Review of Graceless - Shadowlands

Holland’s Graceless are a new act, but feature a number of veterans from the Dutch scene from the likes of the excellent Nailgun Massacre and Soulburn, Master and Grand Supreme Bloodcourt. And the end result is what you’d expect from a collaboration of those folks.

If you enjoy any of these band members other projects you will dig this. It’s a mid paced , groovy doom death affair with oodles of thunderous, trundling riffs that imbue a little Bolt Thrower in the overall pacing, but has a distinct sharper, Dutch guitar tone.

The 9 songs are simple but effective. They are riff driven with a few solos, but the pace rarely get over a steady rumble (i.e. “Legions of the Fallen”, “Heroin Filled Veins”, “Die on Demand”). All 9 songs are damn solid but a couple of standouts like the album’s longest cut “When the Last Light Fades”, “We Will be Gods” and “Iron Tears” have the most memorable riffs and solos, and even some moody atmospherics. The vocals are pretty standard deep bellows, not too intelligible but full of menace and power.

Fans of Temple of Void, Humiliation, Goldepyre, Jungle Rot, Asphyx, Sinister and others should take note as this is no frills, chug-fest full of great, heavy riffs  to bang your head to. Also, new comer Raw Skullz Records is starting to make some noise as a solid old school death metal label, and will one to watch as they continue to develop the roster with bands like this.