The challenge faced by any band in the business of Melodic Death Metal is that the vocals are typically very difficult to create a tune with. For BLOODSHOT DAWN it's as easy as 123, ABC, or something.

Mostly, anyway.

Their newest album "Demons" is an eight-track-long journey, which upon finishing feels like you've been dragged through a (surprisingly comfortable) thorn bush. It's hard, fast and unrelenting, and for fans of the genre that is exactly what is wanted.

The opening track "Smoke And Mirrors" immediately introduces the band, as it is perhaps the most melodic song of the album. The band mainly achieve their vocal melodies with the help of harmonies, which works considerably well for the most part. Exceptions to this would be in the two of my least favourite tracks, "Black Hole Infinity" and "Human Void" which are also the two least melodic of the album. The latter contains some of the harshest vocals as well, albeit with some discernible lyrics. Each is still a decent song, but the band's strength is their ability to mix Death Metal with tuneful music so it's slightly annoying when they don't do this.

In contrast, the two strongest songs are arguably "Unified"-which fades in and contains some whirlwind drums and a great breakdown near the end with a fantastic bass solo- and "Inadequacy", which moves through some blistering guitar work into a quieter section towards the end. These are good because they are varied and imaginative, making use of melodies and harmonies both.

"Consequence Complex" is a ferocious, no holds-barred assault on the ears that, once again, manages to maintain a melody throughout. It makes for a good second track, but is not quite as unusual as the final titular song "Demons" actually makes use of some thundering drums and a string section for an outro, creating a haunting atmosphere to finish with that fits the Lovecraftian album art.

BLOODSHOT DAWN is another band that, being from the UK, is hard to review without feeling biased. When I want to give an English band a good review I have to stop and wonder if my nationality is indeed affecting my judgment, but in this case it's safe to say that this a talented band who deserve their growing reputation.