The Hours That Remain

by

Mercenary

Edit

Mercenary have been around for quite some time frollicking around the melodeath scene(In Flames, Dark Tranquillity et el?), and with 11 dreams they had shown promise with a polished sound even though it had been weakenned somewhat by overboarding keyboards and a bunch of the same keyed choruses. Overall 11 dreams laid the groundwork for mercenary driving them into the limelight for a change. Now at hand with a new bass player/singer, lead singer Kral and the gang plow into new territory with The Horus tha Remain and follow in more of a progressive sound with complimenting thrash elements. Wonderful standouts are "lost Reality", "Soul Decision" which make excellent simplistic compositions but dont falter on the line of being ot catchy. Both guitarists sunchronize well with one another with blazing melodies creating an epic mountain climbing journey that makes your blood pump. Still on this opus are some of the same keyed choruses but instead of being to noticable...the keybaords dont make poppy chops, they only create an ambient texture. The album opener "Redifine me" reminds listeners of Mercenarys noticable sound..but any other notions soon fade away. Look deep into numbers such as "Eternal Instant" and find galloping muted riffs, and "Obscure Indiscretion" for a breakdown and solo area where another world opens up..these musicians are out for blood. The albums closer being the title track is in my opinion the best track whic sums up every element of the new album and doesnt give either musician more then their fair share. as an Elitist, and an artist myself I enjoy groups which blend genres into one..but for those who arent as openminded, you may talk trash about a group who could put you in your place...enjoy this album its worth every penny

I loved 11 Dreams. Well...I loved enough songs to buy it and enjoy it....and go back to it from time to time. Mercenry have a really fresh take on melodic death. They are, like others describe, a blend of Soilwork, COB, and Into Eternity...only they really have a unique take. They don't sound too copy cat like other bands.

Anyway...this new release is top notch production and great musicianship, but after a while, I am left feeling flat. Every song pretty much resembles every other one. If you listen to 1 or 2 songs, then you're like WHOA!...but if you like to listen to CD's all the way through or repeat listens, this CD loses something.

The clean vocals are very good. They are my favorite part along with the piano. My complaint is that the tempo of their songs are all the same...mid tempo. It might be nicer to see them slow things up, or get nastier...give the listener something unexpected.

All in all, I love the CD...it just feels like these guys have TONS of potential, but are just staying with what they know best. I would give this a 3.5 if I could...but I'm not quite at the 4 star range.