Magic Pie – The Suffering Joy

Have you ever listened to a record that you knew was very good, excellent even, but no matter what, it just does not click with you? For me, much modern traditional prog falls into this category, and while I can quietly respect it for its musical virtuosity, there is very little excitement in it for me, and next to impossible to foster an emotional bond with the music. Scandinavian progressive rock band Magic Pie’s latest album is a perfect example of this sort of album, and as I dive into the seventy minute work that these Norwegians have created here, I see that I really have reasons for being unable to feel the music on anything more than an academic level.

Undoubtedly, this is not the most positive way to open up a review, but see it as something of a disclaimer; while I can certainly appreciate ‘The Suffering Joy’ for its vintage flair and complex approach, I usually have an averse reaction to the whole scene of prog that tries to revive the sound of the ’70s. Indeed, if anything, that is one of the things that Magic Pie do best. Looking past a professional and modernized production varnish to the sound, the core of the band is based in the same sort of prog that was going strong in the early 70’s. Of course, there are many who can still appreciate the music for what it is, and if I could look past the fact that this sound has been recycled again and again over the course of forty years, I could see myself loving what Magic Pie do here.

A fairly long album, Magic Pie barrages the listener with prog epics left right and center. The first four tracks here comprise the ‘A Life’s Work’ suite, although for all intents and purposes, the fourth track is the one that people will be talking about; a seventeen minute section where Magic Pie pulls out every trick from vocal harmonies to crunchy guitar tones to a variety of vintage synth sounds. Then there are a number of mini-epics to trail the centerpiece, including the fairly heavy ‘Slightly Mad’, or ‘In Memoriam’. It is made very clear what the band was going for here, and for the most part, they are able to pull off the sound very well. There are many ideas in each epic, and especially in the guitar solos, a sense that Magic Pie is out to impress.

All this time, it feels evidently clear that Magic Pie are taking themselves far too seriously. That is not to say that they should not be pursuing their music with as much focus as they do, but the emotion in their music seems to be blocked by a contrived sense of songwriting and performance that seeks to dazzle rather than really touch the listener. This even shows in the album’s length, and there are several points in this album where ‘The Suffering Joy’ may have ended quite nicely, but they decide to throw in another fifteen or nine minute long epic into the fray to keep the train running along. While only the guitar solos (which are admittedly incredible) really astounded me from their technical brilliance, the sheer amount of ideas in each track does not hide the fact that the ideas are not used well. The lyrics are fairly bad, reverting to using single syllable rhymes, and plodding on with rather mechanical takes on fairly human things like emotions and philosophy.

Really, in the end, what can I say about this album? It is a perfectly capable piece of ’70s prog rock, released in 2011. Although there are still better bands doing the same thing out there- Transatlantic and Beardfish come to mind- Magic Pie really do nail the sound down, and there are ideas aplenty here to keep the vintage prog afficionado up for many a night. But as unfortunate as it is, when there is nothing new being offered, it is difficult to recommend this over any progressive music that is actually doing something new, rather than looking back on the old masters. End rant.

Tracklist:

1. A Life’s Work (Part I) – Questions Unanswered (1:16)
2. A Life’s Work (Part II) – Overture (3:32)
3. A Life’s Work (Part III) – A Brand New Day (2:28)
4. A Life’s Work (Part IV) – The Suffering Joy (17:09)
5. Headlines (9:29)
6. Endless Ocean (3:11)
7. Slightly Mad (9:48)
8. Tired (15:21)
9. In Memoriam (8:39)

Line-up:

* Eriikur Hauksson – vocals and guitars
* Eirik Hanssen – vocals and guitars
* Kim Stenberg – guitars
* Lars Petter Holstad – bass
* Gilbert Marshall – vocals and keyboards
* Jan T. Johannessen – drums

Links:

http://www.magicpie.net/

French TV – I Forgive You All My Unhappiness/Live at ProgDay 2009

“There is a grim dimension, beyond that which is known to most men. It is a dimension as small as dust and as timeless as a sequined bell-bottom. It is the middle ground between artifice and talent, between Doctor Who and Tolkien. I’m Mac Beaulieu, and you’ve just entered the Progrock Zone”

So declaims the mission statement on this, the reissued tenth French TV offering, originally issued last year, now coming at you with a tasty bonus disc recorded live at ProgDay 2009, and who am I to argue with such a concise nailed on statement of fact?!

Inhabiting a strange dimension somewhere between Zappa at his jazziest and on the outskirts of Canterbury while flirting with RIO and possibly mental trauma, the band have been going since 1983(!), and push out some fine complex ensemble playing. Quirkiness permeates their music, as you can guess from the track titles, along with Hawking-defying impossible time signatures and strange musical scales that make one’s feet subconsciously tap asymmetrically. If cats could dance methinks they would cut a rug to this groove.

