Wither
Breakthrough

Review By Keith "MuzikMan" Hannaleck
Click here to e-mail reviewer

  With a name like Wither you may think that their music is soft and gentle, maybe folk oriented and poetic? Not! Wither rocks hard and fast with Gothic-Doom the prevailing style throughout their new CD Breakthrough. The key word is breakthrough, as a major label signing could very well be in the future for this San Diego based unit. They certainly have what it takes to pull in a rabid following worldwide.

Jeff and Keith Edelman form a potent sibling one-two punch on vocals and guitars along with standouts Robert Brecker (bass), Micah Cummins (lead guitars, keyboards) and Tony Rangel (drums). On the first two tracks, "Muse" and "Together," they sound like a straight ahead metal band and very good one mind you, rather than the gothic doom metal unit that you will hear on "Revisited" and "Sin" (killer track) and many other standout tracks.

As the album progresses so does their dark tones, crunching big fat guitar chords and pounding rhythm section. Those strong elements come to fruition in a big way by the time this album is complete. Actually, the last and title track is ballad with strumming acoustic guitar, a complete departure from the entire approach and theme of the project. What this means is that you have the pleasure of listening to a band that has the talent to do just about anything they desire, quite impressive. The vocals reminded me of a combination of James Hatfield and David Bowie, an interesting combination to say the least, and very good. If you are into bands like Metallica you will love these guys.

Normally I do not listen to this type of music because it grates on my nerves after a few songs, this kind of a band I could deal with because of the excellent variety in styles. They are not overbearing or over the top at all. By mixing up their sound with straight ahead digestible rock and gothic-doom, they give a listener an opportunity to stay or go right from the start. I chose to stay and so will you. This CD will appeal to those fans that enjoy metal, rock and gothic alike. That is a wide range of genre appeal, and I acknowledge them for doing such a fine job with making it a good listen for so many types of rock music fans.

I am starting to think that there may be many more bands out there worth my attention with a similar approach and sound. All it takes is a great recording like this to change a person's outlook. It may be dark and foreboding doom and gloom, but it is a side of life that is very real. The negative and positive is something we all deal with daily so why not kick some ass and play great music and sing about it? This is good music; it will make your blood pump through your veins reminding you that you are indeed alive!

Enjoyment:

Sound Quality: