The Fall of Ideals (CD - 2006)

On its third full-length, the New England metal band All That Remains alternates melodic, almost emo vocals with guttural metal expostulations, creating a veritable metallic yin and yang on tracks like "Whispers (I Hear You)" and "It Dwells in Me," while its rushing, full-on sonic assault reaches a crescendo on the climactic "The Air That I Breathe."

The longer a musical style remains popular, the more bands seem to latch onto its recognizable formula. In the late '90s and early 21st century, the mainstream suddenly decided that heavy metal was back in style again, and welcomed with open arms bands that merged extreme metal (as evidenced by death metal drumming and growled vocal verses), and melodic metal (sweetly sung choruses). And you could say that All That Remains is definitely a supporter of this well-worn style, as evidenced by their third release overall, 2006's The Fall of Ideals (which was produced by a gentleman who is also a champion of the aforementioned sonic approach -- Killswitch Engage's Adam Dutkiewicz). On such tracks as "It Dwells in Me," it turns out that guitarists Mike Martin and Oli Herbert definitely have a thing for Metallica and Iron Maiden, as evidenced by their chug-a-lug riffs, and intricate dual harmony guitar lines and leads. But on tracks such as "Whispers (I Hear Your)," there's just not a lot differentiating All That Remains from the oodles of other metal bands vying for Ozzfest spots circa 2006. ~ Greg Prato minimize