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Path of Debris > The Eyes of the Basilisk > Reviews
Path of Debris - The Eyes of the Basilisk

The best penny I ever spent - 97%

OakenHelm, August 3rd, 2008

It's a damn shame how obscure this album is, but I guess some folks are never lucky enough to get the exposure they deserve. On the plus side, for those of us who do get the pleasure of discovering this amazing work of art, it makes it all the sweeter. Plus, it is ridiculously cheap no matter what site you go to for ordering; I literally got this album for a penny on Amazon (plus shipping of course).

What we have here is an interesting melodic death album that manages to be quite unique in its own right. What is most fascinating about it is something almost intangible. Although this album isn't particularly Gotherburg-influenced, it does share one trait with some of the earliest examples of the Gothenburg sound. Like "Lunar Strain," "Skydancer," and even "A Moonclad Reflection," "The Eyes of the Basilisk" just FEELS medieval. I cannot help but imagine scenes straight out of fantasy while this album is playing, much like with those albums as well. It's strange, but nonetheless very much a good thing. Somehow it evokes these images without even trying. While I love folk metal, bands of that nature pretty much force the imagery down your throat; Path of Debris is much more integral and natural sounding; as if the fantasy aspect is how life really is and that's just the reason it sounds that way. The added heft this band has compared to it's Gothenburg cousins is also quite satisfying; I'm reminded very slightly of Amon Amarth at times.

My initial reaction to this album, unfortunately, was very poor. The intro, "Epilogue" (buh?) flat-out sucks. It's cheesy, the spoken word vocals suck, and no metal song, intro or not, should EVER mention unicorns, for obvious reasons. After that, however, we are treated to the actual songs, which are uniformly good. None are technically flashy in the least, but they are competently played, melodic, and very catchy, with just enough metal muscle showing through the riffs. Vocals are a lower register roar; no crappy clean vocals thankfully. Production is solid, a little muddy at times but no real biggie; this was released by an unknown band on a small label, so it's to be expected. You can still hear all the melodies and leads quite easily, and the muddiness adds a little bit to the beefiness of it all, so I guess I really shouldn't complain either way.

"Destiny" is probably the best song of the bunch here, but they're all good aside from the horrid intro. This album is basically musical candy in its entirety; it's simple, effective, and fun. There are some headbanging moments and there are some effective melodic moments. There are no avant-gardisms, no excessive amounts of folk instruments, no bizarre keyboard solos; just straight up, melodic metal with a slight death metal sheen. I don't listen to this when I want to reflect on life or some other bullshit; I listen to this when I want a solid metal album. There's no reason not to own this album.

OH MY FUCKING GOD THIS IS AMAZING - 97%

Noktorn, May 9th, 2008

Totally unknown classic here, got it in a blind buy from Basement Music and I couldn't be happier that this totally random fucking album landed on my doorstep. The music that Path Of Debris plays is totally unique; it's like melodic death metal viewed through a prism of '70s rock/metal like Deep Purple, or death metal infused with power metal, or SOME other descriptor that doesn't adequately describe just how fucking awesome this music is. Apparently these Germans released one album before this one back in '96 that no one knows about, and it really appears that the only reason this one made it across the ocean is because Pavement Music picked it up on a distribution deal. Thank GOD!

The music of Path Of Debris is deceptively simple. Straightforward, melodic three or four chord riffs with even simpler two or three note lead guitar parts over them (with the occasional '80s style solo), Bolt Thrower derived rolling drum performance, and deep, raspy, growling vocals. But Jesus CHRIST if the band doesn't manage to make something amazing out of those elements. Path Of Debris' music appears to center around fantasy themes, and I don't think I've heard a band that more perfectly captures the feel of '80s style fantasy novels better than this. You know those random paperback fantasy books about elves and distant kingdoms that are awkwardly written yet evocative nonetheless? THIS is the soundtrack to those books. Completely devoid of pretense or any objective other than providing the soundtrack to adventuring and dragon-slaying (I can't stress that enough, this is a melodic death metal record with an emphasis on being both melodic AND death metal) through riff after amazing heavy metal riff.

This album was released in 1999 but its spirit totally lays in the '70s and '80s. There's a huge influence melodically from traditional heavy and power metal styles, and is totally without a trace of Gothenburg. To say that this is a pure combination of power metal and melodic death metal would not be far from the truth at all, and it isn't just thematic in nature. Did I mention that this is enormously catchy music? Because it is, perhaps some of the catchiest metal I've ever heard. A lot of the riffing reminds me of the intuitively melodic stuff you might hear from Illdisposed; you know, those 'how the hell has someone not come up with this riff before, it's so natural and perfect' ones that make that band's music so great on albums like 'There's Something Rotten In The State Of Denmark'. Everything's just done so naturally, with such a pure sense of songwriting, that it's heartbreaking that this album hasn't received the attention it deserves.

The production is heavy and clean and perfect for the style, the instrumental performances are all great, and even the individual instrumental sounds are sharp yet in possession of an indescribable vintage touch. I would describe this band as Hammerfall in melodic death metal form: they have an intuitive understanding of this oldschool style of songwriting, totally devoid of modern touch. It's just a great album all around. How has this music not been discovered? It's accessible, greatly produced, almost painfully catchy, and just simply some of the best melodic death metal ever written. It's really something that should be in every metalhead's collection, as I can't imagine someone NOT liking this.

Here's what sucks: you're reading this review and not even planning to give this a listen, figuring that it's just one of those fluke albums that I've randomly grabbed onto. It's not. You really have to hear this as all my descriptions of this band's sound are woefully inadequate to display just how great this band is. You owe it to yourself and to the band to get a copy of 'The Eyes Of The Basilisk' and play it until the CD shatters. There is NO REASON NOT TO; at the time of this writing, you can get copies of this album off Ebay for under four dollars INCLUDING SHIPPING. Just go and get one and spread this unknown band's music; it's the sort of underground gem that makes me love metal so much.