The album opens with a duo piece entitled, “The Child Within” that features Gustavsen and saxophonist Tore Brunborg. It’s an emotional, uncompromising performance that to me evokes imagery of a tragic film scene. The piano and saxophone work together to create a lush bed of melody and evocative harmony that is captivating to listen to. What I found particularly interesting about this composition is the large use of repeated notes in the melody. Gustavsen’s brief piano solo that follows the melody also contained said repeated notes, connecting the two sections nicely. Brunborg takes the composition out with the melody, building his phrasing to a climax, with Gustavsen catching his interpretation all the way.

“Way In” is composed with more of a rubato feel. It opens with an eerie piano voice, and slowly builds with the addition of percussion before concluding with a chilling unaccompanied double bass solo. The ensemble use a lot of space in the opening seconds of the tune, allowing room to breathe and develop both musically, and stylistically. It’s clear that everyone in the ensemble is sensitive to what each other is doing at any given point in the composition’s evolution. The collective sound of the ensemble on this track is delicate, yet driving. Bassist, Mats Eilertsen demonstrates his incredible tone, touch and elegance on the instrument. Being a bass player myself, for me this was the highlight of the composition. What an amazing sound and creative imagery pouring out from his fingers.

“Lay Your Sleeping Head, My Love” introduces the listener to the vocal stylings of Kristin Asbjørnsen for the first time on the album. She has a very rustic sounding voice, with copious amounts of vocal fry, mixed range experimentations and subtle, delicate vibrato. I have never heard a voice so unique, so emotional, captivating and thought provoking. It’s hard to explain in words, you just have to hear it for yourself. Her very individual vocal performance is heightened with the band’s accompaniment. It’s really great to hear Gustavsen’s music with a vocalist. I have been a fan of his instrumental trio albums for many years, and hearing this all too familiar sound with a vocalist is really something special.

“Spiral Song” opens with solo drums, later accompanied by Gustavsen on piano. This composition explores many different textural, timbrel and colourful layers throughout it’s duration. The feel is solid, yet slightly disjointed to my ears. The melody is played in unison (in sections) between Gustavsen and Brunborg on saxophone. The rhythm section lay down a lush bed of percussive ideas, conversations and musical contributions for the ensemble to play off of. Interestingly, the solo section in this piece is more of a collective improvisation, than a series of instrumental solos.

The title track, “Restored, Returned” features once again, the powerful, evocative vocal stylings of Kristin Asbjørnsen. The composition grows from seemingly innocent rubato beginnings; the ensemble giving plenty of room for Asbjørnsen to work her magic. The next section breaks the established rubato mood as time comes in. Asbjørnsen continues to impress with her mature, dynamic vocals. After a short, yet engaging solo by Brunborg, the vocals come back in with aggressive power to take the song out. This is undoubtedly my favourite composition from the release.

“Left Over Lullaby No. 2” is a delicate composition, with three harmonic instruments (piano, voice and bass) playing the melody in unison. Like all of Gustavsen’s compositions on this album, and indeed from his trio albums, his melodies come first, and are always beautifully shaped. The drums come in only after the melody is stated. Following the melody, Brunborg unleashes with another melodic, driving saxophone solo. The song closes the same way it opened, with the piano, bass and vocals playing the closing melody.

“The Swirl/Wrapped in a Yielding Air” is all groove and melody! The groove is lazy and dirty, while the instrumental melody is thematic and memorable. The bass is very much in the front of the ensemble on this tune. Eilertsen’s bass playing is unshakably solid, heavy and driving. His tone is incredible, and his rhythmic ideas are abundant here. I was expecting another instrumental composition here, but was pleasantly surprised when Asbjørnsen started singing. The vocal part features a combination of traditional melodies, and spoken word passages.

“Left Over Lullaby No. 1” continues with the previous melodies and musical ideas established in “Left Over Lullaby No. 2”. To this day, I still don’t quite understand why some musician’s (particularly European musicians) choose to put sectioned compositions such as this one in seemingly illogical orders! Regardless, this track is beautifully played and arranged, and is a great continuation of the Lullaby. Asbjørnsen’s vocals during the instrumental section are spooky and raw. The lyrical vocals, along with the dark piano voicings by Gustavsen create a very disturbing, yet fantastic sound!

The next composition is simply an instrumental version of the lyrical melody from “Left Over Lullaby No. 1”, which to me is more reminiscent of Gustavsen’s trio work. Gustavsen gives Brunborg and Asbjørnsen a break to play, “O Stand, Stand at the Window” as a trio ensemble. The piece opens with solo piano by Gustavsen, which grows and evolves into a subtle and delicate minimalist conversation. Gustavsen’s solo, as always is well thought out, and both musically and emotionally captivating. The rhythm section lay down a sparse bed of minimalist textures and musical undercurrents.

“The Gaze” is one of the more rhythmically oriented compositions on the release. The melody is very dark, and eerie. Starting from small, humble beginnings, the composition unravels and evolves into a (minimalist!) frenzy of ensemble interaction and conversation. The expressive saxophone phrasing from Brunborg brings the composition to life. Brunborg explores different saxophone techniques and articulations to create somewhat tribal sounding screeches from his horn.

