Shattered Vessels – Humans Are Alive

Shattered Vessels
Humans Are Alive
February, 2022
Playing time: 26:54

A few days ago, singer Yael Medrez Pier contacted me. She is the front woman of the Mexican Symphonic Metal band Shattered Vessels. However, she herself is from and lives in Manhattan (New York). The band was founded in Mexico City in 2019. Various singles have been released so far, mostly on YouTube and other digital platforms. The songs were produced by Jacob Hansen (Arch Enemy, Volbeat) and Josef van den Brock (Epica, Powerwolf). In February, the EP “Humans Are Alive” was released. Although, EP is actually not the correct description. On Apple Music you can only buy five individual songs, but not all of them at the same time as an EP.

“The Beast’s Last Desire” starts with powerful piano sounds. But if you think the orchestration will have the upper hand, you’ll soon be proven wrong. Because soon the rhythm section strikes with full force. Heavy riffing and powerful drumming can be heard. Yes, of course, an orchestra can also be heard, but it doesn’t push itself into the foreground. Another positive surprise is the singing of Yael Medrez Pier. A clear voice with a dark timbre. Later there are epic passages with orchestra and choruses. But also a very good guitar solo, or rather a guitar-piano interplay. The title song “Humans Are Alive” goes off right from the beginning. Double bass attacks keep the speed high. With “A Tale With Two Endings” you think you’re listening to a ballad with strings and choirs. At least for more than a minute. But then the band really gets going again. The trio also produced a real video for “Portrait Of Us”. You can admire Hagen playing a guitar solo. And you can see that not all the instruments were sampled. Guest musicians play the grand piano and cello. The finale is the orchestral version of “The Beast’s Last Desire”.

Shattered Vessels are a symphonic metal band with a lot of potential. They have made good use of the current difficult times and released several songs. Whether this loose compilation on Apple Music can already be called an EP, I can’t say. Obviously, more songs are in the making. At least that’s what singer Yael assured me in a Facebook chat. One can definitely be curious about the further development of the band. The result could be a full-length album. Perhaps the musicians will also succeed in completing the line-up.

Shattered Vessels – Portrait Of Us (Official): https://youtu.be/eOB4HEBX_CI

Lineup:

Yael Medrez Pier – Vocals
Hagen (Eduardo Kaat) – Lead Guitars
Flare (Fernando Flare) – Rhythm Guitars

Track list:

• The Beast’s Last Desire
• Humans Are Alive
• A Tale With Two Endings
• Portrait Of Us
• The Beast’s Last Desire (Orchestral Version)