Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *
Born out of fire and created with a South Welsh attitude, the latest band to come from that thriving musical part of the U.K., the superb sounding Shadow of the Sun have finally released their debut album, Monument, and it is a colossus.
The energy that comes through every pore, every fibre that the group possesses is drenched in the sweat and power of this recording. Loud, extremely loud and pulsating with class, Monument is an album that typifies the raw power that is available at the hands of musicians who strive to show that good music doesn’t slot into just one typical genre, it can be instinctive as it wants to be or as those creating it want it to be.
With Dylan Thompson on guitar and vocals, Matthew Alexander Powell on guitars, keyboards and vocals, Lee Woodmass on bass and flamenco guitar and Rhys Jones on drums and percussion, the musicianship is nothing short of great, interesting and set just right for the audiences appreciation.
Shadow of the Sun are in very esteemed company, bands that have emerged from that part of the U.K. in recent years, which shows the strength of music in an area that up until recently was considered a depressed part of the U.K. but as the country makes head ways into becoming a vibrant and ideal place for creative ideas to take shape again once more, more groups like Shadow of the Sun will find their voice.
The album is jam packed with great songs; a testament to the song writing talent available, especially on the stunning Never Enough, Hourglass, I’m Coming Home, the solitude feel of Who Cares? and Second Hand Smoke. The whole album just clicks its fingers once and instantly the listener has no choice but to revel in the light and shade of the collection of songs mass appeal.
Whatever the Shadow of the Sun decides to do next, they will have left the mark on the rock world with this intense and brutally good portion of music.
Monument? More like towering vividness and stomping high class. A piece of class to end the year with!
Ian D. Hall