Playful and wilful in equal measure, leader Mike Sary anchors things on his trusty bass guitar, as far as that is possible, with some unobtrusive yet no doubt difficult playing. The rest of the band are no mugs either, and with talent like this burrowing down so far underground even a Chilean mining rescue team would have problems locating them, it makes me despair of mainstream tastes. Or maybe I’m just weird?

Anyway on to the album. Seven Rusty Nails starts by plumbing a funky groove before shifting gear with swelling organ (no snickering at the back) and sax playing, setting the tone for the brainiac French TV experience. Just a casual glance at the track titles gives big clues as to what butters these guys’ bread. National Health or Frank Zappa would be proud to have come up with titles like ”Conversational Paradigms” or “With Grim Determination, Terrell Dons the Bow Tie”, such is the licence given to the makers of instrumental music. Listed as contributing vocals to the latter track, “young” Andrew Katsikas’ appearance is awaited with anticipation while we soft shoe shuffle through a minefield of dazzling complexity, including snatches of the Batman TV theme put through a wringer..ah, there it is I think…some subsequently synthesised toddler gurgling at around five minutes in? I could be completely wrong of course!

The live album, recorded in what looks like the idyllic setting of ProgDay 2009 in front of a crowd of tens, is the French TV live experience where things get stretched, tweaked and, nay flogged to death. How they remember all this weirdness when playing live is beyond me, or perhaps some of it is scored? Featuring tracks from this album and earlier smash hits, it makes me want to fly to Louisville, Kentucky now, as I can’t see how I’m ever going to see them in the UK*, but we live in hope. Keep up the good works, fellas!

Not for the faint hearted or for lovers of regressive musics (boy, I like that term, first coined on this site I do believe), but definitely for those of us who like something shall we say, a bit musically perverse. Floss your brain and get your noggin dancin’ along to this little beaut, it won’t be disappointed!

Go to the band’s Myspace or Last.fm site for streaming and more..and buy the thing here!

*Mike has asked me if I could put him in touch with any UK promoters who would pay “more than beer money”. If you are that person, or you know who they are, drop me a line in the Comments section, and I’ll forward any forthcoming helpfulness to Mike.

Tracklist:

CD1 – I Forgive You All My Unhappiness
1. Seven Rusty Nails (7:00)
2. Conversational Paradigms (7:33)
3. March of the Cookie Cutters (8:52)
4. You Got To Run It Out, Dawson! (9:15)
5. With Grim Determination, Terrell Dons the Bow Tie (6:41)
6. Mosquito Massacre (5:55)

CD2 – Live at ProgDay 2009
1. Scaface (8:39)
2. Seven Rusty Nails (7:02)
3. Colorless Green Ideas Sleep Furiously (10:58)
4. Paranoiac (6:31)
5. March Of The Cookie Cutters (8:37)
6. You Got To Run It Out, Dawson! (9:40)
7. Hartford’s Coffin (8:03)
8. Conversational Paradigms (7:43)
9. Secret Life Of Walter Riddle (9:11)

Line up (CD1):

* Mike Sary – basses
* Jeff Gard – drums
* Steve Katsikas – keyboards (1-5), final sax solo (1)
* Shawn Persinger – guitars (1-3)
* Adam Huffer – sax (1, 2, 5)
* Warren Dale – sax, clarinet, melodica (3, 6)
* Hans Bodin – guitar synth (2)
* Roy Strattman – guitars (4)
* Joe Conroy – guitar (4)
* Chris Smith – guitar (6)
* Paolo Botta – keyboards (6)
* “Young” Andrew Katsikas – vocal (5)

Line up (CD2):

*Mike Sary – bass

*Jeff Gard – drums

*Steve Katsikas – keyboards, sax

*Shawn Persinger – guitars

* Warren Dale – keyboards, sax, clarinet, flute, melodica

Halcyon – Pastures

Australia is a fairly underrated place for metal, and I have no doubt that the land from down under will be playing a bigger role in the future music scene. Halcyon is one such band that comes from Sydney, and as I am surprisingly rare to say so nowadays about modern progressive metal, I must say that I am impressed with what the band has done with their first legitimate album. ‘Pastures’ is a technically sound and adventurous outing from this two person group, and hopefully an indicator of good things to come from them.

