__________.____ ______________________________ .__ _______ ________ \______ \ | \_ _____/\_ _____/\______ \ |__|\ \ / _____/ | | _/ | | __)_ | __)_ | | \| |/ | \/ \ ___ | | \ |___ | \ | \ | ` \ / | \ \_\ \ |______ /_______ \/_______ //_______ //_______ /__\____|__ /\______ / \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ artist: Aversed title: Erasure of Color year: 2025 genre: Death Metal type: Album label: M-Theory Audio language: English rel. date: 2025-03-20 source: WEB/MP3 quality: CBR 320kbps / 44.1 kHz / Full Stereo runtime: 00:39:45 size: 95.56 MB rip date: 2025-03-20 source url: http://deezer.com/album/694130321 tracklist: 1. To Cover Up the Sky 4:26 2. Cross to Bear 4:04 3. Lucid Decapitation 5:17 4. Inexorable 5:13 5. Burn 3:46 6. Solitary 5:42 7. Erasure of Color 4:19 8. Yearning 1:29 9. Departures 5:29 release notes: Melodeath is an old, reliable friend for many a metalhead. Ever since the In Flames and Arch Enemies of the World took an anthemic and accessible version of the Gothenburg sound to the masses throughout the Æ90s and Æ00s, countless acts and other regional sounds have emerged from rollicking riff and less-than-deathly vocal inclusions. But combined with the right personal flairùa modern melding of blackened, jazzned, and altned influences much like contemporary wildcards Dawn of Ouroboros or Vinterseaùmelodic extreme metal forms have a growing presence in the hands of those who came of age with this musical history as their guide. Imitation breeds iteration, and, combined with adoration, the heart hopes to find a path alongside its infatuations, not just in shadow. Aversed walks the walk and Erasure of Color talks the talk. As yet another product of a Berklee pedigree, in part, the Massachusetts-hailing Aversed displays a technical polish across their languished and rifftacular displays that saturates Erasure of Color far beyond mere hero worship. Rather than use these exemplary qualifications to noodle and sweep songs to oblivion, guitarist and primary songwriter Sungwoo Jeong runs with his talents through a gamut of heavy metal influences, from the Jeff Loomis-indebted (Nevermore, ex-Arch Enemy) squeals and scale runs (ôLucid Decapitation,ö ôBurnö) to a classic heavy metal strum and wail (ôDeparturesö) that shade the languid messages sewn through Erasure. Of course, Jeong can shred and does so in flashes of neoclassical brilliance once cutthroat chords and rattling bass runs build tension enough to will an electric clearing (ôCross to Bearö and ôDepartureö having the wildest solos). Compared to the full-length debut, 2021Æs Impermanent, the structures here are tighter, darker, and loaded with an expedited drama. Emotion comes first, whether at JeongÆs nimble articulations or new vocalist Sarah HartmanÆs vast array of screeching, tearing, and slithering harsh and clean vocal techniques. And through languishing cry, soulful croon, and whammy-kissed solo, Aversed builds a world through Erasure thatÆs as detailed as it is immediate. Churning riffs pave the way for Hartman to unleash laryngeal assaults of growing intensity, equally likely to find feral shrill (ôTo Cover Up the Sky,ö ôLucid Decapitationö) as they are full-chested clean belting (ôInexorable,ö ôDepartureö). It may seem that HartmanÆs ferocious and elegant climbs drive the growth of each of ErasureÆs numbers, but JeongÆs blend of Bj÷rriff to bright metalcore chase, and thrashy groove to swaying treble dive guitar action, carries just as much the energetic arc. Covered in echoing arpeggios (ôLucid Decapitationö), scorching bends (ôBurn,ö ôErasure of Colorö), and unstoppable charges (ôTo Coveràö) Erasure wears a guitar identity thatÆs toothsome and exhilarating. However, as strong as the pull of AversedÆs fervent rhythms and dreamlike melodies are on the best cuts from Erasure, its back half finds a more tepid momentum. ItÆs hard to say where a song like ôSolitaryö belongs on an album like this as its ballad-like nature neither swells with grandiosity of similar closer ôDeparturesö nor slams, at its conclusion, with the level of thuggishness of the preceding ôBurn.ö And with the burst of speed that the title track injects after ôSolitaryö and before the acoustic interlude ôYearning,ö the inherent tempo jostle that succeeds within many tracks feels bumpy at the macro levelùreally, Aversed has an exacting feel for acceleration and easing within the confines of each individual piece. Erasure doesnÆt have a higher-level concept to spin, though, so any dip in quality or overall flowùeven if no song is ever badùis to its slight detriment. Alas, itÆs easy to love the best of what Aversed has to offer with Erasure of Color, its clanging rhythms and finessed guitar weeping sticking readily to memory with its most careful hooks. Finding contemporary touchstones adjacent to the blackened melodic tech of AustraliaÆs Freedom of Fear, the hypnotic whammy abuse of the frenetic Fallujah, and accessible progressive aim of Vintersea, Aversed emboldens the forward-thinking melodeath scene to make an effort to be more riff-driven, more hook-wielding, and more vocally distinct. Erasure of Color does everything but paint Aversed as a one-trick pony. And in time, IÆm certain1 that Aversed, in their impassioned and empathetic lashings, will find even more weaponized and wide-reaching aggression.