| Written by Alex Stojanovic TRACK LISTING The Hardest Part Is Losing You Got It Anthem Children Of The Night Hearts Collide I Don't Get It The Broken So Long, Farewell, Goodbye High Road One Step Closer To You Forgiven Release Date: September 1, 2023 Label: Frontiers Music srl Website: www.eclipsemerch.com www.facebook.com/EclipseSweden |  |
ECLIPSE IS:
Erik Martensson - Lead vocals & guitars / Magnus Henriksson - Lead guitars & backing vocals
Victor Crusner - Bass & backing vocals / Philip Crusner - Drums
Erik Martensson - Lead vocals & guitars / Magnus Henriksson - Lead guitars & backing vocals
Victor Crusner - Bass & backing vocals / Philip Crusner - Drums
For a good five years now, Eclipse have been one of my main go-to melodic hard rock bands. Anytime I'm craving some tasty riffs, captivating hooks and overall astounding melodies, they never let me down. They've been very consistent with their releases over the last decade, with a new album being released every two years. Erik Martensson is a riff machine, staying busy with writing songs for Eclipse, Nordic Union, W.E.T. and several other projects. Since Bleed & Scream, Eclipse have carved out a sound and formula that they've stuck with since then. Of all the albums that have come out since then, Paradigm (2019) would have to be their most consistent from top to bottom.
As we sit here in 2023, the band have released their ninth studio album Megalomanium. When comparing this one to the previous efforts, it's exactly what you would expect from them. This time however, I felt that aside from a handful of tracks, this one isn't as consistent as the previous albums. Of the 11 songs, only 4 seem to be standouts, like "Children Of The Night", "Hearts Collide", "So Long, Farewell, Goodbye" and "One Step Closer To You". The band have claimed Megalomanium to be their most ambitious album to date, but to me, it doesn't sound any different from the previous five albums. It honestly feels like another rehashing of Armageddonize, Monumentum, Paradigm and Wired.
I felt that "The Hardest Part Is Losing You" should've switched places with "Hearts Collide" as the opener because the latter has the bigger hook, and the opening track's duty is to pull you in immediately. I know it's all subjective, but this is how I'm feeling from my perspective. Bottom line is that Erik Martensson and Magnus Henriksson are master songwriters as they've got such an ear for melody, but I didn't exactly find this album to be as strong as the previous ones. Each album since Bleed & Scream has also had the same production quality, and the same goes for pretty much every other album that Erik has been involved in since then with Nordic Union, W.E.T. and others. It's the same direction and same tones, it can get predictable after a while. Erik, if you're reading this, there's no need to change direction, but maybe switch up the tones on the next one!
As we sit here in 2023, the band have released their ninth studio album Megalomanium. When comparing this one to the previous efforts, it's exactly what you would expect from them. This time however, I felt that aside from a handful of tracks, this one isn't as consistent as the previous albums. Of the 11 songs, only 4 seem to be standouts, like "Children Of The Night", "Hearts Collide", "So Long, Farewell, Goodbye" and "One Step Closer To You". The band have claimed Megalomanium to be their most ambitious album to date, but to me, it doesn't sound any different from the previous five albums. It honestly feels like another rehashing of Armageddonize, Monumentum, Paradigm and Wired.
I felt that "The Hardest Part Is Losing You" should've switched places with "Hearts Collide" as the opener because the latter has the bigger hook, and the opening track's duty is to pull you in immediately. I know it's all subjective, but this is how I'm feeling from my perspective. Bottom line is that Erik Martensson and Magnus Henriksson are master songwriters as they've got such an ear for melody, but I didn't exactly find this album to be as strong as the previous ones. Each album since Bleed & Scream has also had the same production quality, and the same goes for pretty much every other album that Erik has been involved in since then with Nordic Union, W.E.T. and others. It's the same direction and same tones, it can get predictable after a while. Erik, if you're reading this, there's no need to change direction, but maybe switch up the tones on the next one!
FINAL RATING
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