Much of the sound here is led by the well-rounded guitar work of Plini. Backing the guitars up is the considerably less startling, but keen keyboard work and atmospherics of Allen. Although tossed into the label of ‘djent’ (meaning math metal with a trademark palm-muted guitar technique), there is much more going on here than rhythmically off-center riffing. ‘Noodle I’ starts ‘Pastures’ off with a sound that is surprisingly atmospheric and even mellow, with Plini exploring the guitar neck with both technicality and tastefulness. Halcyon begins this trek sounding more akin to a Jeff Beck or even Steve Vai album more than anything. Although things eventually get much heavier and typical of ‘djent’, Halcyon makes it clear that their sound is based around the art of lead guitar, and as a result, the rhythm section seems to falter a bit. The programmed drums are functional, but quite obviously lacking anything in the way of feeling, and are also turned far enough down in the mix to feel like an error more than an artistic choice. As ‘Pastures’ goes on, it becomes impossible not to concentrate on the lead guitars, as Plini’s work here is incredible and well-rounded through both the more downtuned riffs, subtle plucking and melodic, sometimes jazz- infused solos.

The keyboards here feel quite largely overwhelmed by the guitars here, to the point often where they are difficult to notice until the second or third listen. That is not necessarily a problem however, as the guitarwork is so well done as to keep ‘Pastures’ afloat virtually on its own. On top of the progressive metal and blistering electric guitars, there is also some incredible slap acoustic guitar work that often reminds me of early 20th century guitarist Django Reinhart (humorously referred to in the track title ‘Django Fett’). Barring that, this is an affair for electric guitar; someone looking for a more balanced band effort can look elsewhere. While I may have liked a quite a bit more meat on the bones of the rhythm section, the guitarwork of Plini easily rivals that of contemporary ‘djent’ guitarist Tosin Abasi, of Animals As Leaders.

A great album and promising note for modern progressive metal.

Tracklist:

1. Noodle 05:58
2. Noodle 2 03:13
3. Firefly 03:22
4. Waterfall 03:38
5. Intermission 02:11
6. Noodle 3 04:54
7. Django Fett 05:44
8. Nesting 06:04
9. Pastures 06:34

Line-up:

* Plini – guitars)
* Allen – keyboards and piano

Links:

http://www.facebook.com/HalcyonOfficial?sk=info

hAND – Breathing

In metal, having a female-fronted band can be a bit of a touchy and looked down upon subject. Although there are certainly quite a few wonderful exceptions to this- far too often, bands will opt to have a female front them in the hopes that the added sex appeal will help attract listeners, or sell a few more shirts. Of course, this trend results in a great deal of half- baked acts, especially in the symphonic metal realm. hAND is a UK act that seeks to break this unwelcome convention by offering an atmospheric style of metal that truly benefits by having a female at the helm. Indeed, the voice of Kat Ward is a large part of this band’s sound, but thankfully, hAND is quite a bit more than a vessel for her talents as a vocalist. On the other hand, while ‘Breathing’ is certainly an artistically credible venture with the band’s passion readily evident, it might not be quite enough to bring the female-fronted stigma tumbling down altogether.

As I have said, hAND is a very band-focused and balanced collaboration between the three members. Although Kat Ward fronts the band with her higher register voice, the guitars and drums take just as much of a chunk out of the sound. In fact, the only thing that isn’t heard of much is Ward’s bass, which when heard, is fairly simplistic, but generally washed out by the rest of the mix. In terms of style, the gothic metal style does seem to suit it best; melancholic riffs and doomy passages rumbling under angelic vocals make up alot of what hAND has to offer. Besides that, there are some more drawn out instrumental moments, and even sections where the band briefly experiments with strange guitar sounds and dissonance. Expect nothing quite so experimental or progressive from these guys though; although they are labelled as a progressive metal act, the band is more rooted in convention than not. This is not necessarily a deterrent to their quality as artists though, because it is clear that they are capable of writing some great ideas.

hAND are not yet experts at writing memorable melodies, but they are very good with powerful chord changes. Although this may seem trivial to some, the doomy, slower sound of the band makes these changes all the more dramatic, and the beautiful layers of guitar that Kieren Johnstone works overtop the chords may very well be the best thing that hAND has to offer. The drums here are well played and dynamic even- something that I cannot say for many metal drummers- but the production makes the drum tone sound cold and distant. Although all three musicians play with feeling, the production feels triggered and mechanical, and I have a feeling that alot of the passion that they obviously put into the music here was lost in the translation to recording.

‘Breathing’ is a good album, and hAND is a promising act. Although I have never been one for the gothic sound in metal, ‘Breathing’ does meet its mark where it counts, although there are still quite a few things that bog them down. If hAND are able to address the issues in production and sharpen their craftsmanship with melodies, it could be very interesting to see where this band goes.

