by Justin Gaines
Staff Writer —
The 6-song EP Whispers of War is the debut release from Ohio-based metal band Age of Distrust. The band plays high speed, high aggression, heavy metal with one foot in the thrash metal sound and the other in the traditional metal domain. Throw in some melodic death metal elements and you’ve got a very interesting overall sound.
It’s hard to peg Age of Distrust’s sound exactly. They’ve got the speed and intensity of modern thrash bands like Warbringer and Havok, but have the kind of melodic focus and sense of power that fans of Iced Earth and Sanctuary will recognize. The vocals are split between a dynamic clean style and a harsher, death metal style brought in for emphasis. The band handles this really well, avoiding the kind of formulaic approach that a lot of modern bands take with that kind of vocal combination.
Whispers of War is a really well put-together collection of songs. The songs are speedy enough to get you banging your head, but there’s enough melody to make sure they stay with you after the disc stops spinning. The musicianship is tight, the vocals are strong, and the production job is surprisingly good for a self-released album. American bands seem to do this kind of power thrash hybrid better than most, and like Imagika, Witches Mark and Fallen Angel, Age of Distrust is one of the more promising bands the scene has to offer.
With just six songs, Whispers of War gives you just enough material to satisfy your curiosity about the band, and definitely leaves you hungry for more from this promising young band. If you’re a fan of the power/thrash sound, and don’t mind (or better yet, prefer) the occasional death metal vocal line, Age of Distrust is well worth checking out. Hopefully they won’t keep us waiting too long for a full-length follow-up to this EP.
Genre: Power Metal / Thrash Metal
Band:
Jacob Davis (g) (v)
Kurt Miller (g) (v)
Matt Harper (v) (b)
Jon Dayton (d)
Track Listing:
1. Retribution
2. Chains of Oppression
3. Age of Distrust
4. Frozen Infinity
5. Execution
6. Trinity
Website: www.myspace.com/ageofdistrust
Hardrock Haven rating: 8.25/10