The album closes off the same way it opened; with a duo performance, this time featuring Gustavsen and Asbjørnsen. “Left Over Lullaby No. 3” is, of course, the final movement of Gustavsen’s Lullaby Suite. It’s very laid back, soft in dynamics and dreamy; gentle and soothing; an uncompromising performance, void of extraneous notes or musical filler. At the core, this is what Tord Gustavsen’s music is all about; creating the best music possible without compromise.

I have been a Tord Gustavsen Trio fan for the last five years, and this new release has been a real joy to listen to. Gustavsen continues to impress with his unique compositional approach, further strengthened with the addition of the delightful interpretations from both Brunborg and Asbjørnsen. Additionally, his lyrical endeavours have transformed the mounting interest, and musical appeal of these new compositions to a wider audience. This is a wonderful CD, and I highly recommend it to both jazz, non-jazz musicians and musical appreciators.

I gave this album a 9 out of 10. Fantastic.

If you would like to purchase this album, you can find it here:

Restored, Returned

“On The Backs Of Angels” is the opening track from Dream Theater‘s new album, “A Dramatic Turn Of Events”. At just under nine minutes in length, it marks somewhat of a return to more conventional track lengths for Dream Theater songs, comparable to titles from “Images and Words”, “Awake” and “Falling Into Infinity”. The new single has many similarities to the aforementioned albums, particularly from “Images and Words”. Musical and stylistic elements have also been continued, or carried over from their prequel studio album from 2009, “Black Clouds & Silver Linings” with their orchestrated choir, and “chorus-like” guitar picking parts. These sounds are most prevalent on the songs, “A Nightmare To Remember” and “The Count Of Tuscany” respectively. Additionally, the new single is very heavy and technically impressive, which really is to be expected from Dream Theater! However, amidst all the technically demanding unison lines, time signature and key signature changes, crunchy metal guitar riffs and LaBrie’s soaring vocal stylings, is a well written song. This is not to say that select titles from Dream Theater’s back catalogue are “poorly written”, but that the new single is a testament to the band’s continually evolving song-writing maturity. The new song remains loyal to Dream Theater’s sound and approach musically, technically and artistically. Moreover, the new single demonstrates Dream Theater’s musical writing to be constantly fresh and engaging, even after more than twenty-five years together.

The lyrics were rumoured to have been written by founding member and guitarist, John Petrucci, and seem to elude to the corruption within a formidable empire, or establishment. However, at this point it is difficult to say for sure. LaBrie’s vocal performance on, “On The Backs Of Angels” deserves a mention. His voice in uncompromising in this performance, very clean, smooth and controlled. One aspect of this vocal performance, which is similar to that from “Black Clouds & Silver Linings”, is LaBrie’s inclusion of vibrato only as a note shaper, or colourer. Past albums show James adding wild vibrato on almost every long note, to the point of it becoming too much, or even expected. To me, his vocal performance is strengthened by his lack of vibrato, and subtle inclusions of it on select phrases. I found this quite pleasing to listen to. The track contains only the guitar solo, as opposed to the traditional guitar and keyboard solos. Petrucci continues to impress with his unique ability to create drive, forward motion and melodic interest within his solos, and this one is no exception. However, let’s not forget Mike Mangini‘s efforts on this new single, demonstrating complete command over his drums and the parts that Petrucci set before him. His efforts should receive the highest admiration and praise. I’m really looking forward to the new album, and what Mangini can add to the rest of the songs. Furthermore, I’m looking forward to seeing Mangini’s interpretations of Dream Theater‘s vast back catalogue throughout this upcoming world tour.

After listening to this new track from Dream Theater, my already overflowing anticipation for the new album is heightened! If the rest of the album is anything like “On The Backs Of Angels”, I will be a happy fan! This is without a doubt, a strong opening statement for the new album, and has sparked nothing but promising first impressions among their fans. Dream Theater‘s eleventh studio album; first with their new drummer, Mike Mangini, “A Dramatic Turn Of Events” is set for release on September 13, 2011. The fire has started, and now the agonising two month wait is on.

Circles are a 5-piece Australian progressive metal outfit from Melbourne. The band consists of Perry Kakridas on vocals, Ted Furuhashi and Matty Clarke on guitars, Drew Hunter on bass and Dave Patton on drums. Their official website’s brief biography describes Circles as, “an amalgamation of seasoned players all having a strong passion for music and pushing the boundaries of the conventional metal sound.” Their debut EP, “The Compass” was released under Basick Records on June 27, 2011.

