It really says something that while Elvenking were never a first-rate band, I now approach any release of theirs with extreme caution. Ever since the abortion of The Scythe proved that this outfit has no real moral center and will record anything for a buck, the name Elvenking has meant: Beware. Red Silent Tides was an improvement in every way, but really, anything would have been better than The Scythe.
This album shows flashes of not sucking, with some real riffs, a nice bit of folk influence, and guest vocals from Jon Oliva on "I Am The Monster". But this band's essential meaninglessness is all over the place, with Damnagoras (now just ‘Damna', which is even stupider) working vocal lines that are so fucking poppy they will make you heave. A lot of the melodies on here are pop melodies as well - some of them are pretty sweet, but they are pop trash nonetheless. This album has a gloss of listenability to it that recalls some shit like A-Ha or Cutting Crew - and in case you have to ask, no, that's not a compliment. Put this band in the pile with bands like Twilightning who think this is a contest to see who can get on VH1.
