Frameshift’s second release offers a unified collection of songs that touch violence issues from different perspectives. The music addresses progressive metal with a hard rock approach, sounding like a blend of Dream Theater and Skid Row. And indeed, it is no other than Skid Row’s Sebastian Bach handling the vocal duties this time around, with his immense lungs and an impressive range of overdubbed vocals.
Henning Pauly (of Chain) handles almost all of the instruments (lead, bass and Warr guitars, different sorts of keyboards, and more) with an iron fist, without letting his remarkable, all around technical capabilities cloud the emotional aspects of the work, which benefits from some psychological depth and urgency.
Nearly everything on the heavy metal scope is here: from the speed metal of "Human Grain" through the pounding symphonic flavor of "Miseducation" and unto the epic power metal of "Blade," as well as some industrial touches throughout. The whole thing is so richly styled that it will never cease to astound you during dozens of repeated listens!
"I Killed You" features one of the album’s most dazzling performances, moving from a soulful reflection to lunatic, over the top vocal harmonies embodying the demented confusion that is invited from the text.
An Absence of Empathy is one of the most thrilling releases I have recently bumped into, and I truly hope Bach stays around for another release of this outfit as I cannot imagine any other vocalist blending better. Let everyone else be on the watch for a new Dream Theater, I’ll be on the watch for the new Frameshift! (and play this one constantly until it arrives) (9.5/10)
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