Tracklist:

1. Song Number B (3:54)
2. The Pier (5:54)
3. Mimicry (6:28)
4. Flee (5:18)
5. The Neon Hero (8:48)
6. Supersonic (5:41)
7. Fate Sewn On (5:03)
8. Db Blue (5:59)
9. Re-animation (5:13)

Line-up:

* Kat Ward – vocals, bass
* Kieren Johnstone – guitars
* Cris Nelson – drums

Links:

http://www.handtheband.com/

Gnomonaut – The Chronocosm

It is always a pleasure to review albums from new bands, acts that want to add their grain of sand to the already enormous progressive rock scene, and they are always welcome. Gnomonaut is a band from USA (based in Atlanta) that is entering to the realm with the release of their debut album entitled “The Chronocosm”. It comprises nine songs, seven original ones and two covers, which all together make a 58-minute album.

Progressive rock is a wide genre, which can also be divided in several sub-genres. The music of Gnomonaut has a great mixture of some of them, including the evident space-rock sound, eclectic prog and in moments some experimental prog. Important to say that they are an instrumental band, so fasten your seat-belts and prepare to this journey.

The album kicks off with “Bekajamir”, a seven-minute track that perfectly works as an introductory song, I mean, here we can appreciate what Gnomonaut’s sound is about: great guitars, cool drums and spacey synthesizers all over the song. It reminds me of Ozric Tentacles and Hidria Spacefolk. In the second track entitled “Celestial Dirt Nap” we can now figure out that King Crimson may have been one of their biggest influences, no matter the space-rock oriented tracks, we can listen to that eclectic KC sound here. Besides the great guitar work, worth mentioning is that they added some winds, such as trumpet and saxophone, so it is an additional spice to the already delicious music.

“Shipwrecked” has that spacey sound, linked to what we would call progressive electronic, this time reminding me a bit of Tangerine Dream. The track is a bit long and a two-nail weapon, because you can either feel bored after some minutes, or feel hypnotized; I choose the latter. This track has some spoken word at the last two minutes. “ManBearPig” has a rockier feeling, a faster and more aggressive introduction that suddenly slows down and creates a weird atmosphere, but seconds later it restarts and the structure is being built until it completely arises. The guitar sound is wonderful, skillful and pleasant, great bass lines, drums are always constant making the rhythm, and keyboards adding its exquisite textures. Just before the fourth minute there is a guitar solo, which one can easily enjoy.

“Beard Mudding” shows once again their Crimsonian sound (important to say that they are not a rip-off band, not at all) which is a pleasure to my ears. Both, the lead and the rhythm guitars are always fantastic, creating a wonderful language and interplaying with the other instruments. “Gnomonaut” (the track) sounds actually as the continuation of the previous song. Here we can fully appreciate the musicians’ skills and technique, I particularly love the bass sound in this track, I believe it stands from the other ones, no matter the great guitar solos that came after minute four.

“The Chronocosm” is the longest track here, a nine-minute epic that sums up Gnomonaut’s ambitions. It starts with a clockwise sound which little by little runs faster, while a chaotic atmosphere is created by keyboards. This continues for a minute until it explodes, guitars, bass and drums appear and a brand new track is being elaborated. For moments Rush came to my head, in special some 2112 or Hemispheres passages. After four minutes a nice guitar solo appears and takes us to another dimension. I love the tranquility shared in some moments, it is peaceful; but what I like more is how they managed to change the mood without harming the music, because after that tranquility we are led to a tense ambient. The last minute is a weird electronic sound.

With that song, we may say that the album and the Gnomonaut’s original compositions end. But the album itself continues with a couple of covers: King Crimson’s “Red” and Black Sabbath’s “The Wizard”, both are well performed, but I prefer the latter due to the exquisite addition of wind instruments. OK, with these two songs The Chronocosm is finished. A great debut by this US band that may please fans of space rock and eclectic prog. My final grade will be four stars!

Enjoy it!

Tracklist:

1. Bekajamir (7:50)
2. Celestial Dirt Nap (4:37)
3. Shipwrecked (7:28)
4. ManBearPig (5:05)
5. Beard Mudding (5:58)
6. Gnomonaut (5:42)
7. The Chronocosm (9:23)

Bonus tracks:

8. Red (Fripp) (6:57)
9. The Wizard (Iommy – Butler – Ward – Osbourne) (5:10)

Line-up:

* Jeremy Adams – guitar
* Patrick Marshall – guitar
* Jeromy Dooyema – bass
* Andy Snedden – drums, synths, sample

Guest musicians:

* Earl Williams – saxophone
* Jack Rogers – trumpet, trombone
* Nathan Dietsch – voices

Temple of the Smoke – …Against Human Race

I guess that if you come from a small country like Serbia it always raises one’s national pride when you learn there is a band whose music is so wonderful. Living in a such place, where you can count all the good bands on the fingers of one hand, it makes me happy when there appears a band whose creativity and quality stands shoulder-to-shoulder with many professional western bands. The Belgrade based Temple of the Smoke is one of those bands.