The EP opens with the track, “The Frontline”, a very aggressive song that shows off the bands mature understanding of metal, progressive and electronic inspired rhythms and guitar riffs. This was the first thing I noticed upon listening to this track for the first time. Secondly, was Kakridas’ incredible vocal talent! Wow, what an unbelievable voice! Kakridas’ vocal notes, no matter how high and physically demanding, remain clean, warm and comforting to the ears, with such seemingly effortless control! As the seconds and minutes pass, the song unravels and evolves into a captivating mass of soaring vocal melodies, chunky metal guitar riffs, odd time signatures and syncopated rhythm section hits. “The Frontline” is very dynamic in its arrangement and orchestration, often times dropping down from a full band heavy section, to solo guitar. Additionally, Circles experiment with contrasting musical feels and ideas between song sections like the verses and choruses, such as time signature changes, key changes and the like. “The Frontline” is a very musically interesting song, and a great opener to the EP.

“Clouds Are Gathering” picks up where “The Frontline” left off; a continuation of their already established high energy opener. The vocal performance on this track is breath-taking. Kakridas frequently changes between clean, operatic vocals to traditional death metal screams and growls with ease. The instrumentalists in the group also deserve a notable performance mention. The band is so tight and intricate with regard to their orchestrations and musical delivery. They make this unbelievably complex music seem so easy. I am particularly impressed with Dave Patton, Circles’ drummer on this track. His unique approach to double-kick drumming caught my attention early on. Moreover, Patton’s unique approach to metal drumming adds another flavour and dimension to the band. The song fades out with one of the wildest metal grooves I’ve ever heard. It’s worth mentioning again Circles’ unshakable command over complex rhythms and figures. On a similar note, their varied display of articulations, such as guitar slides and embellishments amounts to further musical interest.

Circles' Band Photo - Used with Permission

From start to finish this next track really means business!“ACT III” opens strongly with full energy and power; a full on death metal blast-beat fest, with an impressive sustained death metal scream by vocalist, Perry. Although I knew these guys were heavily influenced and grounded in the heavy metal genre, I was not ready for this! Then almost as suddenly, the energy drops right down as the lyrics come in. I really like the orchestrations within this song. It’s very dynamic, well structured and evocative, both musically and lyrically. The vocal harmonies on this track are also quite pleasant to listen to. The song concludes the same way it started, with a full on metal attack.

This is the shortest track on the EP, but this reality by no means diminishes it. Opening strong, “Eye Embedded” showcases Circles‘ unique melodic concept, particularly with the opening vocal melody-line. The vocal performance by Kakridas is strong and polished on this track. Out of all the songs on this EP, the vocals on “Eye Embedded” are the most impressive. Also, like all of the songs on this EP, the instrumentalists demonstrate their incredible assimilation of complex rhythmic concepts. The track closes with one of the heaviest, poly-rhythmic riffs I have ever heard. Brief, yet very satisfying. This driving figured is pushed over the edge even further when the vocals come back in to take the song out. What an incredible song.

“The Design” is one of the more technical progressive songs on the EP. Opening with a mellow synthesiser patch that quickly brakes into heavy guitar riffs, syncopated rhythms, odd time signature changes, brief abstract unison sections, and of course, melodic soaring lead vocals, inter-weaved with death metal screams and growls. It’s perhaps the most musically bombastic song on the release. Personally and unfortunately, I was never able to get into death metal screams and growls as a stand alone vocal style, however it adds a great contrast and dynamic to this song. “The Design” is riddled with odd time signature changes and metric modulations, more than any other song on the EP. Additionally, I was pleasantly impressed with the bands choice of melodic notes on certain chords in this song. This adds a slight tension to the music, as well as melodic interest. The instrumental section is heavy, with the addition of screaming vocals and an array of guitar “diss” chords. The vocals come back in for one final chorus to take the song out.

Any band that is serious about their music needs carefully consider both the opening, and the closing tracks on a release. Out of the six songs on this EP, “The Frontline” is the obvious choice as an opener. The closer, “Ruins” is also the perfect choice to wrap the release up. It opens up with a delicate clean guitar picking part, later accompanied by Kakridas’ warm, tasteful vocal tone. It is a very dynamic song with many ups and downs; and twists and turns. This final track epitomises everything that this band is all about. “Ruins” quickly shifts through musical densities and colours, often times from full band grooves, down to single person statements. The verses (particularly the first verse) are quite soft and subtle, yet with an underlining poly-rhythmic figure played by the rhythm section. This song has some of the most driving riffs on the entire EP. A strong closing statement to an even stronger EP.

For a long time, I was convinced that Australia was musically sterile; unable to produce current, interesting, ground-breaking new music that would attract global attention. It seemed like this ability was reserved for American and European bands. However, with this newly released EP, Circles have changed my mind completely. I was quite surprised when I discovered that this band is Australian, and am thrilled that Melbourne is the birthplace of a newly formed, globally recognised progressive metal band! Nice one Australia.

I gave this EP a 9 out of 10. A truly phenomenal debut release.

