CHARRED WALLS OF THE DAMNED is an Power/Thrash Metal American super-group of sorts, with ex-members of such bands as SEBASTIAN BACH, OBITUARY, OBSCURA, DEATH, ICED EARTH, and JUDAS PRIEST, to name but a few. They formed in 2009 in New York City. "Creatures Watching Over The Dead" is their third full-length release, and contains nine new tracks. "My Eyes" has a nice lead-in riff that quickly turns dark from a change to a minor key. It's Power Metal-ish, sprinkled with the traditional Classic Metal sound that many of the members had under taken creative work for in previous bands. I can't help but comment that there is not an even flow from verse to chorus in terms of how the sounds connect. It's disconcerting, and I prefer the brightness of the chorus to the minor key in the verses. "The Soulless" however establishes a Thrash Metal sound right out of the gates, but the chorus and high vocals push it back into the Power Metal realm. The connections are tight and polished.

"Afterlife" has a pleasing acoustical entrance leading to a slow song fraught with emotion. Once again however the chorus doesn't connect with the previous sound. As individual song parts they are nice, but just don't seem to fit cohesively into the track overall. Is this intentional? "As I Catch My Breath" is a little more in the Traditional realm, with those bass guitar triplets and wonderful runs reminiscent of the great STEVE HARRIS. In term of structure this song flows effortlessly and is both poignant and heavy. "Reach Into The Light" sounds like the later part of JUDAS PRIEST's inventory, with the super-high vocals and memorable chorus. Time changes this time are to blame for the disconnect, and at this point in the album I have to conclude that these are, indeed, intentional, and core the album overall, to my chagrin. "Tear Me Down" has a familiar but powerful riff, and once again it is the chorus that shines in this track. The melody in "Living In The Shadow Of Yesterday" hits you right up front in the feels. This is the song I was waiting for on the album. Simply wonderful. Here the chords make perfect sense and float above you like a gentle breeze.

Overall I was honestly expecting more. The talent, musicianship and timing is obviously there but the album struggles to push any kind of real cohesiveness or memorability. To put it bluntly, it just isn't something you haven't heard before and does not reach out and grab you with either that Metal power or emotion.