HORROR EXPRESS

In the dark, the opening track, immediately remember us the Peter Hammill´s voice and his penetrating style. Accompanied of the piano, he delight us with an extensive sung section, which gradually becomes more dramatic. This is promoted thanks to the drums and a secundary electric guitar. In O Cesare, definitively we discover that Parmenter voice is one of the album´s principal instruments, whereas bass, piano, drums and keyboards create a dark, dramatic and clean basis of no complex, but very emotional textures, which get closer the album to art rock. "Escape into the Future" is a song with a pop structure, where the synthetizers create a cold and artificial ambient. Kaiju starts with a sentimental violin, and a drums rythm helps to create a very melancholic ambient. The cello, a shy guitar and some electronic arrangements complete the gestalt. A beatiful composition, one of my favourites. "Snug Bottom Flute and Starveling" is another instrumental cut more strong, extrovert, with some private piano moments, which mutate to very interesting rythm changes. Drums and guitar merge in a very smart manner. Next, "Golden Child" brings back the Parmenter´s voice in a tetric ambient of progressive power. This track gave to me memorables and heartbreaking moments, a very nice piece.

Then, "Monsters from the Id" begins in a decadent way, awakening our more bizarre archetypes. Parmenter and his piano are the stars, and sometimes a shy flute pops in the dark. The guitar accelerate the rythm, and with some electronic arrangements and keyboards build a very impressive interlude. Finally, unexpectedly, Parmenter and his piano rend the fog with a warm ray of light. Polly New, a 10 minutes track, make us levitate with a strange style on gray, black and white tonalities. Here we found a more complex musical structure (but no too much), with drums and piano creating memorables in crescendos, with the accustomed private and dramatic moments of Parmenter and his piano. In this track I like the guitar very much. "All Done (Horror Express)" is a prelude to end ("I finished the job."). The Parmenter´s voice is the basis and the absolut protagonist, with the piano, and to them gradually some instruments become attached. Finally, The Cutting Room starts with an absolute perversity, and in its briefs 6 minutes give to us memorable and versatile moments. One of the album´s highlights, a nightmare turned to music, an exquisit, dramatic and shocking composition, with phantasmagoric keyboards. A big end of this original and very recommended album. With some similarities with Anglagard, Gnidrolog and VDGG, this is one of the great releases of this year, not due it complexity. I like it because its aesthetics and concept.

4.25 Stars!

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