If you wish to purchase this EP, you can find it here:

The Compass

My initial thoughts of the album were quite varied, and it reminded a lot of their previous album, “In Rainbows” from 2007. To be frank, I wasn’t impressed with my first listen. However, almost six months later I’m listening to it again, and surprisingly I’m really enjoying the new songs the great band have produced this time around. This album, like many of Radiohead‘s more recent studio albums is heavily grounded in ambient, atmospheric and groove-based sound-scapes. These new songs groove out so hard! Songs like the opening title, “Bloom”, and “Feral” set up early on a very captivating groove with various percussive samples and sound effects. “Morning Mr. Magpie” is a hard-driving tune with aggressive vocals and a rhythmically complex sampled groove. “Little By Little” also embodies all these musical elements, but to me is more reminiscent of classic Radiohead songs, particularly from “Hail To The Thief”. “Lotus Flower” has a strong, driving and catchy groove that is only strengthened by Yorke’s soaring, eerie vocals. “Codex” begins rather abruptly with what sounds like something from a previous song tacked onto the start of it! This is immediately followed by another haunting composition with a piano feature, and Yorke’s expressive vocal melodies. The song concludes with sounds of churping birds, which transitions seamlessly into the next track, “Give Up The Ghost”, another soft ballad, full of vocal overdubs and acoustic guitar orchestrations. The album is closed off with “Separator”, one of the more upbeat songs on the release.

Having listened to the album from start to finish, I was left with an overwhelming desire for more. The album is very short, and considering that their previous release was in 2007, I was hoping for more than thirty-seven minutes of music! Also, although the songs are strong pieces of music, I feel that with this record, Radiohead have become too dependent upon post-production effects such as delays, reverbs etc. in achieving their desired sound. Having said these things, it is clear that they have remained faithful to their music, sound, and identity as a band with this release.

I really enjoyed listening to this album. Although it is very short, Radiohead have delivered a collection of strong songs with this release. I strongly recommend this album to anyone!

I gave this album an 8 out of 10! Great!

If you wish to purchase this album, you can find it here:

The King of Limbs

I discovered this band shortly after the release of this album in October of 2009, and loved them instantly. What attracted me the most was the band’s uncompromising desire for creating the best music that they possibly can. They write (and consequently record) only the best melodies, solos, bass lines, drum parts, keyboard orchestrations, and lyrics. Put simply, they are a group that will settle for nothing but excellence in everything they compose. “Snowfall On Judgment Day” is one of the few progressive albums that I know of that encompasses all of these things.

“Peel” opens up the album with a bang, and establishes a high level of expectation for the rest of it. This song is very heavy, technically demanding, intelligently orchestrated, catchy and overwhelmingly melodic. It’s one of the only songs on the album to contain relatively few time signature changes, incorporating 4/4 and 7/4 timings in the verses and choruses respectively. The high energy nature continues into the instrumental section, which is quite tame, yet effective.

“Walls” is structured in much the same way as “Peel”. It’s very strong, driving, relatively straight-ahead rhythmically, yet still progressive. Although this is only the second song on the record, it’s without a doubt a show-stopping work from the band. The melodies are unbelievably catchy and flawlessly crafted and re-crafted. I have no negative criticisms against this song, it’s a simple song (as far as progressive metal songs go!), that is musically, technically and melodically faultless.

“Leviathan Rising” is a heavy, crunchy metal song that’s dripping with driving guitar riffs and double-kick drumming. The high energy musical orchestrations of this masterpiece are only further enhanced with the entrance of Ray Alder’s unbelievably clean, warm, soaring vocal melodies. Like many of their songs, this one employs numerous time signature changes, key changes and extended instrumental sections to satisfy any progressive metal purist. However, what makes this band so great is they orchestrate the aforementioned things in such a way as to remain melodic, catchy and recognisable. This is a quality that, unfortunately, many progressive outfits fail to demonstrate.

“Black and White World” opens up with an eerie piano part that develops steadily into a crunchy, metal arrangement. The verse section of this song is in the time signature, 7/4, and the “pre-chorus” in 5/4; yet, as mentioned in “Leviathan Rising” this does not detract in any way from the vocal melodies, which soar gracefully above the band. The instrumental section, as always is melodic, driving and technically satisfying, without being overdone in any way. The closing vocal melodies after the instrumental section lift the performance to a spine-shivering climax. Alder’s range and power on this song is phenomenal to say the least. Undoubtedly, this is one of the greatest performances on the album.

“Unformed” continues the way “Black and White World” finished. Like all of the songs on this album, this one is extremely energetic, driving and flawless. The vocal melodies are perfect, the instrumental parts are seamlessly orchestrated without a suggestion of superfluousness. As always, the instrumental section is overflowing with driving, melodic, thoughtful solos.

“Keep Breathing” is another somewhat atmospheric composition, utilising guitar finger-picking, keyboard pads and melodic bass guitar “finger-picking” if you will. I love the way this song flows between the atmospheric opening section and the heavy, odd-time section of the second verse. “Keep Breathing” explores an interesting change of harmony during the instrumental section, before transitioning into a unison section between the guitars. Alder comes in once again, closing off the story, and the song finishes the way it started.

