"The world breaks everyone and afterward many are strong in the broken places." Ernest Hemingway

Pain speaks to us...it lets us know we feel. Throughout life we all have moments when we hurt and smell the bile of open wounds, and yet when the nerve endings recover their composure and the mind adjusts to scattered shells, the silver linings often shine brighter than they ever did before the rain.

Comebacks are a tough ordeal, but sometimes they're just long overdue. Clawing back into the studio can be a risky move, for you never where that tape may lead and what those microphones might drudge up, but when a band is truly ready, then all the sullied ghosts of the past can't tarnish the solace of where they find themselves today. For LIFE OF AGONY tumult is their namesake, and yet, 11 years since their last studio effort, the New-Yorkers appear to be stronger than before as they find themselves in "A Place Where There's No More Pain".

Time heals...and "A Place Where There's No More Pain" is testimony to that. As the record opens with "Meet My Maker" and "Right This Wrong", there is an immediate sense of energy and revitalisation that washes over the listener as these two riff monsters spread their arms and swallow you into a Hard Rocking, bright-eyed meditation on turmoil.

The record goes on to emanate maturity and finesse throughout its length. By combining the riff-driven attitude and dark sploshes of the legendary "River Runs Red" with the songwriting constitution of their later efforts, LIFE OF AGONY have assembled an accessible, streamlined record that is as balanced as a trapeze artist. The up-tempo STONE TEMPLE PILOTS-esque singles "World Gone Mad" and "A Place Where There's No More Pain" see the band make use of groovy rhythms and clever understated melodies to create catchy yet earnest radio hits, whilst the bleak and Sludgy ALICE IN CHAINS-inspired pounds of flesh that are "Dead Speak Kindly" and "A New Low" see Mina Caputo channel the spirit of Layne Staley (and do so to perfection) to deliver two haunting, albeit strangely sanguine songs.

One of the main elements that certainly stands out the on this record is the songwriting. The tracks are meticulously composed an engage the listener rather than just slip vocals in between riffs. Every track counts, and even as you move deep in to the record you continue to come across gems like poignant "Bag Of Bones" and the almost New-Wave-tinged "Song For The Abused" (one of my favourites from the album).

The production on "A Place Where There's No More Pain" may be a touch over-compressed and light at certain points, but the crystal-clear sound nonetheless provides an enjoyable listening experience; and the band themselves sound full of life and in possession of a compositional fervour that shall by all means give promise to their fans.

Overall - LIFE OF AGONY have thrown their demons into the meat grinder and churned out a record that is introspective without being melodramatic. "A Place Where There's No More Pain" is tight, intimate, and just overall ballsy; it is the sound of a band who seem to be fully aware of where they are and where they belong.