Devoid by name, but definitely not by nature.

The definition of devoid is "to lack or be without something that is necessary or usual". The latter certainly cannot be levelled at this Melodic Progressive Metal band, the brainchild of French guitarist Maël Saoǔt (aka Shad Mae) who's gathered together a cornucopia of talent to record 'Cup Of Tears'. This includes his bandmate from the French Progressive Rock band Shadyon – keyboard player Jorris Guilbaud – with drummer Ben Wanders, bassist Ben Toquet and journeyman vocalist Carsten "Lizard" Schulz (Evidence One, LaValle) completing the main group. Add in a wealth of talented guitarists from the genre as well and you have yourself one fantastic album.

'Soldiers' sets the scene as guitars and keyboards intertwine to a fearsome backbeat of drums and bass with a passionate vocal by Schulz, who puts in arguably the performance of his career to date. The song also features an impressive solo from Beyond The Katakomb's Daniel Palmqvist. 'Otherworld' continues the aural assault and 'Collective Heart' shows no signs of slowing down as it tears along at breakneck speed. Special mention must be made of the astounding drumming of Wanders who effortlessly switches between double-kick and standard fills throughout. The acoustic intro to 'The Clock Is Ticking' gives the listener the first breathing space before it develops into an Eden's Curse style rocker, notably during the chorus, and it also features a tasty solo from Primal Fear's Magnus Karlsson.

Album producer Gwen Kerjan provides the guitar solo on 'Killing Hands', a song that is underpinned by Huon's thunderous bass, and one that will be manna from heaven for any fan of the genre. 'Religion' has Schulz at his melodic best and it's the closest thing we get to a ballad on the album. The pace picks up again for 'Agony' with the following two-minute instrumental 'Final Breath' perfectly positioned in the running order to allow the album to breath. Another slow intro begins 'Colours Fade To Grey' which builds into an epic, whilst 'Mind Keeper' features impressive solos by Freak Kitchen's Mattias la Eklundh and the aforementioned Kerjan. The title track is more glorious Progressive Metal and that only leaves the magnificent, Eastern-flavoured instrumental 'Hollow Point' to bring the album to a fitting climax. This song also features Palmqvist duelling with Evergrey's Henrik Danhage.

Fans of recent releases by Evergrey, DGM and Eden's Curse will love 'Cup Of Tears'; Devoid by name, but definitely not by nature.

Mark Donnelly