I am not going to blab about the band’s history, that’s all available if you visit their page on our Prog Sphere Promotions website. So instead let’s focus on the music.

First of all, …Against Human Race was released by the Russian independent label R.A.I.G. Records and I’m very happy myself that this achievement was released as a physically. For that matter it will certainly have more than good and positive reception to the fans of this music. And what is this music like?

…Against Human Race is a very eclectic album and it’s pretty tough finding where its roots lay as you hear everything from psychedelic rock to stoner rock to krautrock to space rock to reggae to metal. With assurance, I may say that the members’ taste is very colorful, thus this fact reflects through the album’s flow. If you are in need to hear Hawkwind, Ozric Tentacles, Pink Floyd, King Crimson, Om and Orange Goblin (with note that there can be more) in a single album, Temple of the Smoke’s Against Human Race is your next choice. Described as “one of the most talented and competent rock bands with a handful of secrets and surprises to come out of Eastern Europe”, TOTS echoes the musical legacy of many different time periods.

These guys prove to be very good arrangers, as it’s devilishly difficult to fuse all of the aforementioned genres in a single flow. And all that emerged as a product of spontaneity, a real jamming fusion. In the eight tracks that comprise this record, I can freely say that four of them transmit the energy, while the other four absorb it. This album delivers and takes at the same time.

With the opening bit like Illudium Q-36 Explosive Space Modulator, which rocks heavily at the beginning followed by many synth effects, it’s clear that Temple of the Smoke accept the references to other bands of similar genre orientations, but bravely paves its own space path. You do not have a chance to hear reggae space rock every day, and these Belgraders use to fuse these two genres into one on Unnatural Regression.

Naked Sun, which we included on our third Progstravaganza, is an astral slab of psychedelic and space rock, while Deadly Skies together with South of Heaven (don’t mess it up with Slayer’s song by the same name) constitues the most stonerfied/doomy part of the album.

Autumn World brings up a sort of meditative spirit of perpetuity, its floating airiness in touch with auditory system is like a SF fairytale. The reggae rhythms are back with Into the Storm, while the closing Tortoise Du Mars is a great finisher for a great record.

Inspired by the work of science fiction authors, most notably by Isaac Asimov and H.P. Lovecraft, as well as with Bugs Bunny and Marvin the Martian, Temple of the Smoke with …Against Human Race indicates just how screwed up the world is. But most of all, they justify my statement that they are one of the most talented bands coming out from Eastern Europe in recent years. Check out why.

Tracklist:

01. Illudium Q-36 Explosive Space Modulator
02. Unnatural Regression
03. Naked Sun
04. Deadly Skies
05. Autumn World
06. South of Heaven
07. Into the Storm
08. Tortoise du Mars

Line-up:

* Janko Stojanović – guitar, synth, vocal
* Dušan Žica – guitar, synth, dubbin
* Marko Ilić – bass
* Dragan Mirković – drums & percussion

Links:

http://www.myspace.com/templeofthesmoke

Maybeshewill – I Was Here for a Moment, Then I Was Gone

Maybeshewill is a UK act that made some ripples in the post rock act with two acclaimed albums. The third album in this band’s career is the characteristically verbose title ‘I Was Here For A Moment, Then I Was Gone’, and continues the band’s melodic and cinematic style of instrumental rock. Much in the same sense that genre kings Explosions In The Sky do it, Maybeshewill’s sound revolves not around inspiring their audience with complexity, innovation or even technical skill, but rather to flood the listener with emotion. Being that the band manages to get this across merely with their instruments, this is quite impressive, and the band’s third album may be their best yet.

The music that Maybeshewill creates with ‘I Was Here For A Moment’ is not something that sounds anything new to post-rock, or even my limited personal experience with the style. A quick comparison I would make would be to one of my favourites of the style- God Is An Astronaut- in the sense that they keep their songwriting intact while managing to keep all of the dynamic ebbs and flows that the longer form acts do. The comparison is reinforced by the fact that Maybeshewill uses electronics to bolster the atmosphere. There is even some classically inspired violin work that ties the band in with their British compatriots Loss Of A Child. Okay, enough with the comparisons. The bottom line is that there is a lot of depth to the sound of this band, although they are not so far flung from the sounds of other bands in the style. All the same, the powerful emotions get through.

