Reviewed by Chris Webb

Hailing from Birmingham, Alabama, Embers In Ashes offer 10 rock songs based around personal experiences on this 2014 release. Said the band's founder and lead singer Jeremy Bates, "Our whole purpose in life is to know Christ and make him known and music is the tool God has given us to do this." Unfortunately the band's unremitting sound offers neither subtlety nor variety. Track after track ploughs the same furrow, guitar break supported by drum break, bass fills abound and an unspectacular but adequate vocal performance completes the soundscape. Lyrically the songs are dark, talking of loss, anger and an inability to see a positive way forward, although they do all tell of God being around and waiting to assist, but as the album continues in the same vein it all becomes rather depressing. The last track, "What Matters" is generally more positive stating, "Show me what it is that matters/Focus every breath I take/Take my life broken and tattered and/remake me for your sake," but offers no respite from the wall of sound still lashing the ears. This is a hard rock album which may have some devoted followers in the US club scene but in truth, it's pretty unimaginative.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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