We honestly don't know how to say this on a proper way because words just can't describe how we feel but we'll have to give it a try. It's really breaking our heart to tell you this but we decided to lay this band to rest.

Our leadguitarist Daan recently decided to quit the band because of a lack of time & changing priorities in his life and we just didn't feel like going on without him. Things just wouldn't be the same anymore. For us it was either this line-up or none. And to make sure no one gets the wrong intentions, there are no hard feelings involved, at all. We'll always be best friends & in our hearts we'll always be Sparkle of Hope, even though we won't be around as this band anymore. This was simply more than just a band to us and it definitely touched our lives in a very positive way.
You will definitely still see us on shows and who knows, maybe you'll see us in new bands. Only time will tell. However, Ryan will keep on doing his remixes, under the name of RY RE and Yves will continue working on his clothing company Dead, Serious! Clothing so we'd appreciate it if you'd check it out & show your support.

No worries for promotors though, we'll still play all the shows we got booked with the current lineup, it will be us 5 till the bitter end. We're also thinking of organising a very last goodbyeshow because it just wouldn't feel right to have a random show to end it all. This band has been the biggest & best part of our lives for 8 years now & it sure will hurt like hell to see it all end on that show but we owe it to ourselves and to everyone that have always been there for us.

And so we also wanna say a very last thank you to quite some people.
We actually wanna thank everyone we met throughout the years, you all made this the most amazing experience in our lives and we'll miss you all so much.
And in particular we'd like to thank Johan & Funtime Records for always believing in us, we just can't thank you enough for everything, you've always been like a dad to us.
All our past members especially Kristof who also started this band with us and helped us make this band the way it has become today.
Also our roadies Seppe & Simon, we'll miss hanging out with you guys as a band. We had so much good times we'll never forget, you'll always be a part of this band in our hearts.
Really every single band we met & played with and in special the bands that are in our top friendslist, you guys have been the best of friends to us and we'll sure miss playing with all you guys. Every promotor that put us on, every single person that came to see us, bought our merch, sang along with us, came to talk to us, gave us a place to sleep, .. We're really gonna miss you all.

So guess this is goodbye.
Please promise us one thing though.
Never forget about us and who we were.
We'll never forget about you all.
We love you.

Sparkle of Hope,
signing off, now & forever.
Goodbye
x

OUT OF STEP MAGAZINE
When it comes to hardcore I prefer the old school. Besides hardcore I can enjoy some good metal from Iron Maiden to Slayer but the combination of both is mostly not my favourite style of musical entertainment. Although there are some metalcore bands that I really appreciate. One of those bands is Sparkle Of Hope. This is the best metallic hardcore I heard in the last 2 years and it is from Belgium (eat this UK). Where lots of metalcore bands get stuck and loose their inspiration, SOH breaks through the boundaries of the genre. Where 'It's Calculated Murder ends', 'Light the Torches' just starts. This record has it all: aggressive and powerful vocals, pounding drums, stunning guitar melodies and an incredible atmosphere. The band has improved and I like the progress they made by bringing more atmospheric additions to there sound. This is the best; forget about all the rest. SOH is the real -metallic hardcore- deal.

9.5/10




WWW.DREUN.COM
Het Belgische label Funtime Records verwent de liefhebbers van het nieuwe hardcoregenre want naast de release van Campus mogen we nu ook 'Light The Torches' verwelkomen, de nieuwe van Sparkle Of Hope. In een vorige recensie liet ik al vallen dat de twee genoemde bands best wel wat overeenkomsten vertonen maar het nieuwe album van SOH gaat toch net een stapje verder wat betreft het buiten de lijntjes kleuren. De hoofdbrok van de liedjes zijn dikwijls loodzware harcore, traag en agressief maar worden al snel bijgestaan door metalen riffjes en riedeltjes. Daarnaast wordt er ook aan sfeermakerij gedaan waarbij het geweld even op rust wordt gezet en de gitaren sferische, bijna dromerige klanken fabriceren. Het straffe aan heel dit zaakje is dat de nummers hierdoor niet aan kracht moeten inboeten, integendeel zelfs, er gaat een constante dreiging van uit. Het voortdurende gebrul, gekweel en geschreeuw is voer voor de liefhebbers maar dit is, durf ik het te zeggen, progressieve metalcore van een hoog niveau. Alle eigenschappen van de hard-en de metalcore zitten er netjes in verpakt maar wel op een eigenwijze en sterke manier.

