When I saw this album in the pool, it was described as Opeth with a Buddhist slant, so I figured that I would give it a shot.
Let me say this, I am not the world's biggest Opeth fan. I appreciate them but I don't do backflips every time they drop a new album.
Let me stop here because this isn't about that "O" word band, this is about Portugal's The Firstborn.
This is my first exposure to this band and I am floored by this. So floored in fact that I would call them one of the best bands in metal right now. That's a huge claim but this is a band that has their shit together and are doing something that isn't indicative of the current state of metal. Sure, there are bands that call themselves "Progressive" or even "Prog" (a term that I DESPISE) but The Firstborn are the real deal. They are writing stuff that is a welcome change from all of the fake "brutal" bands out there. I would go out on a limb and call this "thinking person's metal."
That's a pretty bold claim but once you get wrapped up in Lions Among Men, you'll see what I'm getting at.
Most of the material moves along at a medium tempo but it never feels boring or contrived. The breaks are done with regards to the song instead of just mixing things up for the sake of doing it. Their more concerned with building an experience than just writing a bunch of parts and then throwing them together which sets them apart from their peers.
It's nice to see a band breaking boundaries and trying new stuff and it actually working out for them. If they can continue to impress like this, we may have a new contender for the crown that the "O" band dropped in recent years.
Staff Rating
4.00/5
User Rating
5/5
