This is album number thirteen for these Prog metal pioneers that have been around since ’82, pre-dating Dream Theater, even though their early material was influenced by NWOBHM.
The Destination Onward opens up the album with a nice atmospheric opening before the main song kicks in with a killer low end riff and groove, the solo is killer. I also love the harmonies and the main hook. A very busy riff and double kicks greet the listener to Shuttered World, showing the band at their most metallic. That’s not to say the melody has been forsaken, quite the contrary as Roy Alder’s voice is a pure joy and the main hook is awesome. Alone We Walk is just superb. The laid back intro with the quiet chugga riff underneath is just beautiful as we build into the main song with blasts from monster drummer, Bobby Jarzombeck.
Now Comes The Rain is a much lighter mid-tempo track driven by the solid bass of Joey Vera, it’s all about the hook and the chorus. Next is The Way Home, which is over eight minutes of power ballad! Not the biggest fan of the ballad, and this is way too long. Under The Sun follows and the slow vibe continues as this is primarily an acoustic piece. Scars was released as a single prior to the album’s release, it’s a fairly straight forward Prog metal groove. Nice 90’s style post rock intro to Begin Again, and this is all about the groove and Mr. Jarzombeck on the pots and pans. I love the electronic vibes at the intro to When The Snow Falls, it reminds me a bit of OSI Jim Matheos’s extra curricular activity, and the solo is wonderful. Liar sees a return to the metallic sounds with a huge fat sounding riff, and a very snappy beat.
Over to the final side we go with Glass Houses. The opening drum solo is killer and Bobby is becoming the star of the show. The Longest Shadow Of The Day follows, and it is my favourite track on the album. Could this be the best piece that Fates have ever done? It has a stunning intro with delicate chord shapes and progressions from bass and guitar, until the listener is drawn in to the heavy grooves laid down by Mr. Jarzombeck. The track is a monstrous beast of a tune, coming it at over eleven minutes it is a feast for the ears that traverses all the styles from prog to jazz and all points in between. The album closes out with, ironically, The Last Song an acoustic driven piece that looks back and reflects on life.
This album is a bit long, they maybe should have dumped the power ballad, but it’s still a great record nonetheless.
9/10 from The Grooveman.