Although the songs on ‘I Was Here For A Moment’ tend to average out at around four minutes in length, that does not stop Maybeshewill from getting the sense of ‘epic’ across. The music’s greatest strength is its arrangement of sound; you will likely not find a moment here that feels undercooked and lacking depth in sound. The writing that can sometimes feel like it takes a little longer than it could have to get where its going, but the payoffs are always majestic. ‘Words For Arabella’ is a perfect indicator of this; running slowly for the first minute or two, then emerging with one of the most beautiful melodies that I have heard in a while. There has even been efforts taken by the band to have the songs run smoothly together- something that is often very underrated by artists- although these transitions only compliment the music around half of the times.

I do not necessarily consider myself a fan of post-rock anymore, having frankly found alot of it to sound too much alike Mogwai, Godspeed, Explosions In The Sky, and a couple of the other big acts. Maybeshewill makes an encourage remark with this album though. While it does not stand out in terms of originality, what Maybeshewill have done with post rock here is really excellent, and as an album that only grows with the emotional commitment the listener puts into it, I can certainly say I am impressed.

Tracklist:

1. Opening (1:59)
2. Take This To Heart (4:08)
3. Red Paper Lanterns (4:17)
4. Critical Distance (4:12)
5. Accolades (4:24)
6. An End To Camaraderie (4:09)
7. Words For Arabella (4:06)
8. Farewell Sarajevo (5:14)
9. Relative Minors (6:22)
10. To The Skies From A Hillside (5:13)

Line-up:

* James Collins – drums
* John Helps – guitar
* Robin Southby – guitar
* Jamie Ward – bass

Links:

http://www.maybeshewill.net/site/

Fernando Refay – The Paradox

He is Fernando Refay, a trained and independent musician whose love for progressive rock has led him to create his first solo album entitled “The Paradox” in which we can find his influences from symphonic rock, to classical music and jazz fusion. He studied at the National Conservatory of Music of Buenos Aires, since then he has collaborated with several musicians and has been member of different bands.

Fortunately, he chose progressive rock as his favorite genre so people who like this genre can feel pleased with the coming of a new talent. I am pleased also because I like supporting bands and musicians from Latin-America (if they deserve it, of course). “The Paradox” is a one-hour-album divided in eleven compositions. Important to say that Refay composed all the songs and plays all the instruments, being keyboards his specialty. There are some guest musicians who collaborated with him here, such as the gifted Rodrigo San Martín.

The album kicks off with “The Paradox”, a two-minute introduction in which we can appreciate a symphonic and keyboard-based sound. “The Hour of Justice” is the first track featuring vocals. The sound is pretty cool, sometimes closer to metal, and with a folk-a-like touch made by violins. After two minutes there is a nice guitar solo and then great piano/keyboard ones. The song overall is well elaborated and good.

“The Wicked” is one of the two ten-minute songs featured on this album. It starts with spoken voice and after a few seconds a neo-progressive explosion begins. Its challenging sound, complex rhythms and ambitious structure makes this song one of the best of this album. Here the voice is different than the previous track (guest singers) and I like it more, actually. There is a nice change after three minutes, drums appear and once again spoken words enter along with some war sounds such as guns, bombs and screams, the atmosphere created is deceiving, so you can imagine the scenarios it is proposing. Later you can listen to fabulous keyboard and guitar solos, interplaying with each other. After six minutes the song suffers some other changes, it slows down and both the rhythm and the feeling morphs into a calmer track.

After that ambitious song now Refay gives us some shorter ones. Starting with “El Paraíso a sus pies”, the first one sung in Spanish, which I liked. What I don’t absolutely loved is the song itself, it is like a ballad, nice piano and guitar playing accompanying vocals. According to the lyrics, I may assume that Fernando was inspired by his mother to compose this song, which is a wonderful detail, but well, as I said, i don’t think this is his best song at all. “My Oh My” is a one-minute interlude which would perfectly work for a mobile phone TV commercial.

“Welcome to the Show” has a good keyboard background at first, and then the song begins to build up a structure, a kind of rockish and friendly track. The guitar solo is nice, and the inner song changes cool, I like how that rock element is calmed by some softer passages, mainly by a delicate piano sound. “Reflection”, well, this is probably my least favorite track here. The music is fast and a bit strange, the vocals are not that good, and honestly I sometimes feel this track was just like a funny experimentation. But it is important to say that it has its good passages, mainly the instrumental ones when keyboards lead. From minute three to five and a half, the song is actually pretty good, but later the last minute has that annoying sound, just as it began.

