Eyes of Fire
Ashes To Embers

March 2004
Released: 2004, Century Media
Rating: 4.0/5
Reviewer: Lord of the Wasteland

Well, now this is interesting. Eyes of Fire is a new band from California who blend emo with death, prog and even hardcore. To say the band’s first full-length CD, ASHES TO EMBERS, is a unique listening experience is an understatement.



The CD opens with “The End Result of Falling…,” a seven-and-a-half minute track close to where Tiamat is at today, blending a sad clean vocal, keyboards and a simple beat. That is followed by "Empty," a heavy track whose vocal I can best describe as if Dicky Barrett from The Mighty Mighty Bosstones suddenly changed over to a death metal vocalist! The clean and death vocals of Dan Kaufman and Matt Fisher are mixed throughout this CD and suit the songs perfectly. “Hopeless” is perhaps the best example of this. The song is slower but the vocal trade-offs and echoing guitar riff compliment the track. “Down” and “Anyone” are slower, moody songs with catchy choruses that don’t forsake heaviness. “Breath” is like a Pink Floyd track with an ethereal style for the first half of the nearly seven minute song, then breaking into a heavy riff and more vocal trade-offs for the second half.



Eyes of Fire is very hard to classify, as their songs go from one end of the spectrum to another. Just when you think you know where they are going, the band takes a 180 degree turn in another direction. ASHES TO EMBERS will appeal to many people, from the hardcore crowd to the prog-metallers, to a more traditional death metal fan. There really is something for everyone here.



KILLER KUTS: “Hopeless,” “Anyone,” “Breath”