From the very first hit of the snare drum to the very last note of This Godless Endeavor, the conviction of NEVERMORE to create the album of their career is blatantly obvious. The great news is that they accomplish this goal with the precision and focus of a master. Led by the immense talents of guitarist Jeff Loomis, the band tear through eleven songs that can best be described as fierce, heavy, and powerful. The consistency in quality of the songs as well as the continuity between them is solid. NEVERMORE find a way to create potent, memorable songs that are built with the band’s technical prowess as musicians, which even gives MEGADETH and CARCASS a run for their money. This is the kind of album that will inspire young metal fans to pick up an instrument for the first time and learn to master it. A reinvigorated Warrel Dane, one of the last great metal frontmen using traditional clean vocals, pours his heart out into This Godless Endeavor with unquestionable passion. There’s really no need to analyze things beyond one’s gut feeling. Without a doubt, NEVERMORE are the true definition of “modern metal” and This Godless Endeavor is one of the best albums of the year. (Century Media Records)