Conducting From The Grave - Self-Titled

Conducting From The Grave's 2009 debut "When Legends Become Dust" with former vocalist Lou Tanuis is what drew me towards the melodic death metal act but as they progressed forward with touring, showcases and writing and recording for future material so did the band themselves. A year passed with the follow-up 2010's "Revenants" with new vocalist and current placement for good Mikey Powell which would later continue his work with more touring and shows and later lead to latest follow-up release would which be the band's self-titled works. Since the arrival of Mikey Powell the band has lost me so hearing their self-titled release with this vocalist put into effect has the band sounding good but not great as they previously had sounded. The instrumentals are done quite well being aggressive yet progressive at times while the vocals just scream their way through the music - like cutting through a thin slice of cheese you just hear it all mash together. "Lycan", "The Rise", "The Harvest", and "The Calm Before..." bring out what these guys are trying to do on this release - everything is just put into place yet sounding out of place if that makes sense. When it comes down to it this time around yet years later Conducting From The Grave have got the guts to keep the ball rolling but the quality just isn't as great as it once was but it is still good just not good enough.