THE EXTENT OF DAMAGE

1. 'Necro' (12:38) The first five minutes of slow, ominous music sounds like a soundtrack to a French mystery film of the 70s or 60s. Then the music shifts into atmospherics and odd eerie background noises and voices until at 6:35 things kick back in with heavier synth washes, lead electric guitar and loud eerie wind/voice noises. At 7:39 everything cuts out again only this time we are presented with some different deeper synth 'voices'. It's like the sounds our imaginations would play upon as we're walking alone through a large wooded cemetery in the middle of the night! At 9:35 you'd think we were just accosted by someone or something jumping out from behind a tree. The ensuing 'battle' or 'flight' does not end well, methinks! At first listen I did not think much of this song, but as I think of it as a soundtrack--and such vivd imagery passes within my consciousness--I am convinced that the band did their work admirably! Scared me through and through! (8/10)

2. 'The Lies We Share' (9:46) the introduction of the VANGELIS-like synth wash minor chord at 3:30 is awesome! Then heavily treated guitar power chords. And the choice of percussion sounds that soon join in are equally great. The chord progression that takes over at 5:55 is absolutely heart-breaking! You've won me over, boys! I am at your mercy! But then you let it fade away at the eight minute mark and then we slowly shift and drift into a more somber, almost sad chord progression--equally gut-wrenching but sad! Amazing song! You have mastered the art of toying with your human listeners! (10/10)

3. 'The Great Divide' (9:27) opens like a sunrise on an empty parking lot. But then at 1:40 the city seems to come to life: cars and traffic trickle onto the streets, begin flowing with early morning rush hour regularity. At 3:10 the view shifts, and we are suddenly looking skyward--at cloud, wind, and air traffic. Is this the last day? The end of life as we know it? The sky view is so ominous and confusing. What are we seeing? 5:10. What? What was that? Is there something to give us hope? Something to give us strength and resolve? Cuz that's what the new key and chord changes are making me feel. Until at 6:38 reality bursts our bubble. It is the end. We are all going to die today. The slow but insidious devastation of the surface of the planet is in progress. We can only watch in total helplessness--we can choose to revel in the glory of the cleansing that Mother Earth is receiving as its parasitic humans are scoured from her skin by the consequences of their own hubris. Awesome journey. Awesome song. (10/10)

4. 'They Sleep While We Burn' (9:33) opens with some industrial sounds creating percussive rhythms upon which other incidentals flit in and out. The first four minutes kind of build, kind of take me nowhere, but then a shift to an unusual (for Battlestations) chord sequence (kind of a Blade Runner theme sequence and sound) brings us to the private home and research offices of Tyrell Corp--oops! Misdirection! At 6:10 we are halted in mid-air turned around to look at a more beautiful version of what is possible--perhaps some of Roy's memories from his off-world adventures--while we are numbly, humbly forced to watch. AT 8:10 a new chord and sound sequence segues us into a remorseful, conciliatory mood. Perhaps we can live in peace and harmony, after all! (9/10)

5. 'The Extent of the Damage' (3:56) feels kind of like a medium for re-entry, re-integration into the normal human life that we were used to before entering the soundscapes of this album. And boy is it appreciated! It's like the walk out of the theater while the credits are rolling--getting used to light, one's body, movement, and negotiating through the 'real' world again. But, What a show!

The key to the stunning success of this album is in the band's growth in engineering/mixing as well as in timing. The mastery of knowing when and where to shift the song's themes and sounds is so difficult to achieve but boy have you guys found it! I love the visual stories I'm sucked into as I listen to these songs! This is exemplary of some of the most magical potential that music contains! The power to transport! Mega kudos, Boys from Bruxelles!

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