There always seems to be a lot riding on debut albums nowadays; with so many bands emerging left, right and centre it’s important to stand out from the crowd. Shattered Skies do this to an extent with their debut full-length The World We Used To Know, but they could also do a lot more.
The main problem is that they don’t seem to utilise the keyboards as well as they could. The introductory track, Collapse Of Man, really gets things off to a great and atmospheric start with some uniquely stunning keys, and the fact that they take centre stage in the introduction can lead you to believe that the album features more of the same, which is great because it’s always nice when the keys take centre stage in prog music. However, when the main body of The World We Used To Know gets underway, it’s a bit of a letdown in comparison.
To put things simply – it’s nothing you haven’t already heard when it comes to prog and whilst the album itself isn’t bad, it’s just difficult to remain interested since it’s already been done before. With big melodic sections and fairly generic vocals, Shattered Skies haven’t quite put their own stamp on the music and it’s a shame because this is an album that could be so much more.
The World We Used To Know is not a terrible album – I can’t stress this enough. However, if you’re looking for something new and exciting in the prog scene, you’re probably best off looking elsewhere.
5/10
