SECOND LIFE SYNDROME

All you need to say for this album is WOW. This is one of the best albums I've heard in a very long time. It is technically sound, and beautifly orchestrated. Duda's vocal range is surprisingly vast, and can produce a soft, peaceful tone to flow with the keyboard and bass lines, or an intense, but not overwhelming tone that is synchronized wondefuly with the heavy guitar riffs. Musically, Riverside can produce a beautiful, easy listening ballet such as "Conceiving You", or bring you on an epic journey through multiple ranges and tones such as in "Volte-Face" and "Second Life Syndrome". These guys are masters of the "build up" song. They can start soft, and end heavy very smoothly, without you even noticing the change, or they can start slow, and blast right into some heavy shredding. they bring that death metal sense to the table, but it really only adds to the musical genious of the song. The "screamo" vocals (of which I am not a fan), and double kickers actually strengthen the music, and create an intensity that we all love in a song. It isn't overpowering or a turn off, but rather gves the song a control over our senses, much like Pink Floyd (not quite as heavy) in the early Gilmour years. All in all, this is truly one of the great albums of 2005, in any genre, and is a must have for anyone who wants to lose themselves in brilliantly orchestrated and technically sound music. (4.78/5)