April 16, 2008 | | 3

Thine Eyes Bleed, Thine Eyes Bleed

Canada seems to be the land of technical death/thrash as of late. London, Ontario’s own Thine Eyes Bleed return with their self-titled sophomore effort through The End Records. While still heavily inspired by a strong Swedish influence, this release sees the band imparting their own take on pummeling, technical thrash metal. It’s amazing that the album has a sound as fresh as it does considering that it was recorded well over a year prior to its eventual release.

The Canadian quintet tear through beefy thrash riffs with urgency and ferocity, yet maintain a subtle level of melody that ties it all together. Dueling guitars play off one another, tossing volley after volley of riffs into the air while the rhythm section level the playing field with technical beats and blasts. Vocalist Justin Wolfe shreds vocal chords in a delivery that’s ferocious and laden with just the right amount of vehemence to solidly make his point.

With Burning Breath
The disc opens up with galloping riffs and pounding drums as Wolfe’s vocals kick in. It’s a pretty standard track that has enough oomph to get the blood flowing and prepare you for what’s to come with the rest of the album. Wolfe’s delivery is spot on with a nice range of delivery methods from gruff shouts to higher end screams. There’s a nice lead at the 3:20 mark.

The Dragon
“The Dragon” starts out slowly with some thick bass and wavering riffs before a bit of chaotic drum work joins in. A big scream from Wolfe gets the pace moving along nicely. This one has a much more technical sound than the disc’s opener.

Crimson
Machine gun drumming starts off this next track as chugging riffs and vocals hit hard. There are some pretty beefy screams throughout this one. The tempo shift at the 2:15 mark is a nice change up, especially against the chugging riffs that dominate early on in the album. The song fades out slowly.

Darkwhite
After the quiet end to “Crimson” the band jump out of the gate with this next one. Big riffs and memorable guitar elements accompany a slower vocal delivery from Wolfe. Layered vocals add a nice touch to this one, as well.

Shallow Skin
Man, “Shallow Skin” erupts with crushing drums and spine twisting riffs. Even Wolfe’s delivery is that much more intense. There’s some nice guitar work at the 1:06 mark as the drums are sent into light speed. The lead at the 1:50 mark is sick and makes this song a classic.

Mota Diablo
“Morta Diablo” is mostly acoustic with deep guttural growls coming in the last few seconds of this one.

Truth In Evil
Wolfe changes up this delivery a bit on this one mixing his typical delivery with a more cleanly sung, yet gruff variation. A slower pace dominates this track as backing screams are introduced for the first time. The intensely layered vocals on this one really make for a great dynamic, combining deeply guttural growls with higher end screams and shouts. The track ends quickly with some static and sample noise before shifting into the next song.

The Mouth of Hell
“In Mouth of Hell” opens with a memorable bit of riffing and galloping guitar work. It’s got a more aggressive and urgent feel to it as the band shreds through pummeling drum work and thick riffs. The track ends quickly with moshing riffs.

In Mortal Sin
Some nice drumming starts off this next track as Wolfe releases a huge scream. Galloping riffs dominate with pummeling drums. There’s a bit of a pseudo breakdown at the 1:40 mark that changes up the tempo before another fantastic and lengthy lead comes in.

Revert To Stone
The final track starts off with a nice riff and drum combination before the vocals come in. There are a couple of moments on this track filled with nice tempo changes and beefy riffing. There are some great vocal variations throughout Wolfe’s delivery, especially toward the end of the track. Lots of reverb ends out the album.

~ ~ ~

This wasn’t a bad release for Thine Eyes Bleed. It’s definitely a step up from their debut as it incorporates much more of their own presence throughout, combining galloping Swedish inspired riffing, pummeling drum work and Wolfe’s vocals delivery. If anything a band aims to improve with their sophomore release and that’s exactly what these guys do with their self titled release.

Favorite Tracks:
The Dragon
Darkwhite
Shallow Skin
Truth in Evil
In Mouth of Hell

Additional Notes:
N/A