I remember their previous release 'Nightly Ray'. On that record the band played a kind of old school melodic (German Power) metal. The record did not impress me at all. Much too mediocre and after 2 songs it became boring as well. Perhaps they came to the same conclusion and have given their newest the title 'Rewake'. When you hear the two records after each other, you could get the idea that it is not the same band. They made a big stylistic change.
O.K., you can still hear that they are German, but the song writing is better and their style is more modern sounding. Some metalcore influences, some In Flames and Children of Bodom riffs combined with German metal tunes. Perhaps you know the TV-shows where you can push on a button when the music or the artist isn't interesting anymore! When I listen to this album I would certainly not press the button during the first song: "Double Suicide" is absolutely worth listening to; and second song "Slave" still sounds interesting as well.
My finger starts to itch at the beginning of the third song; I almost wanted to push the button. The song starts very weak, but after a while the tempo goes up and that safes it from skipping. "Next in Line" has a guitar part in it that reminds me of another metal song, but I can't put a finger on it. If someone knows it, please mail me. It is during this song that I loose the attention, after the acoustic intermission "Unbeing" I've heard enough. At the beginning of "Gold & Class" I vote them away and push the button. The music begins to be repetitive and the songs aren't strong enough to keep me interesting. I also get the idea that the songs become more German-influenced. A band like Rage and Paragon enter my mind at times.
To make this long review short, I come to the conclusion that Emergency Gate has changed their style a little and has grown musically since their last record. Still they haven't found a way to keep their songs interesting during the whole album. I find the first part of the album the best part, after that it gets too average. Songs like "Remains" and "Lullaby" can be left away next time. If you want to write a ballad, fine, but please write one that’s interesting!