Ghoulie




WWW.CONCRETEWEB.BE
Hum...having read what former collegue Trik wrote about this Belgian Metalcore outfit's 2006 debut full-length (posted 23/04 of that year, and therefor still available for your scrutiny), I decided to go back to the band's very beginnings, and tell you the whole story.

So, Sparkle Of Hope was formed in the Summer of 2000, but it took 'em 'til 2005 to find a stead line-up. Meanwhile, the band released their first demo What's The True Meaning Of Love (When It's Just An Instrument To Break Hearts) in December 2002, and followed that up with Dead Stars Never Fall in April 2004. Along with the releases came interesting opportunities, like playing at Rock Herk or the Funtime Fest...and the eventual signing to Funtime Records. Rather that counting on the songs they already hàd at the time, the boys (then lead singer Yves Daniels, guitarists Daan Witters and Tim Severi, bassist Koen Meys, and drummer Kristof Lemmens)decided to surpass themselves and turn a new leaf. So they huddled together in the rehearsal room and started to write a completely new repertoire, taking their music to a new level. With a passionate interest in both Hardcore and Heavy Metal, and influenced by more recent bands like Darkest Hour, As I Lay Dying, and Still Remains, but also by even more established acts like Iron Maiden, the boys set to create something quite their own. Funtime immediately recognized the band's worth, allowed them to record at top recording place Dé Studio with Dirk Miers during October – November of 2005, and then sent the data over to top producer Alan Douches in the US (sufficiently know for the work he did with Atreyu, Black Dahlia Murder, Everytime I Die, Unearth, and so many, màny more)to master the whole thing. And guest vocal performances by Dries of The Maple Room on one, and by Lost In Rhone's Steve on two other songs, were proof enough that the quintet had known to make friends in the Belgian music scene! To give the release an even higher profile, the artwork was delivered by Mike Bukowski (see also Comeback Kid, Modern Life Is War, Most Precious Blood, NOFX, and others).

Reactions from both the press and fans were ultimately positive, and the buzz created led to SOH playing an endless list of gigs, including an appearance at the Taste Of Chaos tour date at Brussels' AncienneBelgique (after winning the Ernie Ball's Battle Of The Bands), and some impromptu touring in the UK (amongst others, also with Penknifelovelife during July 2006). Eventually, even yours truly got to buy the album, although for purely scene-supporting reasons in the first place. In fact, I didn't get around to actually lístening to the record untill I was given the new album for review. My personal opinion about It's Calculated Murder!? Well, although the band played a very nicely layered Metalcore with accordingly varying vocals, I felt that there was still room for improvement where the intricacy of melodies is concerned.

So did the band, by the way, unaware that this progress would mean the departure of one of their longtime members. When new writing sessions started, longtime drummer Kristof felt that he simply couldn't keep up with the band's musical aspirations and skills, and in March 2007 news came that he had decided to leave the band in order to allow the other guys to grow. The separation was of course somewhat painful, but the band soon found a replacement in Ryan Lerigo-Jones, a crazy British kid who previously played with Lostfoundbroken and moved to Belgium to join one of his favourite bands. Working their way towards the Summer, the guys still did a couple of gigs, but concentrated on their songwriting first! Then, late August guitarist Dann went off to Valencia, Spain for six months. Meanwhile, the other guys continued their rehearsals (and I'm sure Daan also practiced some while on the Iberian island), and upon his return the guys did the last fine-tuning before entering the Split Second Sound studio, ran by Textures singer Jochem Jacobs and his study pal Bouke Visser. Jacobs also co-produced the album with the band, and did the album mix and mastering.

