TIMES OF GRACE Songs of Loss and Separation | Weekly Heavy Metal Album Review

Released by Wicked Good Records on July 16th, 2021

Quick Background

Longtime friends and collaborators Adam Dutkiewicz and Jesse Leach released Times of Grace debut, The Hymn of a Broken Man, in 2011, nearly a decade after they worked together on Killswitch Engage's benchmark genre defining album, 2002's Alive Or Just Breathing. Leach left Killswitch Engage, the pivotal band the duo co-founded in 1999, shortly after Alive Or Just Breathing release but rejoined the group in early 2012 following the departure of his replacement, Howard Jones. So to me it came as a surprise that they would work again on Times of Grace.

Songs of Loss and Separation

Surprisingly or not, the band released its long-awaited sophomore album, Songs Of Loss And Separation. Let's get this out of the way. The music is melancholic and it doesn't sound like Killswitch. Songs of Loss and Separation mixes heaviness, mid-tempo rock, guitar riffs, and atmospheric sounds. It's a dark pessimistic album, but very emotional and honest. The comparisons stop here, let's focus on Times of Grace. This album features 10 tracks and clocks in at 49 minutes. 

From a few rare moments in Killswitch we know that Adam can sing. The good news is that in this album he is the lead vocals on several songs, additionally he once again handled all of the instrumentation and production. Jesse on the other hand experimented with a lower vocal range. Drummer Dan Gluszak, who toured behind the first album and is now an official member of the band does a good job behind the kit.

Times of Grace doesn't sound like any other band but it reminds me of Alice in Chains, Stone Sour or even Pearl Jam. The opening track, "The Burden of Belief" is a testament to that. "Mend You" with its doomy traditional metal build up is a progressive song in just over 4 minutes. I agree with Nik Nocturnal that this could easily be a radio friendly song, despite that, Jesse didn't hold back and still added some of the heaviest moments on the album with his screams at the end of it. The ending is also a perfect bridge to the heaviest song on the album "Rescue". I know I said I wouldn't compare but for the record this is the closest song to Killswitch we have here. And probably why it is my favorite. The riffs are heavy and Jesse screams throughout the track with clean vocals on the chorus which is their formula there. "Far From Heavenless" keeps the heaviness dialed all the way up. 

“Medusa” will please the sludge fans. I love the guitar work on this song. Those chugging riffs are crushing. Also shout out for the drumming, when the song goes into the atmospheric bridge with spoken words, the drums become the best part of the song. And the final touch is the song fading out in the best Meshugga style.

The Picky Guy

"Bleed Me", "Currents", "To Carry The Weight" and "Cold" are very post rock mid-tempo songs that did not appeal to me. Additionally, despite not being bad "Forever" closes the album without bringing anything new to me. In sum this means that the album is front loaded and I loose attention after "Medusa".

Wrap Up Opinion 

Times of Grace is back with an emotional and decent album. It is not Killswitch, so don't even go with those expectations. But there is a lot of value here, specially on the first half of the album. The music is melancholic and Songs of Loss and Separation mixes heaviness, mid-tempo rock, riffs, and atmospheric sounds. For me though, it needed a couple more moments of appeal to be considered a good album, it's close tough, so I am giving it 76/100. There's something here to enjoy so check it for yourself.

SCORE: 76/100

Genre: Alternative Metal

Released by Wicked Good Records on July 16th, 2021

Rating System

99 - 100 Perfect
94 - 98 Excellent
87 - 93 Great
82 - 86 Very Good
77 - 81 Good
66 - 76 Mixed
58 - 65 Bad

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