After Mother of Sin, yet another big surprise from The Netherlands. Scenario II hails from Eindhoven and this is their debut album. In their hometown they are rather known and they have played in the famous Dynamo Club a few times. With the new record I think they can get more known not only in the rest of Holland, but outside too. Meanwhile they have added Myrthe (vocals) to the line-up as a permanent 6th member.
The music is very mature and the album can compete on every scale with the 'bigger' foreign melodic Death Metal acts. Musically the band can be described as a mix of death-metal Gothenburg-style (think Dark Tranquillity/Scar Symmetry) and Trail of Tears (the female/male vocal parts - think Liv Kristine). The opening song "Doomsday" starts very furious and it is a song in Arch Enemy meets Scar Symmetry meets In Flames style. The riffs are thrashy and tight like a hummingbird's ass and the combination of the grunts with the female vocals sounds excellent. Next song "Hallowed" is probably even better, it takes off at high speed and the guitar work is very melodic. They have the ability to write very catchy songs with lots of melody and even with the female vocals they still sound very heavy. The serene keyboard lines put the icing on the cake.
Damn, why did no one sign this band? If there is a market for Scar Symmetry and In Flames, there must be one for this product too. A completely finished album and with the right support and promotion; world domination (I like to exaggerate) must be just a matter of time!
Check them out!
