t.h.e Sacrament – “The Sobering Cold” (2010)

Label : Independent Release/Fono LTD

Review by Tony Cannella

From Russia, t.h.e. Sacrament play melancholic Gothic Metal. Their independently release debut full-length effort is titled “The Sobering Cold” and it features a good cross section of styles, from the more mournful, Gothic inspired melodies to surprisingly up-tempo, melodic music. The 1-minute “Intro” kicks off “The Sobering Cold” in a spooky way, with eerie music it definitely sets the right atmosphere for the first full track “Falling Star”. This song is a good opener and a track that really grabs your attention and holds it. “Burning to Ashes” continues in a similar vein as the previous number. This is faster paced track which also features some pretty crunchy guitar and the obligatory death grunts are also present on this one. The death grunts do make an appearance here and there but they are held to a minimum, but when they are used, they are done quite well. The thing that really stood out for me concerning t.h.e. Sacrament were the vocals of LoraSS.Her voice has a strength, passion and beauty to it that fits right in there with the music and really gels well with the other talented musicians who complete this band. The next track “New Life” quickly became one of my favorites with it’s great, catchy opening guitar riff and infectious melody, this would make a great single/video track. Other highlights include: “Fall Asleep”, “I’ve Got Only One Day”, “Cover Me” and “Little Kingdom”. “The Sobering Cold” contains 12-songs and 49-minutes worth of high quality power/Gothic Metal that should take this Russian band to the upper echelon of the genre. The music of t.h.e. Sacrament is quite beautiful at times whilst still being forceful and aggressive at others, a pretty good combination and a damn cool debut.

Rating – 89/100

Tracklist

1. Intro
2. Falling Star
3. Burn to Ashes
4. New Life
5. Fall Asleep
6. Melancholy
7. I’ve Got Only One Day
8. Name Me
9. Light of Illusions
10. Cover Me
11. Welcome
12. The Little Kingdom

Line Up

• LoraSS – Vocals
• Vlad – Guitar
• OM – Guitar
• Still – Bass
• Maestro – Drums

Links

MySpace * Site