Better produced, more diverse and more atmospheric, Reflections return after the loss of a guitarist with their strongest effort to date.
I never understood the hype for Reflections. There were a few songs off their previous album, "Exi(s)t", which I found quite good but the majority of it just seemed like deathcore with some fancy guitar wankery dotted around from time to time. However, when I heard they had a new album coming out I decided to give them another shot, and so I gave the first single, "Actias Luna" a listen.
I was pleasantly surprised when I heard this song. It sounded fairly similar to Northlane when Adrian Fitipaldes was still the singer, but the clean vocals in the chorus were a lot stronger. Throughout this album it's clear that the vocals are a definite highlight. Vocalist Jake Wolf went through some traumatic experiences prior to this album being released, struggling with addiction as well as the loss of a close friend, and he channels every ounce of emotion into his vocal performance on this record, making for a very diverse vocal range. Whilst the lyrics may be far from the best lyrics ever written, the amount of passion behind the vocals is enough to compensate for this.
For those who were worried that this would simply be a Northlane rip-off album based on "Actias Luna", listening to the entire record proves otherwise. Reflections have added a fair amount of diversity to this record, ranging from rage-filled riff monsters ("Shadow Self") to atmospheric songs like "Actias Luna", as well as hints of black metal ("Pseudo" and "Amulet") and songs that will remind long-time fans of this band of their previous two albums ("Limbo"). Despite the loss of a guitarist, Reflections have still proven themselves to be very competent musicians. The drummer provides a lot of impressive fills throughout the record, the remaining guitarist provides the album with tasteful riffs and the bassist (trust me, he is there), provides the necessary undertone.
The Color Clear does a lot of things very well, and the improved production makes it an overall more enjoyable listen than its predecessors. Whilst I feel the bass could have been a little louder in the mix, the improvement this band has made makes up for it. Some people may find some songs more or less appealing than others given the deviations in style throughout, but overall this doesn't interrupt the album's flow too much. Overall I am both impressed and surprised that Reflections have put out such a good album. It's certainly not an album to be missed, by both old and new fans alike.
I never understood the hype for Reflections. There were a few songs off their previous album, "Exi(s)t", which I found quite good but the majority of it just seemed like deathcore with some fancy guitar wankery dotted around from time to time. However, when I heard they had a new album coming out I decided to give them another shot, and so I gave the first single, "Actias Luna" a listen.
I was pleasantly surprised when I heard this song. It sounded fairly similar to Northlane when Adrian Fitipaldes was still the singer, but the clean vocals in the chorus were a lot stronger. Throughout this album it's clear that the vocals are a definite highlight. Vocalist Jake Wolf went through some traumatic experiences prior to this album being released, struggling with addiction as well as the loss of a close friend, and he channels every ounce of emotion into his vocal performance on this record, making for a very diverse vocal range. Whilst the lyrics may be far from the best lyrics ever written, the amount of passion behind the vocals is enough to compensate for this.
For those who were worried that this would simply be a Northlane rip-off album based on "Actias Luna", listening to the entire record proves otherwise. Reflections have added a fair amount of diversity to this record, ranging from rage-filled riff monsters ("Shadow Self") to atmospheric songs like "Actias Luna", as well as hints of black metal ("Pseudo" and "Amulet") and songs that will remind long-time fans of this band of their previous two albums ("Limbo"). Despite the loss of a guitarist, Reflections have still proven themselves to be very competent musicians. The drummer provides a lot of impressive fills throughout the record, the remaining guitarist provides the album with tasteful riffs and the bassist (trust me, he is there), provides the necessary undertone.
The Color Clear does a lot of things very well, and the improved production makes it an overall more enjoyable listen than its predecessors. Whilst I feel the bass could have been a little louder in the mix, the improvement this band has made makes up for it. Some people may find some songs more or less appealing than others given the deviations in style throughout, but overall this doesn't interrupt the album's flow too much. Overall I am both impressed and surprised that Reflections have put out such a good album. It's certainly not an album to be missed, by both old and new fans alike.