Blood Stain Child - Mystic Your Heart
M&I Company
COB like Ultra-Melodic Death Metal
10 songs (33'56)
Release year: 2003
Blood Stain Child
Reviewed by Chris
Archive review

Not long ago I discovered that band that make quite an impact on me with their latest (and first european-wise) album Idolator. That mix of In Flames and l'Arc-en-Ciel turned me into a total fan of the band. So I decided I should get the rest of their collection and see if the previous albums also are of the same caliber.

One thing is sure, Mystic Your Heart is not really similar to Idolator. The only resemblance would be the electronic, almost techno / trance keys then and there. Other than than Mystic Your Heart is more faster and in the vein of Children Of Bodom than In Flames. Not that this bothers me, of course not, as I'm also a big fan of COB type of meldeath, and in fact, if it wasn't for Hatebreeder I might never have made the jump to harsh vocals. But let's get back to the album. Its very fast paced, with guitar riffs that sound like they were played and written by Alexi himself. The vocals are more screechy than on Idolator, and the overall is faster and at times you'll think you're listening to unreleased songs from Children Of Bodom. The guitar / key battle that is so trademark to COB is present a lot throughout Mystic Your Heart. One other thing that is quite different from Idolator is the production, while not bad by any means, its far away from the incredible pounding sound from Idolator. But its in par with the first COB album sound-wise. The vocals are not as varied, and while very good, still show that Ryo has evolved quite a lot in between this album and Idolator. The drumming can be furious (like on The Rise Of All The Fall or The Road To Ruin to name only a few) and the pounding will shake your head and knock you off your feet. The album is overly melodic, as a matter of fact it is much more than Idolator. Melodies are flying all over the place, from the keyboards, guitars and the vocals... Mystic Your Heart is like a devastating melodic whirlwind if you wish. Guitar wise, you'll get some pretty strong riffs on this opus, but overly melodic guitar melodies is what takes the spolight here.

In the end this second album is very good and if you're a Children Of Bodom fan, you might very well appreciate it even more than Idolator. I for one prefer the direction Blood Stain Child decided to purse, while it feels like In Flames was an important inspiration for Idolator, Mystic Your Heart almost feel like copycat from time to time. When its so wonderfully executed and while still remaining many original elements, who can complain ? Certainly not me. A pretty solid album that displays the talent from this young rising band. I will also soon review their debut album. Fans of ultra-melodic fast paced, pounding melodeath, this one is for you all the way !

Killing Songs :
All, but my favorites are Clone Life, The Rise Of All The Fall & The Road To Ruin, Deep Silent Memory, System & Artificial Mind.
Chris quoted 90 / 100
Other albums by Blood Stain Child that we have reviewed:
Blood Stain Child - Idolator reviewed by Chris and quoted 98 / 100
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