Artist : eROTic
Album : Never Sleep Again
Label : Gestalt Records

This is the second eROTic album we've had the opportunity to review and it shows incredible growth and signs of a band maturing into it's sound.  The production quality has improved, though could still use some work, and the compositional "feel" of the album is tight.

This is the story of one man's descent into depression, alcohol and drugs and his eventual return to this dreary world.  I wouldn't say it had a happy ending, but it does end less bleak than it began.

As someone who has been down that path, I understand.  The hell of day to day existence is held back by the prescribed hell of doctor's insistence of  medication.  The drugs dull the pain but the pain is still there.

You can hear the pain and anguish in this disc, it gnaws at you and makes you angry.  Angry, not sad.  This is not a mopey goth disc, it's angst-filled industrial metal with vocals that compete with screaming guitars and heavy basslines.

The final track "Lovers" is epic at over ten minutes.  It is the songs that evens out the feel of the rest of the record.  It is still heavy, but brings hope back into this dark world.  The shared vocals on this track work really well, far batter than on the Ozzie cover of "Close My Eyes Forever".  This is my favorite track on the record, but I love the emotive heavy quality of songs like "Three Years", "Mezcal" and "Cum Again"

"Cum Again" is a hell of a regretful break up song with lines like "What wouldn't give for the chance to f#ck you one more time, how I\'d love to feel you again, I wish you were still mine."

All in all, this is an amazing album.  It brings together a story of depression, angst and anxiety is very heavy tones and creates a mood that is at once deeply personal and yet very aggressive.

EROTic, keep up the good work.

For Fans of : Nine Inch Nails, Gravity Kills, Type O Negative
High Points : "Three Years", "Mezcal" and "Cum Again"
Reviewed BY : Dana