The cumulative effect of all factors involved makes the previous album pale by comparison! Good heavens, SOH's new album rips from front to back. Well, not completely, because the untitled (and unlisted) short instrumental on the album actually brings a moment of calmer and extremely beautiful atmospherics. As far as the guitar work is concerned on the 8 songs, you're safe to say a high degree of Progressive Metal has entered the overal music, and this not only in the leads, but also in the slightly lower pitched rhythmics. In fact, played somewhat slower, the rhythm guitar brings in a lot of the groove, while the lead guitar is almost constantly off in harmonized melodies at a higher pace and throwing in a couple of unexpected twists and turns as well. These poly-rhythms, together with the varied vocals (returning on backing vocals is Dries from The Maple Room, other vocal guests this time around being Rik & Tijs from Campus, Koen from Billy Got Spanked, Jonas from Exit On The Left, and Jochem Jacobs), makes for an absolutely exhilerating whole which exceeds our boldest expectations, and which simply nééds to be heard by any fan of the Millenium Metalcore genre. The album release originally planned for early May and then delayed to the 23 rd has had as effect that the fivesome went on a short Swedish tour (from the 17 th to the 24 th of May, which saw the band perform at Örebro's Treasurefest)without a new album as merchandise item. It made no difference that some of the gigs were cancelled for reasons beyond SOH's control, as the guys had real great fun goin' anyway! During July and August, they'll be playing a couple of youth centers accross Belgium, so if you're into getting to know a band in live conditions, check out where the'll be...and try to get there too!

One thing you will notice right-off when consulting myspace.com/sparkleofhope, is the wonderful artwork for the album, brought to us by one Dan Mumford (who's previously also done cover art work for Gallows and others). Then, you might wanna compare the posted album title song with the three others. I'm sure you'll agree that to say that in the last two years SOH grew from a bunch of young wannabee hopefuls to a right-out competitor for the crown in the modern Metalcore genre, is an understatement to say the least! It shouldn't be a surprise toi find this album in my "Best Albums Of 2008"-list at the end of the year!

98/100

Tony




WWW.FESTIVALINFO.NL
Het begon allemaal in het jaar 2000 toen vijf vrienden bij elkaar kwamen. Na vele wisselingen van naam en van leden was er toen eindelijk Sparkle Of Hope. Ze maakten een mix van As I Lay Dying, Still Remains en Darkest Hour. Een sound welke opviel in thuisland Belgie. Er waren namelijk veel metal invloeden in deze band vergeleken met de vele hardcore, emo en screamo bandjes, zoals the.maple.room, Rise&Fall en Campus, die uit de grond popten rond deze tijd in Belgie.

Dit was een sound die niet onopgemerkt bleef, en zo kregen de mannen van Sparkle Of Hope veel aandacht. Ook aandacht van het label Funtime welk deze band later tekende. In 2006 kwam het debuutalbum It's Calculated Murder (lees hier onze recensie) uit. Met tien nummers bewees Sparkle Of Hope de kracht te bezitten om de krachtige hardcore te mixen met het lompe metal gedeelte en de stevige gitaren. Op tour werd de band warm onthaald en speelden ze onder andere op de Taste Of Chaos Tour in Belgie en waren ze support van Pennyknifelovelife.

Helaas stapte in 2007 drummer en mede- oprichter Kristof uit de band. Al snel verhuisde Ryan uit de UK naar Belgie om de lege plek achter de drums op te vullen. Met deze nieuwe, frisse drummer pakt Sparkle of Hope het grootst aan met hun nieuwe album Light The Torches. Met de gelijknamige titeltrack begint deze cd. Het is duidelijk. Sparkle Of Hope klinkt vele malen harder als op de voorganger It's Calculated Murder. De term melodische hardcore komt meteen naar boven drijven met voorbeelden zoals Killswitch Engage en het eerder genoemde As I Lay Dying.

Tijdens het twee nummer Last Night, Our Heart Stopped Beating doen ons veel invloeden van Bring Me The Horizon en All Shall Perish naar voren horen komen. Aangenaam verrast door de cleane vocalen in dit nummer komen we halverwege op deze negen- nummer tellende cd aan bij een instrumentaal nummer. Een mooi rust moment om verder voort te vloeien in het hoogtepunt van deze cd. This Ain't Hollywood, That's For Sure slaagt erin om de meeste brute beatdown te creëren die een Belgische band ooit heeft gemaakt. Zelfs de moshcore van Nasty! kan hier niet aan tippen en dat wilt wat zeggen.

