Poisonblack back strike back with their second album Lust Stained Despair following their 2003 debut album, Escapexstacy. This time the band sounds more heavy than its predecessor, but it also manages to maintain the lyrical tone in the music and the lyrics too. If you really miss the fucking cool mega band Sentenced (R.I.P.)  - they left really early, that's for sure - then Poisnoblack is definitely your next big sonic love!
There have been many important changes in the line up of the band - with the most important, by far - the change of the singer and his replacement by the main man of the deeply in their sonic grave, Sentenced, Ville Laihiala. Ville has been playing guitar for many years but now he figured out, that he can both handle the vocal and the guitar line, at the same time, a very wise choice indeed if we judge from this album! The lyrics mostly deal with classical Poisonblack themes, such as love, death, despair, desire, lust and all this stuff. There is a heavy metal atmosphere very diffuse here, while the gothic elements of the previous album have been lessened, on purpose I think.
There are also many interesting guitar lead parts throughout this record which make it more enjoyable. In addition you can also find quite a few Metallica, or Sentenced type passages throughout this album, dipped in melancholy anger and despair but in the end the final result is kind of optimistic, in my opinion. The album flows really easily and can be considered as an excellent companion for your dark autumn or pessimistic winter thoughts, and of course our struggle for salvation because everybody seems to need the cure!
The production is really crisp and tight, all due to the mighty Tue Masden's (The Haunted, Heaven Shall Burn, Hateshere) mixing and mastering. The first video for this album is the song Rush and you can also watch it through the band's official web site. The guitar work concerning both the rhythm and the lead parts is really interesting and definitely heavy. The band seems to have its own character even though it has been deeply affected by Sentenced and the Finish scene
Highlights of this album can be considered - amongst the other - the following ones: Nothing Else Remains, Hollow Be My Name, Rush, Soul In Flames and Love Controlled Despair.
If you really dig into Sentenced and you are a fan of the whole Finnish metal - gothic scene I think that this band is one of the next big things for sure, and you must stick to them and support all the guys with true heavy metal lust stained despair.