Lorna Shore: …And I Return to Nothingness @Century Media Records (eng)

I discovered Lorna Shore in 2017 with the release of “Flesh Coffin”  and I’m particularly following the band’s updates since the “Immortal” ‘s release, that I found outstanding. Following the release of this album, the band split up with CJ McCreery (ex-chanteur du groupe) and was replaced by Will Ramos. Not being able to see the band performing with Will Ramos on the “Immortal” tour and knowing quite nothing about his previous bands, I didn’t know what to expect for this EP. Especially because on “Immortal”, without being the only and major part of the global alchemy of the album,  I was considering that CJ’s vocal signature was a good part of it.

So my feeling about the release of “…And I Return to Nothingness” was a bit swinging between impatience and hope that I wouldn’t be disappointed by a band that I esteem a lot. But a part of this feeling ended with the anticipated release of “To the Hellfire”. We find there everything that makes Lorna Shore, a very good overall harmony with in particular super violent breakdowns, ultra powerful vocals, and of course very worked melodies and atmosphere. 

Following this release, I was very impatient to hear the rest of the EP as “To the Hellfire” convinced me. And waiting two months before the release of the EP was well rewarded, as the other two songs of the EP are also of high quality. “Of the Abyss” is a perfect transition between the violent “To the Hellfire” and the more melodic “…And I Return to Nothingness” while keeping its own identity. Indeed, there are typical sweeps of the Death Metal genre but also a breakdown of a rare violence in the middle of the song, which makes it particularly different while keeping an overall coherence with the rest of the EP. The last song we didn’t cover is “…And I Return to Nothingness” which without denying the violent bases of the other songs, brings a more epic / symphonic touch thanks to its catchy melodies and also gives us a superb solo.

To conclude about this EP which I listen to 2 times a day : it is from my point of view the best you can do from this genre and also my favorite release for 2021. This EP also conquered some Lorna Shore newcomers here at RiskTheDeath notably thanks to the outstanding “…And I Return to Nothingness”. I think that this EP is the best compromise to convince newcomers and old fans. And if you don’t know them or didn’t listen to “…And I Return to Nothingness” ? Go check it out ! 

Thanks Lorna Shore for this EP, his melodies, his breakdowns, his soli, his eclecticism.
Thanks Will for this sensational entry and this wide range of vocals. 
Thanks Austin for this incredible work on the drums. 
And Thanks Andrew and Adam for the great job at the guitar and the bass creating this amazing atmosphere.