Entwine - Time of Despair (2010)

Entwine has left their goth metal past behind, as Time of Despair is much more in tune with European rock and pop than anything resembling metal. This works for the most part, as Entwine has the capability to write some extraordinary modern rock tunes. The opening song, "Stream of Life," is utterly tremendous, as Entwine seems to have perfected the art of creating a radio rock song that sounds very accessible yet explosively progressive at the same time. Unfortunately, the group quickly loses sight of the vision the opening track embodies, and Entwine tumbles through a handful of faceless songs that run out of steam all too quickly and drag on much longer then they honestly should. Entwine manages to correct these errors near the end of Time of Despair, as "Learn to Let Go" and the title track are solid chunks of European depressive rock. Regardless of the mistakes on this album, Entwine has stumbled upon a style that fits them like a glove and, given time, should become one impressive group.