Met het melodische 'The Monster Cult' met een Bring Me The Horizon-beatdown wat later uitbarst in een typisch As I Lay Dying nummer komt er een eind aan deze cd, welke overigens versiert is met geweldig mooi artwork. Mike Bukowski ( Comeback Kid, NOFX ) heeft het mysterieuze artwork in elkaar gezet waarbij veel inspiratie is gehaald uit de laatste cd van Darkest Hour zo te zien. Het is logisch dat Sparkle Of Hope hoog inzet met deze cd en een grote promotiecampagne begint. Deze cd zal wel eens voor de doorbraak van deze band kunnen gaan zorgen. Voor iedereen die van melodische hardcore, metalcore en de typische Belgische underground- scène houdt is dit een must- have!

4,5/5

Twan





WWW.CUTTINGEDGE.BE
Metalcore met een sprankje virtuositeit - Het eerste wat in het oog springt als je de nieuwe plaat van Sparkle of Hope bekijkt is het artwork. Love it or hate it, wij kunnen het best smaken. Ook de muziek op het schijfje springt onmiddellijk in het oor. De band drukt van bij de start het gaspedaal in en verpoost maar een paar maal op 'Light the torches'. Toch zijn het die momenten die we het meest appreciëren. Deze leuke intermezzo's (luister bijvoorbeeld naar track 6) tonen een veelzijdigheid die nogal wat bands missen.
Sparkle of Hope speelt metalcore à la As I Lay Dying en qua originaliteit zit er inderdaad een haar in de boter. Het vorige album 'It's calculated murder' was een moeilijk te penetreren blok beton. 'Light the Torches' is een veel gevarieerder werkstuk. De titeltrack kan je na drie luisterbeurten meebrullen én meezingen. Want op het einde van dat nummer horen we zowaar een clean en meezingbaar refrein! Best leuk voor wie niet op de vrij stompzinnige tekst let. Tekstueel treedt het album niet buiten de al door zoveel bands uitgezette krijtlijnen.

Guitar hero Daan Witters kleurt wel buiten de lijntjes. Zijn gitaarspel is ronduit virtuoos en tilt de plaat op een hoger niveau. De riffs, piepjes en solo's zijn heerlijk en komen de sound van Sparkle of Hope ten goede. Wij wachten vol ongeduld op een soloplaat (laten we zeggen flamenco?) van deze jongeman. Naarmate het album vordert, treedt de leadgitaar steeds meer op de voorgrond. De twee laatste tracks ('Send more paramedics' en 'The monsters cult') zijn soms zelfs sferisch te noemen. 'Light the Torches' is een cd die tot het einde boeit omdat hij net iets anders klinkt dan het metalcore-peloton.

3/5

Kevin






BE.ROCK-METAL-PUNK.ORG
We have to say these things
We have have to say goodbye

Vanaf dat melodische stuk in de opener en tevens de title track 'Light the Torches' was ik ervan overtuigd, ik ga heel mee zijn met de nieuwe Sparkle of Hope. De vorige heb ik tot mijn schande eigenlijk nooit gecheckt en ik snap niet waarom, de twee keren dat ik ze live heb gezien was het altijd wel een serieus vette bedoening. Deze release heeft me alleszins overtuigd van het debuut "it's calculated murder" ook eens te checken. Want amai, de vette breaks en geschifte rifjes – om één of andere reden doen ze me soms aan Iron Maiden denken en dat is een serieus compliment – vliegen je constant om de oren. Ook de melodische stukken zijn echt zeer de moeite, zie de intro van " Keep me from Sleep ". Volgens mij trouwens het coolste nummer van de ganse cd. Die gitaar solo, die makkelijke mee te brullen stukken, die breakdown en die bloedmooie chaos aan het einde. Reken maar dat dat live sing-a-longs en zotte circlepits gaat opleveren, knalschijf.

Ook een pluim voor het meer experimentelere Send More Parmedics, dat terugkerend chaotisch rifje deed me wat aan Converge/Dillinger Escape Plan denken. En bestaan er coolere bands in hardcore om mee vergeleken te worden? Ik ben alleszins van mening van niet.

