I don't recall if I had a headache before I started listening this album or I caught him during the listening. For sure I had a headache after listening the album. Can this be a good sign in any way? HELL NO! It's been a while since the last time I had the chance to listen such an overloaded album that simply has NOTHING to say. This has to be the definition of going nowhere...
Blind Stare comes from Finland and unfortunately for my nerve system their music has nothing to do with gothic metal that happens to be so trendy the last years in this country. They have released so far a couple of demos and now it's the time to torment another editor (me) with their debut album. In Symphony Of Delusions the band plays a mixture of melodic metal with melodeath influences and epic themes. In
case you don't believe me just ask their label, the previous phrase is pretty much taken from the bio included in the promo. If you are searching for a simpler explanation I have one for you. They play a mixture of melodic death metal a la Children Of Bodom but with emphasis on the symphonic elements. OK let's make it even simpler: they play melodic power metal with death metal vocals and symphonic elements (unless you believe that Children Of Bodom play brutal and extreme death metal).
But what works for Children Of Bodom in a really cool way (apart having a guitar virtuoso like Laiho) doesn't work at all for Blind Stare. Their technical meets symphonic meets death' metal needs a lot more work in order to sound cohesive enough, this is a serious problem in Symphony of Delusions since most tracks sound like a forced stitching of riffs, solos and melodic passes. Indeed there are some good moments like Central Theory or Shotgun Symphony but most of the time its hard to keep track of what's going on. As an outcome to this is the inability of the listener to actually recall a song moments after listening it!
The production is very good and there is no doubt that the members of the band are good musicians on a technical level. However only a technical aspect does not define good music. Blind Stare has a lot of road ahead. In my opinion they have what it takes to reach higher ground, but until then...