Metal Underground.com

Sometimes one has to ask the question, what’s the point of releasing a demo EP? Apparently for a young band it is a great way of getting music out to the world, but isn't that the purpose of Myspace? Demo EP releases are rarely anything to rave over and only offer up a sub-par collection of poor quality songs that never reach the potential of the band. Such is the case with Lethal Halo’s self-titled demo release. “Lethal Halo” provides four songs from the band that fail to achieve any level of excitement and are really a complete drain to get through.

Every track presented here is exactly the same in terms of its stale songwriting and presentation. After multiple listens the EP also comes across as being quite contrived, as if a few college friends got together after hearing Slipknot for the first time and tried making some “wicked metal tunes” for themselves. From the opening track “Necessary War” to the closer “Lost in the Labyrinth,” the four track EP is pungent in the stench of mediocrity and becomes less and less enjoyable with each successive spin.

It’s really hard to tell if Lethal Halo is a talented band or not. While some parts of “End of Days” seem to offer a slight glimpse of hope, all is shattered with Lethal Halo’s beyond-horrible guttural vocal style that never seems to remain consistent and clean vocals that are constantly off key. Perhaps a better production quality could save these songs, and in turn this band, but even the best producer in the world might have a hard time getting something out of Lethal Halo.

The combination of uninspired songwriting, horrible production quality, and forced vocals work against Lethal Halo and create an unbearable 19 minutes of modern melodic death metal. Lethal Halo may be worth a revisit once something of a better quality is released, but until then this four track self-titled EP is yet another you can add to the discount bin.