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A lot of times even the phrase 'Melodic Death Metal' will put me right to sleep. There are bands who do it well: Dark Haven, Withering, The Fifth Sun – but there are too many who don't do it either well or poorly, they just do it and I'm not sure why. Lost Vital Spark are an indie band with no label, so this is a self-released disc.

The guitar work is really good on this, bringing the expected two-guitar melodies and intricate lead work. The keys are a bit overdone, and they use some odd keyboard sounds that are not usual for metal. It is different, but it doesn't really work. The songwriting has a lot of dynamic and some really good melodies, and the production is quite good. The bad part is vocalist Stefan Pitzer, who is one of the school of vocalists who Never Shut Up. He has a good enough growl, but he's mixed way loud and he just barks and rasps and growls all over this, drowning out the music about 75% of the time. It's not a good sign when my major sentiment regarding your vocalist is "I wish he'd pipe down." Lost Vital Spark lean a bit too hard on the trendy pop melodies for my taste, but fans of more commercial melodeath may like this better than I do.