5th April 2021

Review: “The Pilgrimage” by No Hope For The Lost

Following the Covid related demise of their band Deadlights, Re Mayer (guitar, backing vocals, synth) and Nathanael Bohnet (bass, lead vocals) have taken the opportunity to reimagine their sound and image with a new project called No Hope For The Lost and with a Final Fantasy X theme running throughout their debut EP “The Pilgrimage” they may just find overnight success in Japan. Based in Octave Studios in Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada and combining influences from Progressive Metal, Metalcore, Science Fiction and Video Games the duo are both aspiring audio engineers…

…an unsettling melodic introduction with its roots in Progressive Metal “Braska” cut an uneasy, ominous and atmospheric piece that servers as an introduction, the credit roll if you will for “Yu Yevon“. As evil laughter echoes around your skull the DJent fuelled Nu-Metalcore of that second cut bursts through with furious intent and throat splitting vocals that let us for a Post-Hardcore inspired clean sung chorus which is the last thing you’d expect given the knuckleduster skull punch of the opening but that is transitioned both into and out of so well that it works unbelievably well. Then you have the ambient interlude of “Yunalesca” which soars beautifully while remaining uneasy and sonically at least it belongs on the score of a video game. The demonic possession vocals are back for “Jecht” with a barrage of Nu-Metalcore riffs that create a dramatic and frantic pit starter. An unexpected and sumptuous solo followed by a.big breakdown sequence is an absolute pleasure. In all honesty, No Hope For The Lost are a rough diamond that have all the promise in the World with these four cuts that showcase what they could do going forward. The question is are they going to go Nintendo core like Jumpman or follow Aois Innealan down a darker path? [7/10]

Track listing