Album Review: Saviour - 'First Light To My Death Bed'

It has been an enormous year for the boys in Saviour. Going from being a relatively unknown act to one of the more established names locally, they're living proof that working hard gets you places in this industry. With multiple national tours under their belt and a record deal signed with UNFD all in just the last four months, these guys have built up a name, and an expectation for themselves, which they are responding to in the form of the band's first release through their new label, 'First Light To My Death Bed.'

Opening with 'Undead,' a mixture of a heavy, brutal rhythm section, laced with some heavily effected guitar sounds that give the band a somewhat unique sound. That said, this sound more or less sticks throughout the whole album and a lot of the songs begin to blend together a bit. It doesn't do so in a huge way and certainly not enough to speak negatively of the record as a whole, but it certainly doesn't work in its favour. That said, there are a few songs that don't fall into this trap and thus, stand out among the rest, most notably of which is 'Karolena,' a slower, often softer track that is second to last on the album's track listing.

The vocal work on 'First Light to My Death Bed' should be commended, with layer upon layer of expertly executed vocals, both clean and screaming, taking the songs to the next level. At times, the vocals compliment each other fantastically, at others, providing a great contrast, but they consistently work together to take each track further . At times, some of the vocal lines can arguably be a tad overproduced, but that may just be us nitpicking a bit, given that at no point does it do too much to take away from the songs.

Lyrically, Saviour have always been a band that put forward a positive message, but 'First Light To My Death Bed' is the first to focus around a specific concept, being the destructive nature of illicit drugs. Being able to focus the positive message that they have always had onto a specific issue seems to have helped to bring out genuinely great and passionate lyrics most of the time (even more so than usual for the band). That said, the band do occasionally fall into some cliches of modern metalcore, with lines such as, “I am blessed, motherf**ker” and “don't look back, don't look back, don't look f**king back!” ('Unstoppable') making their way into the album.

All in all, 'First Light To My Death Bed' is a decent release and will serve Saviour well as they continue to gain an even stronger following. No, it's not something that's going to shake the local scene to its core, but that doesn't mean it isn't a strong addition to it nonetheless.

1. Undead
2. Stories
3. Unstoppable
4. Amber
5. Jaded
6. Mercenary
7. Escape
8. Strength
9. Collapse
10. Needles
11. Karolena
12. Morning