“Another Day Dies” is the only song on the album to feature an alternate vocalist, not a member of the band. James LaBrie from Dream Theater lays down some tasty vocals during the verses, and shares the stage with Alder during the choruses. The instrumental section begins after just one verse and chorus, exploring and developing a single riff-based guitar theme, before transitioning into a short and sweet, blistering solo section. LaBrie and Alder, a natural combination take the next couple of choruses out, showing off LaBrie’s extreme vocal range as always!

“What Will You Say?”, to me, is the more ballad-like song on the record (although crunchy, distorted guitars and odd-time signature changes are prominent). Alder really shows off his warm vocals on this song, which is the perfect register for his type of voice. There’s not much to criticise in this song, it’s just flawless.

“Fistful of Sand” returns once again to the ballsy, punchy beginnings of the album with “Walls” and “Leviathan Rising”. This song is driving, cutting-edge, fat and unbelievably progressive. Not much more needs to be said.

“Love Kills Us All/Life In One Day” is the epic of the album, and in my opinion, it’s what the entirety of the release has been building up to. Clocking in at exactly 11 minutes, it develops from humble beginnings, and climaxes in true progressive style. As is evident by the title, this song has two distinct lyrical parts. The first and second halves, “Love Kills Us All” and “Life In One Day” share the track time almost equally, however, “Love Kills Us All” contains less than a quarter of the lyrics. Similar to many progressive epics, it contains sections of vocal melody interspersed with slightly extended instrumental sections. These aforementioned sections, unsurprisingly, transition from one to the next very smoothly and seamlessly.

I’m so fortunate to have discovered this group when I did. I have a lot of respect for this band, and I believe they deserve a lot more recognition in progressive circles. This album is perfect for those that have been long-term fans of Redemption, or for those that are discovering them for the first time. There is nothing on this album that I didn’t like; nay love.

I give this album a 10 out of 10. Flawless!

If you wish to purchase this album, you can find it here:

Snowfall on Judgment Day (See all Pop Music CDs)

The album opens with a 16 minute epic, “A Nightmare To Remember”. The lyrics were written by founding member and guitarist, John Petrucci about a car accident that he was in as a child. This song is very dark musically, opening up with sounds of rain and thunder, and an eerie piano introduction, which utilises a chord sequence made up entirely of minor chords. Like all Dream Theater epics, this one is riddled with time signature changes, key changes, extended solo sections, tempo changes and the like. Also, “A Nightmare To Remember” introduces for the first time to DT fans, Mike Portnoy’s use of blast-beats, and death metal growls.

Next, is the first single from the album, “A Rite Of Passage”. Once again, the lyrics were written by guitarist, John Petrucci, this time about his thoughts on Freemasonry. Melodically, it’s one of the more “straight ahead” songs on the record; it’s catchy, thoughtful and well-structured. During the solo section, Petrucci and Rudess battle each other with blistering guitar and keyboard solos. Also, a first on this release is Rudess’ use of an iPhone solo during the instrumental section.

“Wither” is the shortest song on the album, at 5:25. It was written with more of a singer-songwriter approach, although remaining undeniably progressive and melodic. It’s comparable to numerous Dream Theater releases including, “I Walk Beside You”, “Take Away My Pain” and “The Answer Lies Within”. The lyrics were written by John Petrucci about his struggles with “writers-block”. LaBrie’s vocal performance on this one is worthy of a mention also. “Wither” shows off the softer, warmer side of LaBrie’s voice, which was unexplored on their previous release, “Systematic Chaos”; a nice change of pace.

“The Shattered Fortress” is the final part in Mike Portnoy’s Twelve Step Suite which he started back in 2002 on “Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence”. Lyrically, it covers the final three steps in the Alcoholics Anonymous program, that Portnoy has titled, “Restraint”, “Receive” and “Responsible”. Musically, it implores many riffs, motives, sections and chord progressions from the previous songs in the saga, offering up very little original material itself. This number reintroduces Portnoy’s spoken-word lyrics, which were first used on, “Repentance” from “Systematic Chaos”.

The second to last song on the album is another epic, clocking in at 13:09. “The Best Of Times” was written by Portnoy for his father who at the time, was dying from cancer. Portnoy played this song for his father with his own vocals, prior to his death. Contrary to John Petrucci’s song for his father, “Take Away My Pain”, “The Best Of Times” is more of a celebration of the life of Portnoy’s father, and the time they shared together. The song is based around a single, strong melodic theme that was developed and orchestrated between all the members of the band, and various string parts. It has a very theatrical, cinematic and anthemic feel to it. After the final vocal section (verse if you will) a powerful climax is reached, and Petrucci lets loose with perhaps the most lyrical guitar solo in all of Dream Theater‘s catalogue. Without a doubt, this is the most breathtakingly beautiful song on the album, and not a minute too long. Alongside “Space-Dye Vest”, “The Best Of Times” has never been performed live by the band, due to Portnoy’s strong emotional connections to it; and due to Portnoy’s departure, probably never will be.

