Abyss's Review:
Fog are labeled as a Death/Atmospheric/Black band, and that pretty much sums it up, especially if you put death first. This little tidbit comes to us from Bethany Records/ Terror Productions from Baltimore, MD. When I was first given this disc I prejudged the band a little due to the cover art, which is very boring, but on top of that it made me realize that no metal band, whatever the particular genre, should ever color their logo a pastel blue. It just doesn't look metal. Actually, I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest that metal bands avoid pastel colors altogether. It makes it that much harder for a band to win me over.
But win me over they did. After I got past a keyboard intro that sounded shabbily put together; I was pleased to hear an American style death, not too much unlike bands like Dying Fetus or Deeds of Flesh. What makes Fog all the more interesting is that they've decided to go this route as well as sprinkle in some influences from other genres. The vocals are quite good, ranging from the death growl, to the black scream, and even some mellower clean tones. These clean tones are sparingly used, giving them much more punch than many bands that have utilized them recently. These vocals (just the vocals, mind you) remind me of Dax Riggs from Acid Bath in his mellower moments.
These guys also know how to play and present. There are many different changes each song, both tempo and mood, and they also aren't averse to mixing a good amount of riff into each one. They seem to have a lot of fun mixing different sounds into the music. The keyboards are used sparingly and are the weakest part of the album. On most occasions they add to the songs quite well, probably because the guitarist doubles as the keyboardist (eliminating any chance of them smothering the guitarwork, which is a common mistake), but on rare occasion they seem forced and underproduced. Samples are also used throughout the record, but I could take or leave them (Do you really want to sample scenes from The Craft?).
But where these guys really have a future is in the fact that they have strong base songwriting. A great sense of bangability (that's now an official word) pervades each song. Just a quality recording from start to finish, with just a few production problems (the aforementioned intro, forced keyboards, and a sound that can stray once the "atmospheric" part take hold), but these are just petty compared to the potential this band has. They deserve to move up the ladder quickly, and if they continue with albums such as this, they will. You can contact Terror Productions at: 5 Brantwood Court/ Baltimore, MD 21236. (410) 931- 4013 and email at Terror6@email.msn.com, TerrorProduction@hotmail.com It does make it hard to figure which track is which, however, since they forgot to label a track 7. (Editors, who needs 'em.)
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