Review by Jack on August 25, 2003.

Bursting forth at the seams with ripe musical intensity, Silent Edge are a symphonic progressive band I am surprised to have not heard a lot more from. They have been around for some six years, yet took that much time to finally put out their debut record in "The Eyes of the Shadow."

However, good things come to those who wait and "The Eyes of the Shadow" is most definitely a record to watch out for. In a nutshell, Silent Edge have taken the technical wizardry of bands like Symphony X and Dream Theatre, (Silent Edge have been really, really blessed in the musical ability department) and merged them with a calm and collected mentality towards their songwriting and obvious talents, resulting in an –album- that is a real joy to be a part of. Not a loose grouping of songs that are tacked together for the sake of getting out an album, but an actual record that is as strong from the opening number as it is when it closes with 'Rebellion (The Awakening).'

Content not to blow their proverbial musical load with the opening track, Silent Edge hold an unusual ability to really captivate a listener and tease out their prolific ability at being able to write a mesmerising riff, hook, ballad, chorus etc, etc. Now this is all well and good if you're a band that can do it here and there, but it means diddly-squat if you can't do it consistently, which herein lies the obviously apparent ability of Silent Edge.

The second piece of the puzzle is that once you have the capability to write an addictive album, it just remains for you to execute your material that you composed. And in Silent Edge's case this is a no-brainer. Exquisite technical skills, complemented perfectly by the vast vocal abilities of Willem Verwoert make for a pretty appetising musical course that should not be missed.

Bottom Line: Far too good an opportunity to miss out on. "The Eyes of the Shadow" is a stellar debut record full of dizzy solos, melodious vocals and rhythmic drumming throughout ten tracks. Clocking in at just over an hour Silent Edge's debut record will be sure to see you racking up weeks and weeks worth of constant rotation.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 9
Atmosphere: 7
Production: 8.5
Originality: 8
Overall: 7.5

Rating: 8 out of 10