A new album release from Ended delivers a blend of classic metal approaches that incorporate thrashing, melodic, and even vast undertones that all come together to build this atmosphere that you end up falling right into, and as the album unfolds you begin to get the feeling that this is a concept record as songs tend to interconnect in different ways.
The Into the Nothing LP has this driving tonality and sonic, thunderous waves of heaviness that come in and out so, the record has the sense almost of being alive and breathing in a way and this is something that makes it unique along with the fact that these are true to heart metal bangers that have layers to them, intricate sections, and upon listening to the record you can tell that there was a lot of attention to detail during its creation.
I love metal records or even just heavy rock records that have stories behind them and the lyrics here have a lot to give in terms of that. They can be descriptive, and detailed, they can be emotionally driven, but either way, you're getting something that is genuine so the whole record comes across as very authentic because of this.
The guitar tones alone are amazing and that in itself brings out that sort of classic metal aesthetic in a way along with incredibly memorable riffs, and even though a lot of these have that amazing precision in their delivery, they still have soul and passion in the performance.
The same goes for just about every element of this band though. The drumming is ridiculous and super tight but still gives that liveliness and electric energy so that the songs have a major punch to them while remaining in the pocket and providing heavy grooves, there are still lots of sections that you point to the speakers as the drum fill follows the riff for example.
The vocals are belting and melodic but have this power to them and a lot of this makes me think of a sort of arena rock band and that's what these guys are in a particular way. They have an anthemic and powerful element to their songwriting that leaves a mark.
One of the best things about this record is the crazy energy that they deliver because it feels almost like sections of the songs were recorded live on the floor so that the players could feed off of each other the whole time and this is part of what gives it that impact.
The whole thing definitely makes you want to see them live because if this kind of energy was captured on record this world and seeing them live must be a real face-melter.
The other thing is just the extent of how big this album is. When I was a kid, I would hear a song on the radio or read about a band in a magazine, and then eventually go by the album that the single was on.
This became a ritual because grabbing the album was like an experience. Listening to a full record opened things up much more.
This album gives me the same feeling when I listen to it. A full album with layers and a massive experience with tons of tons of hard-hitting, melodic, and expansive metal.
They're more than a few surprises around the corners of this record and I feel like true metal fans are going to dive right into this one and love every second of it.
You can easily tell that this is done by a group of guys that have a true love for their craft and when I say that I don't just mean playing their instruments or singing. I mean writing songs together that have an impact.
After listening to this album, I am certainly going to be paying a lot more attention to Ended and I would suggest that you listen to this record as a whole, from beginning to end.
If you listen to one or two tracks you may get a little bit of a gist of what it has to offer but it doesn't give you the full spectrum of what the whole album gives you.
Trust me, you want that experience especially if you love metal.
Check this out, turn it up, and remember where you heard it first.
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