Shattered Destiny – Fragments (2012)

With a very diverse and interesting sound, today we have newcomers Shattered Destiny and their very professional debut EP “Fragments”. In the time when almost every band is trying to sound like somebody else, it is very refreshing to see bands like this carving their own musical history with a fresh and interesting proposal.

Recorded around the world in places like California, Moscow and Sweden, this release is a very good integration of several musicians into a cohesive and dynamic sounding band. Brought together by mastermind JJ, Shattered Destiny breaks musical barriers and combines a Progressive Metal foundation with some more traditional Heavy and Thrash Metal influences.

Opening with “Welcome”, this 22 minutes EP delivers excellent guitar work and tight drumming (courtesy of Mark Zonder of Fates Warning fame). The vocals are a bit weird at first, but they eventually grow on you and deliver quite catchy melodies. There are also some backing vocals provided by Johan Aremyr, Pontus Norgren and Joakim Cans (Hammerfall) that nicely fit into the music’s intricate composition.

With a peaceful acoustic opening with excellent solos and atmospheric keyboards, “Deceitful Heart” changes the pace of things for a bit, only to go back into a very dark and somber place with superb riffing. Following this piece we have “Oblivion” a very interesting Heavy Metal/Glam Rock sound that is completely different from anything presented so far. The catchy chorus section is top notch and the guitar work is very straight forward but effective. This track is our favorite one thanks to the excellent solo around the 4 minute mark and the constantly used chorus section.

Closing this short but sweet EP we have “Epilogue” a more Progressive/Power Metal track that opens with crazy guitar work and slowly transforms into a catchy tracks with more backing vocals to contrast JJ’s unique singing style. Leaving on a high-note, Shattered Destiny has nicely given us a sample of the excellent musical abilities they possess and the mature songwriting skills they have. Make sure you check out this excellent release and fully enjoy it thanks to its awesome production that was spiritually guided by Joakim Cans.

Release: March 20th, 2012

Country: USA