How many times have you visited a concert where the frontman says you should never give up on your dreams and fight for things you desire? Most of the time I think: ‘bladiebladiebla, just play some rock & roll music, will ya?’ simply because it always sounds so cliché. I guess Mirror of Deception will think a bit different about that, because it took them ten years to release a debut record. Shards is their third.

But then, Mirror of Deception understands how to play great doom metal. The simplicity of the songs on a slow rhythm of course, combined with sad melancholic dual!! vocals turn sadness into something beautiful. And although singer Siffermann simply can’t compete with the monsters that are leading the scene, he still is able to create an ambience that is convincing and unique.

 

Highlights of the album are 'The Eruption', where the drummer really pounds his gear as hell, 'The Capital New' which is a bit faster than you’d expect but has got a great ‘phat’ sound which reminds me a bit of the main riff in 'Soul Sacrifice' by Cathedral and my absolute favorite song 'Ghost'. In my opinion, this song reflects everything great doom metal should be; fragility, tenderness and heaviness with emotional vocals. Seriously, if you’re into this, please try to get this song somewhere.

 

Mirror of Deception didn’t do anything crazy for their third full-length and of course that’s not a bad thing. As a result, Shards has become a very decent doom metal record with some interesting highlights. Nothing more, nothing less. It thus seems as if the band is fully enjoying the opportunity to be musically creative, just as has been told at so many concerts.