The final, and longest song on the album, “The Count Of Tuscany” is the perfect representation of what Dream Theater‘s music is all about. It opens with a spacey, finger-picked acoustic guitar part that develops into a big, theatrical anthem. The lyrics were written by John Petrucci about an Italian Count that frightened him in Tuscany. This song reminds me a little of the Circus Maximus epic, “The 1^st Chapter” in many ways. Unlike any other Dream Theater song in their catalogue, “The Count Of Tuscany” explores an extended section of ambience, as a release from the “chaos” of the previous 10 minutes. Here, Rudess and Petrucci create a bed of sound-scapes, and atmospheric textures. The final section of the song begins somewhat abruptly, with an rhythm guitar entrance, closely followed by LaBrie’s very clean, soaring vocals.

It’s hard to believe that this band have been around for over 25 years, and have released 10 studio albums! It’s hard to believe that after all these years they still continue to produce music that is current, relevant, interesting, cutting edge and overwhelmingly progressive. It’s hard to believe that they can remain driven, motivated and encouraged to create fantastic music given the tiring hours of writing, recording and world-touring. Furthermore, on top of all of these considerations, it’s hard to believe that Dream Theater have remained true to progressive music, and most importantly true to themselves as a band. This album is a winner, and I highly recommend it to any progressive rock and metal fan.

I gave this album an 8 out of 10, an exceptional album.

If you wish to purchase this album, just follow the link below.

Black Clouds & Silver Linings (See all Pop Music CDs)

Circus Maximus are a progressive metal band from Oslo, Norway. As of their debut release, “The 1^st Chapter” the group consisted of Michael Eriksen on vocals, brothers Mats and Truls Haugen on guitar and drums respectively, Glen Mollen on bass and Espen Storo on keyboards, who later left the band to be replaced by Lasse Finbraten. Circus Maximus are strongly influenced by fellow progressive outfits, most notably Dream Theater, Queensryche and Shadow Gallery. Their sound is a melting pot of genres, styles and ideas. They incorporate the technical demands of progressive metal, along with symphonic, orchestral, pianistic, rock, operatic and theatrical elements. “The 1^st Chapter” also contains bonus tracks: “Imperial Destruction” on the “American Release”, and “Haunted Dreams” on the “Japanese Release”. In 2007 they released their second full-length album, “Isolate”. The band have been together since 2000, and after an agonising wait, are soon to release their third studio album some time in early to mid 2011.

The first Circus Maximus song I ever heard was “Biosfear”, a five and a half minute instrumental work, riddled with time signature changes, fast unison passages, blistering guitar and synthesiser solos, and tempo changes. It goes without saying that I was blown away by the technical proficiency that this largely unknown band, even within progressive metal circles, possessed. My second thought was, “This is too good to be true! The vocalist must be rubbish!” Boy, was I in for a shock! Michael Eriksen has a voice that perfectly suits the ensemble. His voice is very versatile, and can cater for any musical situation, whether it be high chest voice singing with a heavy accompaniment; or soft, low register whispers with an acoustic guitar, or piano orchestration. Guitarist, Mats Haugen caught my eye as well. Heavily influenced by John Petrucci of Dream Theater, Mats unique style of guitar playing puts Circus Maximus’ music in a league of it’s own. His playing is not only heavy, driving and technically clean, but melodic and thoughtful. Mats’ guitar solos on “Alive”, and “The Prophecy” demonstrate his thorough thought process, and meticulous approach to solo construction. Mats is not only a well polished guitar player, but an exceptional musician, orchestrator, and integral part of the band’s chemistry. Alongside his brother, Truls, on drums, and Mollen on bass, they form one of the tightest, and most tasteful rhythm sections in all of progressive metal. Truls is a solid drummer, who plays ever rhythmic pattern with conviction. He’s not afraid to lay it down, and allow the rest of the ensemble to groove along with him. But don’t worry, there’s plenty of chops in those limbs of his! Storo’s tasteful piano accompaniment filled out the sound even more, lifting the already tight ensemble. Storo’s unbelievable virtuosity on the instrument opened the door for dynamic interplay between the guitar during instrumental sections.

Circus Maximus’ Dream Theater influence comes through very strongly on this record. Their songs follow similar formulas and approaches to instrumentation: long songs (the title track, “The 1^st Chapter” clocking in at 19:07 minutes), unison passages, extended solo sections, contrasting sections, time signature changes, key changes, and a general disregard of traditional song structures (i.e., verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge etc.). “Why Am I Here” is the only song on the album that (loosely) follows a formula similar to that of traditional song-writing. The vocal melodies are perfectly crafted, and flow seamlessly from section to section. “Silence From Angels Above” is the only ballad, and shortest song on the record; that gives the listener a chance to relax their metal ears! This song is orchestrated around Mats’ finger-picking guitar part, and the haunting vocals of Eriksen. Their lyrics typically have a theatrical nature, or tell some kind of story. Lyrically, the album from start to finish tells a story of a man on a journey to salvation. Their lyrics often times draw from the film industry as well. “Glory Of The Empire” was written with the inspiration of the 2000 film, “Gladiator”.

