Soil - Whole

Published August 30 2013

*=Staff's pick	Loaded Gun The Hate Song* Ugly Way Gone* Psychopath Shine On* Wake Up Amalgamation* My Time Little Liar One Love

Genre	Heavy Alternative Metal	Ryan McCombs	Vocals
Tracks	11	Adam Zadel	Guitar
Running time	38 Min.	-	Guitar
Label	AFM Records	Tim King	Bass
Release	16 August 2013	Will Hunt	Drums
Country	USA	-	Keyboard
Producer	Ulrich Wild
Similar artists	Life Of Agony, Disturbed

This is the first time I have ever listened to Soil, so I won't pretend like I have before. All I know is that their lead vocalist Ryan McCombs has returned to the band after a few years absence and that this is his first studio album in a while. Also I've figured out that drummer Will Hunt is not a permanent member of the band. That's it, let's focus on the music instead.

What strikes me initially is the driving force and commitment the band shows in most of the songs. It's modern and heavy, without being lined up in a position of too pretty. It's definitely not especially varied and most songs seem to stream from pretty much the same vein. I'm impressed by their accurate choruses that attack from the core and also by their massive rhythms that create solid and powerful grooves.

All from the killer opening with the hard hitting Loaded Gun and the beautiful creation and potential hit The Hate Song, through killer songs like Way Gone, Shine On and Amalgamation to the last tones of One Love, this album keeps my hearing alert. Whole contains loads of cool songs and no fillers, even if Little Liar is pretty close to wind up on that not so flattering list.

I never thought I would find this much pleasure in Whole, but it's real hard to not dig these captivating knockout songs. To pick four songs or fewer for Staff's pick is absolutely not enough to cover my hunger for this release. The only thing slightly negative is its rather monotonous and repetitive approach, but still an awesome release nonetheless. 8 chalices to a killer album that will spin in my home for a long time.