Coldseed - Completion Makes the Tragedy (2006)^{Release ID: 33679}

I'm not going to deny, I'd never heard of Coldseed before seeing this in a secondhand shop for £1. The name of the band, plus the image on the front cover, did make it look like some European symphonic metal band (you know the type), which seemed even more evident when I saw that their drummer was Thomen Stauch, formerly of Blind Guardian.

But I was wrong. Very wrong.

(I was right about them being European, however).

Instead, Coldseed is actually more akin to groove metal or hardcore music. There are keyboards, but used sparingly and more as an addition to the guitar riffs than as a central songwriting tool. And the vocals (provided by Soilwork main man Björn Strid), are more aggressive than I expected. It's hard and heavy, with plenty of fat riffs, but overall a lot of the songs just tend to plod along uneventfully.

Songs such as 'My Affliction', 'Reflection', and 'Strike the Nerve' are alright, and though none of them are going to change the world, they're still worth a listen. And then there's 'Nothing But a Loser', a groove-laden beast of a tune, which is easily the best and catchiest song this album has to offer.

Along with the aforementioned musicians, Coldseed features Oliver Holtzwarth, formerly of Rhapsody of Fire, and also other members who have been former live musicians for Blind Guardian. All things considered, the name of the band, the front cover of the album, the promo pictures, and definitely the players involved, it really is quite surprising that this isn't a power metal project.

Overall, 'Completion Makes the Tragedy' is an okay album, though. It's not anything amazing that I'll go back to very often, but a few of the songs are strong enough to warrant giving this "supergroup" a chance, and if you stumble across it as cheap as I did, you certainly won't feel ripped off.