It is phenomenal to think that this group, as established as they are, emerged from nowhere and produced such a mind-blowing debut album! I highly recommend this album to any fan of Dream Theater, Redemption, Shadow Gallery or similar bands. This album, and band for that matter, is a must for any progressive metal enthusiast. You won’t be disappointed.

I give this album a 9 ½ out of 10. A true progressive masterpiece!

If you wish to purchase this album, you can find it here:

First Chapter (See all Rock Music CDs)

James LaBrie is a Canadian progressive rock and metal vocalist, best known for being the lead singer for the progressive metal band, Dream Theater. James has released three solo albums to date. One under the band name, Mullmuzzler, and two under his own name, including his critically acclaimed release, “Elements of Persuasion” in 2005, and his new record, “Static Impulse” released on September 28 of 2010. James’ band for the record features the legendary Italian guitarist, Marco Sfogli, as well as keyboardist and vocalist Matt Guillory, both of which were featured on “Elements of Persuasion”. James also recruited Peter Wildoer on drums, and Ray Riendeau on bass. The album continues on in a similar vein that was established with “Elements of Persuasion”. It is very dark lyrically, and is very heavily rooted in progressive and melodic styles of metal. James said in a radio interview that, “[paraphrased]Elements of Persuasion was anticipating Static Impulse.” Every song on the album with the exception of “Coming Home” is very heavy, dark and driving, which for me was a little unsettling. In addition, contrary to his previous solo release, this album contains a lot less high register singing, which is interesting because that is what James is known for! But don’t despair, there’s still plenty of James to be heard on this new record! Also, this record features screaming vocals by Guillory, which is a side of James’ musical interests that remained previously unexplored until now.

As with many albums that I listen to, this one took some time to get used to. It is certainly very different to “Elements of Persuasion”, which was more heavy metal oriented, with less melodic metal influences. This album contains more radio-friendly songs, that possess a coherent structure and form, while simultaneously incorporating the technical demands of progressive metal. This is an album for those that wish to listen to brutal, melodic, progressive metal, but don’t want to endure twelve minute songs with overblown instrumental sections!

Having said all of this, the album as a whole is lacking in contrasting material (that is, all of the songs are heavy and full of notes), which in turn, causes the song-to-song flow of the album to suffer. From an individual song perspective, coherence and clarity of musicality goes out the window on select tracks such as, “Mislead”, where too many fast passages are played simultaneously. Musically, “Mislead” is overdone and overly technical, showing off LaBrie’s band more than the man himself. Unfortunately, this overly technical nature is an underlining characteristic throughout the majority of the album (of course, some songs more than others). From a lyrical standpoint, “Static Impulse” as a whole is a step down from LaBrie’s prequel record, “Elements of Persuasion”. In my opinion, the lyrics could have been connected to the vocal melodies with more fluidity, or the melodies altered to accommodate them. “Just Watch Me” is an example of this disjointed appearance, most notably in the first verse. The lyrics themselves aside, the vocal melodies, as always, are strong on this album. LaBrie continues to impress with his abilities in writing catchy vocal melodies. The backing vocals also deserve a mention for excellence. The vocal interplay between LaBrie and Guillory (screams) is also worthy of praise. However, when one is putting out a solo album as a vocalist, demonstrating the ability to write strong and cohesive lyrics should take priority (obviously), especially given that LaBrie’s contributions to the project instrumentally (musically) are slim to none at all.

Granted, “Static Impulse” has it’s moments, however I believe that this album in general is a sub-par effort comparatively. It has shown such a huge departure from what James LaBrie established in 2005 with “Elements of Persuasion” both, musically and lyrically. I don’t believe that the band (which consist of amazing players) supported LaBrie as well as they could have. Their overly technical parts detracted from what should have been the focal point of the record, LaBrie’s vocals (irrespective of whether this was LaBrie’s intention). However, as I have already mentioned, this album is great for those that want to get into a tight, progressive metal band, but don’t want to endure overblown solo sections, typical of many progressive metal groups today. All of the songs, regardless of my own ideals, are driving, heavy and deliberate. But unfortunately, this album was not my cup of tea.

I give this album a 5 out of 10.

If you wish to purchase this album, you can find it here:

Static Impulse (See all Rock Music CDs)

You can read other reviews that feature James LaBrie here:

Dream Theater’s “Black Could & Silver Linings”

The opening track is, “Crucify”, one of the more death metal-Esk songs on the album. The verses see James exploring a more growled inflection to his voice, and in the chorus he shows off his extreme vocal range, which he is known for, hitting several high D’s. Sfogli takes a blistering guitar solo before James takes it out with a few more choruses. The lyrics for this song, as well as “Alone” and “Lost” were written by Matt Guillory. All other titles on the record featured lyrics by LaBrie. A great opening song.

“Alone” continues on in the same way as “Crucify”, maintaining the aggressive energy with a driving chorus, and great lyrics. This song brings forward for the first time on the album the use of electronic influences, and a DJ turntable. James shows off his very clean mid-high register voice in the chorus, and contrasts it nicely with once again, a harsher, growlier vocal timbre in the verses. “Freak”, and “Invisible” continue in the same vein as “Crucify” and “Alone”.

