The Resurrection of Everything Tough

Melodic death metal...is there really such a thing? Indeed there is, as evidenced by Beyond the Sixth Seal and their sophomore full-length effort, 2007's The Resurrection of Everything Tough. After causing a buzz in the metal underground with its 2002 debut, Earth and Sphere, the group abruptly split up a year later. But by 2006, the onetime five-man group had slimmed down to a trio, with only two original members remaining — growler Mike McKenzie (who now also supplies guitar) and drummer Brendan Roche — with newcomer Gregory Weeks handling bass duties. Additionally, upon their re-formation, Beyond the Sixth Seal are supposedly only a "studio band" from here on out. With most death metal bands favoring highly technical and blazingly fast riffs and beats, Beyond the Sixth Seal pull off some Appetite for Destruction-era Guns N' Roses riffs on such tracks as "I Die at 35," while the guitar harmonies on the mid-paced instrumental "The Law You Have Sworn" bring to mind Metallica's "Orion." Elsewhere, tracks like "Stricken" have quite a bit in common with modern-day punk metal. However, while the music is varied and unpredictable, the vocals refuse to stray from death metal growling. As a result, Beyond the Sixth Seal should be commended for creating a new metallic sound/approach — something that's becoming increasingly hard to accomplish nowadays.