“She’s Like A Green Meadow (because she makes me happy)” and “Trespassing…?” are both short two-minute songs. The first has a soft sound, nice acoustic guitar and delicate keyboard as background. The voice reminds me a bit of A.C.T. The second song has a charming sound made by keyboards and percussion; it is like a latino-prog track at least for the first half, later it turns rockier. Both short songs are actually good.

Now “A Frozen Nightmare” offers a new epic with a rich amount of sounds and textures. The rock element is not that evident here, instead, we have a classical and symphonic piano sound accompanying nice and constant drums, and good vocals. I like the fade out after five minutes, when the first part ends. And I like more how it rises from the ashes and now becomes a wonderful fast and bombastic keyboard-driven track in which we can truly appreciate Refay’s passion for that instrument, and of course, for the music he composes. The song is pretty interesting, well elaborated and intelligently performed.

And finally “Walking on Air”, honestly I thought it would be a King Crimson cover, but I was wrong. It starts like a classical piano song for a couple of minutes, then vocals, drums, guitars and bass appear and turn the song into a catchy and rockier tune and it continues like this until it finishes. A nice song to end the album.

This is a great debut album from Fernando Refay, I liked it and enjoyed almost all the tracks, with the exception of “Reflection” which I would honestly have left out. Good news for the Argentinean people because they have here a talented musician who is willing to gain recognition, which I am sure is arriving little by little.

Enjoy it!

Tracklist:

1. The Paradox
2. The Hour of Justice
3. The Wicked
4. El Paraíso a sus pies
5. My Oh My
6. Welcome to the Show
7. Reflection
8. She’s like a green meadow (because she makes me happy)
9. Tresspassing…?
10. A Frozen Nightmare
11. Walking on Air

Line-up:

* Fernando Refay – all instruments

Guest musicians:

* David Minian – voice on tracks 2 and 7
* Juan Gris – voice on track 3
* Cristian Arone – bass on track 2 and guitar on track 4
* Lukas Argen – guitar in track 3
* Rodrigo San Martín – guitar on tracks 7 and 8
* Agustín Pérez Santangelo – guitar solo on track 2

Enslaved – The Sleeping Gods

After a strong album in 2010 with ‘Axioma Ethica Odini’, Enslaved comes hot on that album’s heels with a free EP. Giving fans their latest fix with a batch of five songs, ‘The Sleeping Gods’ does not feel like anything particularly significant in the band’s catalogue, instead feeling like the band just wanting to get some more music out there for people to listen to and enjoy. For what this short album lacks in longevity and depth however, it is certainly enjoyable while it lasts, with each track taking its own very distinct path. Being arguably the most diverse thing that Enslaved has ever released in their career, ‘The Sleeping Gods’ is a good, interesting EP from the band, even if it may be little more than merely that.

The first song ‘Heimvegen’ is arguably the most typical Enslaved track that we have become used to hearing from albums like ‘Vertebrae’, and the latest. It is arguably the best thing that ‘The Sleeping Gods’ has to offer, and manages to pack some black metal, gradual build ups, as well as an epic chorus section to climax things. ‘Alu Misyrki’ isn’t quite a s memorable, but it is certainly more energetic, taking the tempo up a few notches and diving deeper into black metal territory. Reaching the middle of the EP comes a big surprise from Enslaved, a six minute ambient soundscape piece called ‘Synthesis’. Although it is certainly atmospheric, it does tend to get fairly boring and overdrawn, plodding on through muffled whispers and electronic ambiance. Although it is refreshing and to the EP’s benefit to switch things up like this halfway through, ‘Synthesis’ could have likely had more of an impact were it somewhat shorter, as opposed to being the longest piece on the album.

If ‘Synthesis’ was surprise enough, then ‘Nordlys’ tops it. Enslaved has always been adventurous with what they do, but taking their sound into what feels more like post-punk than anything else was certainly an unexpected twist. ‘Nordlys’ is an instrumental track that begins off on a fairly upbeat note, sounding almost as if Enslaved were covering a track by The Cure, believe it or not. The track eventually barrels down to some heavier viking metal riffs, but the initial excitement makes it a very cool track. And lastly is a track that feels much more familiar to the Enslaved fan than the previous two; the title track. ‘The Sleeping Gods’ is a song that seeks out Enslaved’s pagan folk roots; something that was explored as far back as the band’s earliest albums. Led on by deep vocals from Grutle Kjellson and booming drums, the song has a presence to it, but it is a little derivative and feels like the band did this sound quite a bit better with early pagan songs like ‘Yggdrasil’, off 1994’s ‘Frost’ record. In any case, it caps off ‘The Sleeping Gods’ in a somewhat triumphant mood, even if it may not be the best track here.

