the Greek accent (mostly realised at the most 'balladish' parts of the songs). The main strong point is the heavy, distorted sound of the guitars in the vein of Conception and Pain of Salvation.

In terms of 'musical quality' the album can be divided in 3 sections, with the first and last being at a decent level and the middle part being rather weak. Impressingly, the agressive songs seem to fit the band better than their efforts in 'smoothening' their sound. The keyboards, wherever used, and the limited female vocals seem to work very well. The opening track (one of the highlights) sums up quite nicely what Wastefall's sound mostly represents - heavy agressive couples and melodic refrains - and gives you an idea of what is about to follow. In the following tracks I identified influences ranging from Iced Earth (Like father Like None) to Anathema (Confession). The only track that does not really relate with the album's sound is the closing electronica-based, trip-hop-alike One with the Fall.

To the negative points, I thought that the production (though not bad) could be better, especially the sound of drums. The resemblance to PoS certainly creates an 'originality issue' and the Greek accent is another small con. The singer's voice in general is ideal for prog metal and the compositions are well-worked and presented. The heaviness is there and is possibly the best aspect of this solid debut.

Recommended for fans of PoS and, possibly, Psychotic Waltz and modern prog metal listeners. Killing of Wolves, Like Father Like None, Subroutine and That Was All About are probably the best examples.

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