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Beyond the Sixth Seal > The Resurrection of Everything Tough > Reviews
Beyond the Sixth Seal - The Resurrection of Everything Tough

Refreshing, Unexpected. - 79%

sleep_phantom, October 14th, 2020
Written based on this version: 2007, CD, Metal Blade Records

This is the second album I've heard from Beyond the Sixth Seal I chose to listen to Earth and Sphere first, and sort of ignored this one expecting it to sound the same. I picked this up through the mail and it is certainly an improvement if you like melodic death metal with rock roots.

The guitar is more focused and would be a delight to any guitarist to play along with, all the riffs are complex enough to please, only really simplifying in track 4 Revelry which is still a very memorable song. A couple of the tracks kind of sound like they're built off the same riff of individually plucked strings and blend together in my memory. And I'm not really sure what the purpose of the instrumental tracks are? It sounds like they're having fun but I would have preferred just 1 more great song instead of these 2 average instrumentals that break up the pacing.

The vocals are also more controlled and he grunts out the words with exertion. There's a soothing rolling feeling to his voice and it exemplifies the music perfectly. It's truly the highlight of the band, they sound gruff and even includes a weird trilling section in the form of a metal growl it's animalistic and part of what makes this band memorable. They're not afraid to get silly with it and have some fun. Like the bonus track on Earth and Sphere where the lyrics are literally talking about the sounds animals make. The art work portrays a werewolf and it pertains to some of the lyrics which sadly only small excerpts are printed in the booklet. The vocals are quite easily understood and rich with bass. And after a couple listens you'll start to piece more of them together.

The drums sound beautiful but they're not very flashy to me, kind of just serving the purpose of the songs and not trying to show off too much. This is not a bad thing but I would love to hear an intenser song drum wise to latch on to. Maybe a faster paced song would stand out and possibly influence a more thrash inspired style.

I certainly believe this is a step in a more concrete direction compared to their previous release, not that Earth and Sphere isn't good there are a couple awesome songs on there, but on here the majority of the songs stick with you, be it a certain groovy guitar lick, or the truly impressive vocals that stand out compared to other bands in this genre.

One of my more prized pieces in my collection.

Interesting heavy/melodic death metal - 82%

Noktorn, May 11th, 2007

I dig this album quite a bit, though some parts quite a bit more than others. 'The Resurrection Of Everything Tough' is essentially a heavy metal album with unclean vocals: sort of like Painmuseum, only replacing Iron Maiden with Deep Purple when it comes to influence. A heavy dash of melodic death metal is present, but by far the heaviest emphasis here is on traditional proto/heavy metal, albeit in a fairly modernized fashion. But despite this modernity, Beyond The Sixth Seal manages to kick ass with the best of the oldschool.

This being said, I dig the first half of this album quite a bit more than the second, but it's more a matter of strength than weakness. It's hard for any other songs on this LP to compete with these, such as the most melodeath influenced track on the album, opener 'Nothing To Prove', or the strange fusion of classic rock and melodeath on 'My Terrifying Ally', the neoclassical guitars on 'Reverly'. Of course, the second half has its gems as well: 'Yawning Of The Gale' is a particularly potent track. The melodies of each track, though clearly inspired by the 'US Gothenburg' bands that you see around today, never fail to be engaging and well composed, and the omnipresent lead guitars surprisingly lack cheese.

Also surprisingly, the death metal vocals seem perfectly natural in this music. These aren't even the light Stanne-style growls: these are full, robust death vocals that wouldn't sound out of place on late Morbid Angel. And yet despite this strange dichotomy between melody and relative brutality, these contrasting elements never seem to clash with each other in an unpleasant way. Indeed, this combination is pleasing to the ear, perhaps with each taking the more extreme edge off the other, resulting in a more moderate, measured LP. At least, I find it pleasing; others may find such a mix to be against their tastes.

The only parts where this CD really falters is on the slower, more Sabbathy songs. The band simply isn't geared towards that style, and they clearly excel at their faster, more energetic tracks. However, the album as a whole is quite good, and these few diversions do little to slow it down. For those looking for an interesting combination of melody and brutality, you should give Beyond The Sixth Seal's 'The Resurrection Of Everything Tough' a try. It might just be what you're looking for.

(Originally written for www.vampire-magazine.com)