Kort gesteld, "Light the torches" is toch wel één van de meer originelere metalcore releases uit de Belgische scene. Checken die handel!






MASS MOVEMENT
The new wave of American heavy metal has crashed the sandy beaches of Belgium. And from the shores of the cold North Sea it crept inland to inundate the rehearsal room of a very talented band called Sparkle of Hope. The waters of metal were seeping through the doors with the band's debut 'It's Calculated Murder' but As I Lay Dying influences almost possessed Sparkle of Hope with this new output. Does that make them a mere copycat of the US band? Nah, the intensity and craftsmanship are true and heartfelt, catchy, melodic yet fierce and aggressive. A tiny touch of more atmospheric metal in the vein of many Relapse bands also give them that speical touch. Sparkle of Hope is not drowning in mediocrity, and borrowed riffs, as one might expect but are surfing the metalwaves with the best of them. Cowabonga dude.

Martijn Welzen

Belgian metalcore band Sparkle Of Hope had been founded already in the summer of 2000, but it took them five years to find a more or less stable line-up to record their debut It's Calculated Murder, a solid if not exactly innovative work.

Three years later they are back with their second album Light The Torches, released again on the Belgian label Funtime. Apart from a new drummer, there have been no changes this time, although the band has considerably matured. The main ingredient of their music is still metallic hardcore in the vein of As I Lay Dying and Darkest Hour. They took care to add a lot of breaks into their songs, although you will not find many speed attacks. Dead's Hot is the exception with its elevated pace, but apart from that, the band mostly stays in mid-tempo territories, without giving up any of their brutality. Next to the aggressive riffing, the emphasis is on the harmonic guitar playing which remind at times of Iron Maiden, and on the varied vocals that manage everything from evil growls over screamo to melodic emo. The songs mostly start with violent verses that segue into more melodic choruses that invite to sing along. Occasional complex and atmospheric parts bestow an even progressive aura upon the band.




DISAGREEMENT
Sparkle Of Hope have managed to really surprise me with Light The Torches, by offering everything that was still missing on their debut. Guest vocalists from label mates Campus and Maple Room make for a little variety. The aesthetically pleasing cover artwork has been done by Mike Bukowski (by Dan Mumford that is!)who also drew already for NOFX and Comeback Kid. Sparkle Of Hope have improved in every possible way, and deserve to get fullest attention with their new album.

Tomorrow our guitarplayer Daan will be off to Valencia for 6 months, we'll miss him so much!
But no worries, he's coming back & we already made songs for our new album! So we'll keep on rehearsing without him and as soon as he's back, you'll notice, for sure! We're already looking forward on coming back with the new stuff!

Love from us all <3

We had a blast this weekend! We headed to the Netherlands to play one show in Hardenberg on saturday and one in Nijmegen on sunday and it was f*cking awesome! We really had the fortune to have the company of amazing people such as Anna, Maarten UnityRally (and his friends), Johan Cameron (and the rest of his band), Jelle 'sekskelder' Clarity and many more! Thank you for giving us such a great time and for taking care of us, especially Anna! Also thank you to Joris from From My Hands for coming along (he replaced Tim), he really did an amazing job! It was really fun to have him around! One last thing! You should definitely check out bands such as Cameron, The Architect, .. they fucking rock and should come over here really soon!

Take care everyone and talk to you soon! x

 

 

the releaseshow yesterday was really how we all wanted it to be and we'd like to thank all of you for showing up and for making this an evening we'll never forget! really, this band means the world to us and there's no better feeling than knowing that you all cared yesterday! thank you! we love you all for it!

a big thank you goes also out to all the amazingly cool bands that played yesterday and made this really a releasePARTY! we couldn't have done it without you guys, thank you!

i guess that's it for now but you'll hear more from us soon.. that's a promise!

take care x

Some of you may have heard about Kristof of Lost in Rhone breaking his hand.
But we can tell you that our show with lost in Rhone will go on as planned. They will be playing with a substitute guitar player.
So we will see all of you saturday.

Love
The collective