GHOST OF A FALLEN AGE-RUMORS OF THE SECRET WAR TRAGIC HERO RECORDS
Lynchburg Virginia’s Ghost of a Fallen Age is a product of two incredible bands; Winter Solstice and Everything Falls Together. After the split of Winter Solstice, some of those pieces and the pieces of EFT decided to forge a more prominent force to be reckoned with and in 2006 Ghost of a Fallen Age was born. Thus, the result is their powerful 2007 debut called “Rumors of the Secret War”. Albums that have no flaws such as this one are obviously easy to review. This enigmatic LP should be the staple in which other metal bands follow. There’s more to this album than just pure aggression. Each member plays an intricle part in the Ghost “sound” by adding depth and different dimensions to each song.
Although the CD shows 10 tracks, it’s actually 6 tracks with the remaining tracks being 1 to 2 minute interludes. The first 2 tracks, “The Cold Open” and “It’s The Apathy That Calls Them Here” are segues to the first full track in “Irrefutable Evidence for a Skeptic (3:15 am)”. As potent as GOAFA’s instrumental musicianship on this song is, the group’s efforts are brought up another notch significantly by the vocal contributions of Matthew McMillan. His growls and high pitches shrieks are powerful. The lyrics easily match the supremacy of McMillan’s voice:
“This nightmare runs into reality, an affliction of hollow eyes, burnt into my mind, those whispered lies, burnt my mind. Manifestations of death and horror, illusions of grandeur, a hope to survive or the merits of suicide, a snake in the grass lying in wait.”
Next comes another stunning musical whirlwind in the track “The New 2007 Model Human” which could be a topic attributed to societies ills or, the ills in the music industry as well. I took it as the latter but you be the judge:
“I can see the human assembly lines, millions of heads are waiting for their bodies, and as they wait the manuscripts that make a man: are being pushed through their ears with frail mechanical fingers. The heads are filled to the maximum capacity with regurgitated rhetoric. The heads are fastened to their bodies. They’re now ready for the job market; they’re ready for the meat market. Whore yourself.”
Unfortunately, the music industry is a breeding ground for commercialized puppets (especially in the Hip Hop and Metal scene) where pure musicianship is substituted by clowns pushing their gimmicks. Ghost of a Fallen Age plan to end that!
As the brutality continues on tracks “Macabre Vow” and “The Cancer That Devours My Dreams”, we get to my favorite track “A Poorly Tailored Man-Suit”. This song will hit you like a nuclear bomb! The drummer Jonathan McMillan (brother of the vocalist), showcases some killer chops and the diverse musical arrangements of the guitar/bass tandem of Caleb Goins, Darren Via and Donnie Graham are infectious to say the least. This song sent chills down my spine!
Musically, “A Critical Proposal” fittingly ends this EP before giving way to the outro “The Face of Neglect”. “Rumors of the Secret War” is captivating and what this genre sorely needed. All the elements that make up a solid album are present in this EP. I definitely can’t wait to hear what this unit has in store for the future. Metal looks bright again!!! Support Ghost of a Fallen Age by visiting them @ http://www.ghostofafallenage.com/main.html or http://www.myspace.com/ghostofafallenage Thanks CyPhEr777