The song “Lost” brings some release to the tension. The crunchy, distorted guitar has been substituted by keyboard pads and soaring piano counter-melodies. Lyrically, this song is not very strong. However, musically, it’s a great example of simple dynamic songwriting.

“Undecided” (as well as “Invisible”) speak of James’ doubts, and ultimate rejection of organised religion. This song is lyrically heavy, and musically as well. The crunchy guitar riffs, keyboard string pads and synthesiser sounds fill out the sound beautifully. This song introduces the first use of progressive metal style unison lines during the instrumental section.

“Smashed” sees another soft point in the record, showcasing James’ lower register, and piano orchestrations (probably not LaBrie’s, but Guillory’s!). It opens with piano, bass, and drums playing a sort-of “jungle-drum-and-bass” style part, which continues on into the verses. In the chorus, Mangini changes gears, and returns to familiar territory laying down a solid rock beat.

“Pretender” is another one of those “balls-to-the-wall” type songs! Vocally, LaBrie is up in the stratosphere the entire time, and the energy never subsides. Sfogli’s distorted guitar is very prominent, and integral part of this song, laying down some chunky riffs. As usual, the guitar solo is incredibly melodic and driving. The conclusion of the solo leads LaBrie very nicely into the bridge, which is still up in the sky!

“Slightly Out Of Reach” is a more pop-rock focussed song in many ways. The vocal melodies in this song are beautifully crafted, and seamlessly flowing. The unbelievably melodic and driving guitar solo by Sfogli takes this song to a whole new level.

“Oblivious” returns once again to the powerful, energetic home-base that is “Elements of Persuasion”. The verses, and particularly the pre-choruses, somewhat unconventionally have a lot of lyrics that move along in quick succession. LaBrie contrasts this orchestration with a very simple chorus that is four words in total.

“In Too Deep” opens with more electronic effects, before breaking into perhaps the heaviest metal section on the entire album. This is only lifted further with the addition of LaBrie’s haunting vocal melodies. In the second verse, LaBrie once again shows off his well-grounded high register passaggio. This is also the only song to include any form of profanity on the release. This song closes off with a very eerie and haunting piano and guitar duo.

“Drained”, being the final song on the album, must close it off the same way it opened: “ballsy”! The lyrics for this song are well crafted and evocative. James closes off the song, and the album with a bang, putting all his effort into the final vocal lines of the outro, showing off his unique style of vibrato in a very effective, and musically building way.

Out of all of James LaBrie‘s solo albums to date, this is by far my favourite. This album is the perfect representation of what LaBrie’s style of singing is all about. I highly recommend this album to anyone that is interested in progressive metal, and operatic metal vocals. This album is for you. Also, to any aspiring guitarists, this is one of the best resources for developing a melodic solo sense within rock and metal genres. I can’t recommend this album enough.

I gave this album a 9 out of 10. Unbelievable!

If you liked this review, please check out my review on James LaBrie’s sequel solo album, “Static Impulse” here.

If you wish to purchase this album, you can find it here:

Elements of Persuasion (See all Pop Music CDs)

Initially, I didn’t like this album. I felt that they deviated too far from their roots musically and lyrically. I felt that they were “trying too hard” to be complicated with their song writing, particularly with chordal writing. However, upon listening and re-listening I discovered that in reality, they hadn’t deviated from their style of song writing in the slightest! Mark Tremonti (guitar) said himself in an interview with FaceCulture, that I’m going to loosely paraphrase, “When I write songs I don’t like to follow rules or conventions. I want the music to be original and my own.” – which in reality, is what they as a band have been doing since the very beginning. It goes without saying, that it took me a while to become accustomed to this new sound from Alter Bridge. However, when I finally was able to let go of my preconceptions regarding what I believed Alter bridge should sound like, I was able to just sit back and enjoy the music; and I believe that is the most important thing to keep in mind when it comes to a new album release. Many of us, myself included, get caught up in comparing one album to another that we lose the excitement, enjoyment and feelings that these songs gave to us in the first place. What I’m trying to say, is this: If AB III were the first Alter Bridge album I ever heard, would I be thinking these same things about “One Day Remains”, and “Blackbird”? Would I be comparing, or more correctly judging these albums with AB III as the standard? But of course, “One Day Remains” and “Blackbird” are a part of the bands history, so they should have some significance when a new album is released, but they should never get in the way so as to undermine or belittle any of the groups’ subsequent releases.

Having said all of that, I now love Alter Bridge‘s new album! It is undeniably evident with this new release that their song writing as a band has matured immensely. This record has a different sound and emotional feel to it, without a doubt. Yet, it is still recognizably Alter Bridge, and I think that’s all that matters.

I want to wish Myles Kennedy all the best with his spirituality and the journey he is on, and I hope that you will one day, “find your way”.

I gave this album a 9 out of 10, a fantastic album!

If you wish to purchase this album, you can find it here:

AB III (See all Pop Music CDs)