Review by Shezma for Scar Symmetry - The Singularity (Phase II - Xenotaph) (2023)

Maybe the album I was most looking forward too of 2023. 9 years since the last album and first phase. Starts off strong, but after the first few songs it just gets sorta bland. Even after a few listens, it just becomes ok. Nothing wrong with this album but i do still prefer Phase I and even more so their first 3 albums and still believe Holographic Universe to be their best most fun album yet. I'll go back to this once in a while when I'm feeling some Scar Symmetry nostalgia and maybe this will grow on me but as of now this one doesn't do it for me. Maybe it's because of my personal expectations I rate it lower.  As one of the bands that really got me into the melodic death metal style that I absolutely adored in my formidable teenage years I admit that easily taints my enjoyability of this but I am trying. Nothing sticks out and feels like generic, nothing new or innovative paint by the numbers style.