Band:	Miseration
Album:	Your Demons - Their Angels
Style:	Death metal
Release date:	September 15, 2007
Guest review by:	HBrandr

01. Thrones
02. Perfection Destroyed
03. Seven Are The Sins
04. World Lethality
05. The End Designed
06. Chain-Work Soul
07. Noctivagant
08. Foul Invective
09. Scattering The Few
10. Free From Light, Devoid Of Fire [Japanese bonus]

Lead by multi-talented Christian Älvestam (ex-Scar Symmetry, Torchbearer, The Few Against Many and Solution .45 - among others) and multi-instrumentalist Jani Stefanovic (The Weakening, The Few Against Many, Mehida and Solution .45), Miseration originated in Sweden and graced the world with their debut in late 2007 (Japan, late 2006).

Mammoth-like in sound and production, this album combines elegantly arranged symphonic passages with monstrous and at times 'surreal sounding' vocals, flesh-hacking guitar riffs and tight, precisely executed drumming. The theme of the album deals with inner struggles, as well as religious wars between the forces of light and darkness (depicted on the cd sleeve).

If one decides to only skim through the tracks, you can easily rate this album as a typical 'death metal' record with symphonic glitter glued to it. I however recommend that you give this album a couple of spins before 'pinning' it down as a generic piece of work. Each track offers more then just the straightforward bashing of notes, while not deviating too far from the songs' main structures, saving the album from ending up a failed attempt at playing progressive music (as so many others).

Christian Älvestam delivers a ferocious vocal performance, etching out on tracks such as "Seven Are The Sins", "Noctivagant" and "Chain-Work Soul", only adding his clean vocals as an extra coating. The rhythm work of Jani Stefanovic and Marcus Bertilsson is characteristic of experienced and well-written metal and adds well to the overall sound of the band. Essence Of Sorrow/ Sightless drummer, Rolf Pilve plays his instrument with sheer skill and passion and keeps the rhythmic patterns interesting with some cymbal/ tom-fills now and again.

The songs, each of them under 6 minutes, will keep you hooked - with the occasional 'filler riff' seeping in through the cracks. Followers of extreme music can gain from listening to this album, as well as fans of Scar Symmetry's earlier records. Although I have to mention, this is in no way a clone of Scar Symmetry, as Christian Älvestam's vocals are a trademark of his years experimenting in different bands and not only his recent and more 'commercial' (ex-band) Scar Symmetry's success. With their debut serving as a solid foundation - and their second opus, The Mirroring Shadow, soon to see the light - Miseration is proving to be an unstoppable force.