Fallout from the War (CD - 2006)

The Massachusetts metal mavens' seventh release is an almost supernaturally tight set of energized metal riffs, warp-power drumming, and throat-shredding vocals that finds Shadows Fall emerging from the sway of their more thrash-minded peers and setting the controls for the burning heart of prog. "In Effigy" kicks the album off with stunningly effective twin lead guitars and a crushing rhythmic attack, while the ambitious and strangely catchy "December" features singer Brian Fair alternating between tuneful, heavily treated synthesized vocals and his more customary guttural style.

Lead singer/shouter Brian Fair declared Fallout from the War "a companion to The War Within" -- the band's breakout full-length from 2004 -- but it could very well be a way for the Century Media label to get one more taste of the departing band's success as they move on to the Warner-associated Atlantic. Regardless, this is a exciting and pleasingly loose collection of leftovers from the last album, B-sides, and old tracks re-recorded, along with a couple covers including a surprisingly fun take on Dangerous Toys' "Teasn', Pleasn'" with the Toys' own Jason McMaster guesting and taking this normally Metallica- or Pantera-sounding outfit into early Van Halen territory. More in line with their proper albums, mammoth and tight dual-guitar thrashers with Fair roaring on top are in abundance. "Will to Rebuild," "December," and the fantastic "Deadworld" are right there with the band's best, and if it weren't for the casual flow of the album, this wouldn't seem like an odds-and-ends release at all. Actually, it's a great informal introduction to the ferocious and melodic witches' brew Shadows Fall always seems to nail. ~ David Jeffries minimize