Hello, everyone! My name is Simon, and today I’m reviewing this new collaboration album between grindcore/death metal band Full of Hell and shoegaze band Nothing. At least those are some genre descriptions I’ve seen online … I don’t know much about these bands, though. I just saw this album getting quite a bit of critical acclaim and I decided to check it out.

And good thing I did, because this is an absolutely excellent surprise late in the year! I didn’t know what to expect going into it, but I wasn’t really planning on reviewing it (not even a mini review) … that is, until I heard the album and knew immediately I was going to want to write about this album!

Now, I should mention right now that this review isn’t going to be super long. I wasn’t really feeling prepared to write a full-length album review, and I even considered making this a mini review … but no, this deserves its own review. This is one of the absolute best albums I have heard from this year!

And it’s an album that I think works better as a whole than in pieces. Because while I’m not entirely sure about this, it seems like an album where the tracks fit together narratively … and also, musically, it creates an even more fascinating experience, and one that really clicked for me!

The production gives this album a really moody vibe, and while on paper it doesn’t feel like the most mind-blowing production or anything, when you actually listen to it with the full album, it feels very fitting, especially with some points which have a foggier sound to the production, such as the title track, which on paper kind of feels like it shouldn’t work … but when you combine the moody, mysterious vibe of the music with the lyrics—which seem to be questioning a lot of things about existence, and they’re fascinating—you get an absolutely incredible track that feels like the heart and soul of this album!

And right after that track is the closing track, “Spend The Grace”, with its absolutely awesome guitar distortion combined with some great drums that sound excellent in the mix, creating this super eerie atmosphere for an amazing closing track!

“Wild Blue” is an instrumental track that I wish had a little bit more to it, and it is my least favourite on the album, but it’s still a nice, calming listen … with just enough eeriness, too.

There’s a lot of really good guitar distortion on this album, with the opening track being a great example … it sounds absolutely crushing, and it’s awesome!

But I also do like the clean guitar in some parts of this album. For example, I think it sounds absolutely excellent when paired with the foggy drums in “Like Stars In The Firmament”!

In my opinion, the mixing on this album is absolutely excellent … or at least it fits amazingly well considering everything else going on in this album!

I’ve mentioned every other track here, so before I wrap up this review I would like to talk about “Forever Well”, which starts off with some excellent bass and some great tension-building … and I think it fits really well with the terrifying lyrics, especially with that haunting synth that floats around, in a way that might feel annoying at first, but the song wouldn’t be nearly as powerful without it! And it’s worth mentioning that the lyrics don’t start until later, but still, it feels really fitting.

Still on the topic of “Forever Well”, this song takes an absolutely fantastic turn part way through that might surprise you!

I understand why this album might not click for you … I mean, it’s a bit of a slow burn, and if you’re not a fan of this style it probably won’t really appeal to you … but I found it to be a very fascinating listen, and one that really grabbed my attention in a very positive way! And again, as many great moments as there are, it’s even more magical when you put it all together as a whole album!

The synths, the drums, the guitar, the vocals … it’s all here, all combining together to create some incredible vibes, and it’s very open to interpretation as well … and the mystery of it really fits with the sound, too!

So, overall, I really love this album! It’s an album which seems to have a certain kind of nihilism/cynicism to it that doesn’t feel too over-the-top but still feels real, and the music represents it amazingly well … maybe I didn’t describe that well, or maybe I’m totally misunderstanding it, but that’s the way I hear this album. But anyway, as an overall album experience this really wowed me! And it’s the second 9.5/10 I’ve given out this month! What a fantastic surprise late in the year!

Before I end this post … well, first of all, yes, I know this review was kind of a mess, and I’m just going to say right now that I don’t think this was a particularly great review … I’ve been super busy with year-end lists and I didn’t feel like putting in a ton of time to writing a super in-depth review right now, and again, I wasn’t super prepared to write a full-length album review … but I really wanted to give this album its own review, because again, I think the album is absolutely incredible.

But now I want to share some exciting news: I am almost done my first year-end list of 2023! It might even be up tomorrow (although I would say that’s unlikely … I wouldn’t totally rule it out, though)! It’s The Top 10 Worst Hit Songs of 2023 … then I’m going to do The Top 10 Best Hit Songs of 2023, The Top 25 Worst Songs of 2023, The Top 10 Worst Albums of 2023, The Top 50 Best Albums of 2023 (spoiler alert: When No Birds Sang will be on that list), and finally, The Top 100 Best Songs of 2023 (I’ll probably post this one in two parts like I did with my top 100 favourite songs of 2022).

But no guarantee as to when any of these posts will be up … but I’m hoping to have them all done by early January, unlike last year.

Anyway, thanks for reading, and I’ll be back soon with more posts!

Final Thoughts
Rating: 9.5/10
Favourite Tracks: “Rose Tinted World”, “Like Stars In The Firmament”, “Forever Well”, “When No Birds Sang”, “Spend The Grace”
Least Favourite Track: “Wild Blue”