Artist: The Safety Fire
Title: Mouth Of Swords
Genre: Progressive Rock
Release Date: 2nd September 2013
Label: InsideOut Records
Album Review
THE SAFETY FIRE made their debut back in 2012 with 'Grind The Ocean' which was a solid mix of progressive metal and rock that made it feel like DREAM THEATER met GOJIRA. It was impressive collection that made a mark on the music community as it created a sound that was above average. Now a year later, the group has unleashed their second effort- less than two years later- which could spell success or disaster because most albums released in a such a brief span are either experimental successes or bad rehashes, such as the 'Load' and 'Re-load' episodes from METALLICA. From the sound of things, it seems like THE SAFETY FIRE is moving more towards a progressive direction- there is a lot more clean vocal singing on the record which will definitely appeal to the mainstream crowd but sheds a bit away from the metal side (the only track that really includes any “screaming” that gave fans more of an OPETH feel is ‘I Am Time, The Destroyer’). Fortunately, the band tempers heavier tracks like these with lots of soft moments to counter the heavier ones so the progressive elements shine even stronger- the melodic moments contrast much better when met with heavy ones.
Other tracks like ‘Beware The Leopard’ and ‘Old Souls’ pretty much spell out the basic sound for the album. There are a lot of guitar solos, much distortion to the vocals to give it a bit of an echo which adds psychedelic elements to the music, and definitely a jazzy tone to the bass. It is that fine line between rock and metal that few tread so successfully- BETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME is one of the few. THE SAFETY FIRE do it quite well, but as many of the tracks are done in this style it kind of loses its impression. One moment it is slow and melodic and the next a hard rock solo is employed; it’s a great combo, but after hearing four tracks with different riffs but the same pacing, it tends to tire quickly. Thankfully, on previous releases, THE SAFETY FIRE were partial more toward the harsh verse/ clean chorus style so this mix here is still fresh, but if they stop evolving and rest on their laurels with this kind of sound it is going to burn out on fan ears quickly. Still, for now, 'Mouth Of Swords' is a strong effort and will keeps original fans quite happy while attracting quite a few more who like more melodic rock and metal.
Tracklist
01. Mouth of Swords - 5:12
02.Glass Crush - 5:08
03. Yellowism - 5:23
04. Beware The Leopard (Jagwar) - 4:51
05. Red Hatchet - 5:29
06. Wise Hands - 4:07
07. The Ghosts That Wait For Spring - 5:46
08. I Am Time, The Destroyer - 3:29
09. Old Souls - 7:26
Line-up
Sean McWeeney- Vocals
Joaquin Ardiles- Guitar
Derya "Dez" Nagle- Guitar
Lori Peri- Bass
Calvin Smith- Drums
Website
www.facebook.com/thesafetyfire
Cover Picture
Rating
Sound: 7
Music: 7
Total: 7 / 10
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