Album Review: Beyond The Black - Horizons

Beyond The Black is in that large pack of bands who have shown me some promise, but haven't yet made a record that has stuck with me. I thought their last effort was enjoyable enough, but I'll be honest and tell you I haven't listened to it a single time since it came out. There are a good band, but good isn't enough when there are dozens of new records each and every week to choose from. To get repeated play, which is what it takes to break through in our consciousness, requires something more than that. The singles for this record sounded good, but I still wasn't sure the band has what it takes to move to the next level.

They do give it a valient effort. The thirteen songs on this album aren't doing the same thing over and over again. The band is trying several different sounds and approaches, maybe hoping they find the one that will get them the spotlight. We get the very pop-like "Misery", which is short and direct, as well as more symphonic songs like "Wounded Healer", which has a heavy vibe of last year's Within Temptation album. Maybe for that very reason, I find it a more interesting song, and a better direction for the band to go. I'm not sure they have the stomach to go fully pop, and without it those types of songs aren't going to be their best.

"Some Kind Of Monster" is my favorite track on the album, where they find the right balance between being a rock/metal band and melodic pop purveyors. That hook, of all of them on the record, has a gravitas that stands out from everything else. It's exactly the sort of song that I think has the potential to get them attention among the flood of similar music we keep hearing. It's a great song, full stop.

As more of the album unfolds, and the songs keep the quality level up, I find myself thinking about this album in relation to the recent Delain effort. They are similar albums in that both of them add some more mainstream elements to their melodic/symphonic rock, both have titles that (as written on the cover art) make me shake my head, but only one of them holds my attention. Delain's record was so slick and obvious, it sloughed from my mind as soon as I listened to it. Beyond The Black have surpassed them, with their record staying closer to their roots, but also simply delivering better songs.

If their last album was solid, Beyond The Black has stepped things up this time around. "Horizons" is their best work yet, and a fine addition to the growing list of albums like this bridging the gap between the metal scene and the mainstream. I don't know if it will move them into the next tier of bands like they're hoping, but it's certainly a good enough record to do that. Beyond The Black is still ascending, and that makes them worth watching.