Band:	Enthrope
Album:	Tomorrow's Dead Days
Style:	Melodic death metal
Release date:	June 2010

01. Cloud Six
02. The Last Lunation
03. Moon Chains Descent
04. Illumination Paradox
05. Enemy Within
06. End It All
07. Dead Sun Fragment
08. The Desolate
09. Stars Of Nhagrad

Melodic death metal is an exhausted genre which had very limited means of expression in the first place. But since it sold so well to adolescent metal fans with low expectations, it flourished on the barren soil of its narrow repertoire. Once in a while a promising band emerges, shines for a while and vanishes into the sea of mediocrity also called mainstream musical business, never to be heard again.

I sincerely hope that Enthrope will not share the fate of hundreds of bands before them. While not strictly a melodeath band, they do have enough distinguishing features of the genre that allow one to categorise them as such. Atmospheric melodic death metal with a dark progressive edge - how does that sound? Not too good, I agree. Fortunately, Enthrope's music sounds much much better. Rarely do we get a debut album from an obscure band that has such a fantastic, powerful and juicy sound. It feels like the music wants to tear itself out of the speakers and land on my head. Thundering bass drums, razor sharp and crystal clear guitars, deep bass guitar, keyboards - everything perfectly balanced.

The most beautiful thing is that the music itself is at least as excellent as its production, or even better. Mostly mid-tempo, with beautiful, relaxed guitar solos and catchy, memorable riffs. Occasional ethereal female vocals (especially in "The Desolate", where they play a major part) wonderfully complement male vocals, which range from deep growls to some clean singing. Every song is a separate story and, unlike most metal albums nowadays, every one of them is memorable and unique - lushly arranged, exquisite and elegant. Such rich and ripe compositions usually are the work of very experienced musicians, and, reading Enthrope's lineup I see that this is the case. Some of the members have been around since the mid-nineties.

I heard this album in 2011. If I listened to it when it was out, in 2010, it'd be the debut of the year for me. If you have an open mind for music that will challenge you, or if you want a slightly different take on a well know topic, give Enthrope a try. I can't imagine you could regret it.