Dead Reflections – Trials
Dead Reflections is a New England metal band. Combining elements of Hardcore, Death, Melodic, and Thrash Metal, they cover a lot of ground with a heavy sound that is both brutal and delicate. The harsh vocals will stand the hair on your neck on end, but the melodic guitar leads and fills will soothe your mind. They pack a punch with their bombastic rhythms and massive riffs. There is just something about how they put it all together, then layer in the occasional keyboard tones to give more depth to the track that hits hard. You need to hear this for yourself.
https://deadreflections.bandcamp.com
Band Members:
- Josh Lukowski – Vocals
- Dan Bouchard – Guitars
- Tonya Squire – Bass
- Joseph Desilets – Drums
- Guest Musician:
- Dave Sharpe (Dead By Wednesday) – Guitar solo on The Wake
January 2, 2023
Tracklist:
- What A Real Romeo
- Lost (And No One Kjnows)
- The Wake
- One Belief
- Worlds Behind
Trials is their first release. It is a five-song EP running just under 20 minutes. Trials opens with “What A Real Romeo,” a fast-paced song with a brutal riff with killer guitar leads over the top. The bass is absolutely thundering, and the drums have a great variable phrasing pattern to them. You get everything from marching tempos to frenetic double-kick sections meant to make your foot stomp an imaginary pedal. No clean vocals; those would sound out of place here.
For “Lost (And No One Knows),” they again have a killer chugging riff over a massive rhythm. This is the track that introduces the layered keyboards, adding some excellent tones to the heaviness of the guitars. As before, you get variations with the bass and drum phrases that give the song a lot more character, keeping it from being just a straight-line, hardcore piece. Those curves and twists are well-executed and played with precision and accuracy.
Next, we have “The Wake,” a song with a guest appearance by Dave Sharpe of Dead By Wednesday. His solo is a thing of beauty as he fits into the track with grace. The riff is a bit faster in some sections, but it does slow and get more melodic in other areas. The chugging rhythm acts like a pedestal for the solo to stand on as it shifts from shredding to melodic and fades into the riff again. They work really well together.
“One Belief” has some interesting guitar tones woven into the riff. It also has some spots where the guitar and bass drop out, and the drums hammer out a quick lead, helping to transition to the next section of the track. We get the same thing later with the bass, showing Joseph and Tonya are just as capable as Dan when it comes to leading the charge. You get more signature vocal power with Josh showing off his range in the harsh register. Again, the layered keys underneath add a lot of extra tone to the track.
The EP concludes with “Worlds Behind,” a track with an almost sludgy intro before going full bore hardcore. The guitars on this one are freaking awesome. That riff is heavy, fast, and brutal, just like the rest of the record, but this one catches my ear a little more. Maybe it’s the killer leads scattered in or the keys under it that pull me in, but this one really hits home. The whole song kicks ass, but the guitars make this one stand out for me.
Dead Reflections is a force to be reckoned with sonically. I caught them live last year, and they bring an insane intensity to the stage. Back then, I was betting they would sound excellent on a recording, and I was not wrong. After hearing them do a version of Led Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song,” I knew they could take on anything they wanted and make it sound good. Watch for these guys on the regional circuit as they continue to grow. You’ll want to catch them so you can hear these songs live. Seeing them on stage as they rip through these songs will be something you won’t soon forget.
MZ Ratings:
- Musicianship
- Guitars – 9
- Rhythms – 9
- Vocals – 9
- Songwriting – 9
- Production – 9
- Overall – 9.00
