The first sounds of the low-tuned guitars and deep grunts on this album invoke a feeling that these Finns might be up for an original take on melodic death metal. Throughout the first song the mood of the music remains quite stern and not too predictable. What Halo Of Shadows seem to deliver here is melodic death metal, clearly influenced by their famous countrymen Children Of Bodom, though they keep it a bit less polished and cheerful. The keyboard melodies – who dare to make this type of music without them these days – tend a few more inches towards the disco-worthy and the music leans a tad more on ambience and a smidgen less on technique. While progressing towards the last song however, Halo Of Shadows seem to refrain from really doing something out of the ordinary, and do not transcend being a decent death metal band.

The well-performed compositions reach a few noteworthy points, such as in ‘Ravenous Heart’ or ‘Eyes Of Faith’, but these mainly catch the ear because of some nice leads or moments of attractive harmonic keyboards instead of being an adventurous dive into uncharted territory. So while doing everything a little bit different, they don’t stray where COB didn’t before. When COB were there, it was surprising and, for quite some people, enough to fascinate a few albums, but now Halo Of Shadows walk those lands we feel a bit saturated with its wonders. When do bands learn that just stepping into, and barely expanding, known worlds isn`t going to make a lasting impression?