In July of 2005, a new band out of Alice, Texas, calling themselves Shattered Sun, came to fruition. Initially a six-piece band, in just over one year, they put out their first EP, The Lost Cause, in December of 2006. The following August found the band putting together Endless Struggle, and continuously working on their music over the next two years; they recorded another EP titled Through Ashes, released in late 2009. After a short hiatus, Shattered Sun could not be kept down and resurfaced in 2012 with the new additions of Joseph Guajardo on bass, Henry Garza on keyboards/vocals, and Hector Villareal on guitar. That same year, they recorded their Confessions EP, which resulted in heavy touring. Touring with the likes of Memories In Broken Glass, Spineshank ,and Mureau, Shattered Sun began work on their first full-length album and, catching the attention of many, signed with Breaking Bands LLC, a management team run by Maria Ferrero (Adrenaline PR), Jonny Zazula (Megaforce Records) and Testament frontman Chuck Billy, landing them a deal with Victory Records. Now in 2015, the band consist of Guajardo, Garza, Jessie Santos on guitar/vocals, Robert Graza on drums, Daniel Trejo on guitar, and Marcos Leal on lead vocals, releasing their debut full-length album, Hope Within Hatred, April 21st. A record with plenty of passionate behind its, the band has stated “This is more than just a band putting out an album, going on tour, or signing to a label. This is living proof that no matter whom you are, where you’re from, or what people tell you, you can overcome and turn dreams into reality.”
Hope Within Hatred opens with the track “The Ultimatum,” revealing an intro that unfolds into a well executed rhythmic pattern which is later joined by the harsh vocals and then utilizes both harsh and clean vocals. This song lays the foundation for the overall sound of the album. There is not a dull moment in the second track, “Victory or Death,” which incorporates some really intense drum patterns and guitar riffs. Leal’s vocals complement the instrumentation in this song well, and the clean and harsh elements flow together with the melodic and heavy segments. The album’s title track, “Hope Within Hatred,” is where the band has really worked out a brilliant plan to come up with an exceptional piece of music that not only sounds good upon first listen, but continues to play in listeners head for quite a while because of its infectiousness qualities.
Through the body of the album, songs like “Reign Over Me,” “Burning Regrets,” “Waging War,” and “Dead Set” maintain heavy riffs and breakdowns common to all the songs. Then there are tracks like “281” which takes a break from all the crushing riffing by becoming slow and melodic. The acoustic guitar parts, steady drums, and keys give a rather sweet feel to the song. This song makes the album much more interesting with this invited change in sound and prevents it from sounding too monotonous. Turning the volume back up, Shattered Sun return to the loaded sound with the tunes like “Awaken” and “No Sympathy,” making for a nice shot in the arm and balanced approach. Finally, the album ends on a lighter note in the form of “Return To Serenity,” characterized by its melodic nature rather than simply being heavy, making it a great ending to an extremely impressive album.
There is a different feel to Shattered Sun’s brand of Metal. All too often Metal is seen as negative, blood-drenched, and bad-tempered, but instead of looking at the glass half empty, listeners find messages of hope, support, and validation, which indicates a maturity in this talented group of players. The arrangements are angry, but uplifting in the composition as well lyrics. It is not to say negativity is not touched on, but the message urges one to push further, stand up for themselves, as well as embrace and change a current situation. Melodic, heavy, and guitar driven, Shattered Sun can claim a well-written, well-executed first label release with Hope Within Hatred. The percussion of Robert and bass work of Guajardo give the record plenty of headbanging moments and the awesome guitar riffs of Santos as well as Trejo are beautifully supported by the keyboards from Henry. There is nothing extraneous added to Hope Within Hatred and there is a satisfying, emotional resolution to each song. Nothing seems to be out of place, and there is no doubt a dedication to the song writing from start to finish. CrypticRock gives Shattered Sun’s Hope Within Hatred 4 out of 5 stars.
- Victory Records
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