Scorpion Child - I Saw The End As It Passed Right Through Me - review
Scorpion Child - I Saw The End As It Passed Right Through Me - review
Tracklist
01. Be The Snake02. Actress
03. Outliers
04. See The Shine
05. The Starker
06. Wired Corpse
07. Godskin
08. Hanging Sun
A review by
AndyMetalFreak February 21, 2025
Despite being partly inspired by 80s rock, Scorpion Child's name doesn't imply a lineage to genre heavyweights Scorpions; instead, their name is actually derived from a song by the English rock band The Cult. The band was originally formed by US duo Aryn Jonathan Black (vocals) and Asa Savage (guitars) back in 2006, but they now perform as a quintet. They've incorporated many forms of rock into their style, including blues, psychedelic and hard rock, alongside elements of traditional heavy metal; many influences can also be heard in their music, from Led Zeppelin, Uriah Heep, and Rainbow, to Thin Lizzy, and Black Sabbath.
The band now return after a lengthy 9-year slumber to introduce their third full-length offering, I Saw The End As It Passed Right Through Me. This latest album mostly draws inspiration from early heavy metal and classic psychedelia, but also features some post-punk, progressive, and gothic rock elements, making this one of their most diverse, and certainly their darkest, offering to date. Although the theme doesn't necessarily follow a conceptual pattern, its lyrics are dark, meaningful, and hard-hitting. This could possibly reflect on what has been quite a troublesome period for frontman Aryn Jonathan Black prior to this release, during which he lost his birth mother and fiancé, as well as being a victim of arson.
I Saw The End As It Passed Right Through Me has a very distinctive style, with each of the 8 songs featured being unlike the next. Although hard rock is still at the band's core, they seem to have shifted to a much bleaker approach than the general lighthearted traditional rock sound of their previous work. On the one hand, catchy choruses, classic rock solos, and exciting traditional-sounding riffs with a punchy guitar tone all still remain, but on the flip side, many new features are brought into their songwriting, such as dark gothic elements and progressive song structures.
These various elements are evident on songs such as "See The Shrine", which from the eerie dark gothic intro builds powerful momentum, ultimately leading to a classic lead guitar break and repeating chorus. "The Starker" is another song that seems to start off slow and gradually progress intensively, ultimately leading to heavier instrumentation, a more upbeat rhythm, and another lead break. The song has quite a striking intro featuring heavy tribal drum beats and wailing Western-tinged guitars, giving an inhospitable Mojave Desert effect. Throwing you off guard some more is "Godskin", which seems to take an unusual Black Sabbath-inspired traditional doom approach, with low-toned bass, heavy mid-tempo riffs, and a classic Iommi-style shredding hard rock solo. Perhaps the biggest surprise, though, comes from "Hanging Sun", a soulful ballad beginning with a soft acoustic intro. Black's vocal performance is solid enough throughout this album, but on this particular song he presents some of his finest vocals yet, in a passionate theatrical storytelling manner that's almost in the vein of Queensrÿche's Geoff Tate.
I Saw The End As It Passed Right Through Me is a solid comeback for Scorpion Child, at least in terms of their overall performance. However, I'm not entirely convinced it's truly great, despite the interesting dark approach. There isn't a song that lacks a shining moment, whether it's a memorable solo, hooky chorus, or powerful build-up, but there also isn't a song that really gives you that memorable wow factor. Because of this, you can't necessarily say they're back in blazing form; however, there is definitely potential down this route for them if they choose to stick with it.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 8 |
| Songwriting: | 7 |
| Originality: | 7 |
| Production: | 7 |
Written on 21.02.2025 by
Written on 21.02.2025 by
An honest review that you don't necessarily have to agree with. Comments
Comments:
3
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 Posts: 7948 |
Posts: 7948
Even though I might have slight info about Scorpion Child, your review convinced me to give it a play considering how you have brilliantly listed the band's elements here. Added to my queue.
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Posts: 6692 Written by Cynic Metalhead on 22.02.2025 at 05:51 I personally found it to be a very solid release and this approach is a good route they've chosen down, but for most listeners I can also see this direction being very hit and miss.
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Posts: 7948 Written by AndyMetalFreak on 22.02.2025 at 11:08 Whenever any band try to make a comeback in heavy metal or hardrock(in this instance), it needs balls to "positioned" and "appealing" to the current metal landscape. You don't tend to get the likes of Judas Priests to come and shake things up and down. You remember Black Sabbath's 13?! Hype and no air. Still going to put them into my queue.
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