Although Enslaved has not created something I believe will hold much weight by the time the next album rolls around, there are few EPs or albums out there I can think of where each song is distinctive from one another. ‘The Sleeping Gods’ is a strong interim release from this band, and has made me excited to hear the next full-length from these giants of black metal.

Tracklist:

1. Heimvegen (05:38)
2. Alu Misyrki (05:02)
3. Synthesis (06:19)
4. Nordlys (05:45)
5. The Sleeping Gods (05:44)

Line-up:

* Ivar Bjørnson – Guitars, keyboards
* Grutle Kjellson – Vocals, bass
* Arve Isdal – Guitars
* Cato Bekkevold – Drums
* Herbrand Larsen – Keyboards, vocals, mellotron

Links:

http://www.enslaved.no/

Fourteen Twentysix – Lighttown Closure

Hailing from the city of Eindhoven in the Netherlands, musician Chris Van Der Linden and his melancholic art rock project Fourteen Twentysix find their debut studio work in the cryptically titled ‘Lighttown Closure.’ Having released a strong and promising demo, titled ‘Songs To Forget,’ I was very interested in hearing what Chris’ music would sound like as a more complete and polished work. As it turns out, Fourteen Twentysix’s first foray into a full length is a beautiful and potent piece of work, taking the style heard on the demo, and polishing it to a finish. Although the overall feel of the album can get a bit too lulling and might pass some listeners as being a tad too melancholic for their tastes, Chris Van Der Linden has made a good impression, and gone to lengths of emotional depth and introspection few progressive acts would dare to venture.

In terms of sound, Fourteen Twentysix takes aspects of melodic post rock, and blends it in with an artistic alternative rock style, with a few electronic samplings thrown in for effect. A greatly atmospheric piece of work, the music revolves around Chris Van Der Linden’s brooding style and the melancholic gravity of the subject matter. While my view of ‘Lighttown’ is quite positive now, I will admit that the first few listens were rather slow to grasp. Unless the listener is intent and makes a point of paying attention to the music from the beginning, it is easy to initially float into the background. After repeated listens however, the beauty of the music really begins to show; the album is a perfect example of a good ‘grower.’ While there isn’t a great deal of complexity in any of the compositions here, there are plenty of subtleties and nuances that the average listener won’t pick up on until several listens to the music.

None of the musicianship here is indulgent or technical; the instrumentation and arrangement of sound works well to create atmosphere however. The music generally focuses on the soothing voice of Chris himself. Much like Steven Wilson of Porcupine Tree fame, Chris is certainly not the most technically accomplished vocalist on the block, but he makes up for it in terms of the amount of emotion he is able to carry with his voice, as well as his skillful work with harmonies. The concept of ‘emotion’ is prevalent here, and after learning a bit more about what ‘Lighttown Closure’s concept revolves around, the lyrics and music become all the more significant. With ‘Lighttown,’ Chris sings about his life; at times even going to such genuinely heartbreaking life events as losing a girlfriend to a car accident at the age of 17 (as is heard in the heartwrenching track ‘Gone Today). Most of the lyrics favour an introspective approach over a narrative aspect however, and can be lent to alot of personal interpretation.

While the album flows quite evenly, a potential flaw of the album is the fact that alot of the music sounds alike throughout; there is not a great deal of dynamic change, or introduction of new sounds and concepts throughout the piece. With that being said however, each track is relatively strong in it’s own right, although the mood stays the same throughout most of them. One of the greatest highlights to the album is the beautiful job of production that Chris has blanketed the work with; a very laudable accomplishment, considering that the act is still underground at the point of releasing this.

While ‘Lighttown Closure’ is certainly an emotive and moving piece of intelligent art rock, some listeners may find themselves strictly underwhelmed by the album’s mellowness. The project’s style is also incredibly melancholic and depressive, which means it might not suit someone on their more energetic and pleasant days. That being said however, I rarely hear albums with this sense of sincerity about them, and with a second album in the works at the time of writing this review, it seems the only way for Fourteen Twentysix to go, is up.

Tracklist:

1) AM
2) After The Storm
3) Closing Hours
4) Gone Today
5) Tonight I
6) Signals In The Sky
7) Descending
White Paint
9) Lashes

Line-up:

Chris van der Linden – Vocal, Guitar, Keyboards, Sampling, Bass & Drums

Links:

http://www.myspace.com/fourteentwentysix

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