DIGITAL GHOSTS

Having seen the name of Shadow Gallery around over the last few years and taken little notice I decided it was time to take the plunge and give them a chance on their new album Digital Ghosts. How this new album with new singer Brian Ashland compares to older material with their late frontman Mike Baker who died a year ago of a heart attack I couldn't say. This does however give me the opportunity to take it on it's own terms rather than comparing it to past glories and what I can say is I'm very glad I bought this cd as it's a really excellent prog metal album.

Shadow Gallery will undoubtedly appeal to fans of the likes of Dream Theater and Symphony X. The standard of musicianship is excellent with much guitar shredding for those who like that sort of thing. Along with the high octane instrumental workouts expected in the prog metal genre, Shadow Gallery can add another string to their bow with a strong emphasis on melody and excellent use of harmony backing vocals, which could give them wider appeal and an audience with people who aren't normally into the metallic side of things. New singer Brian Ashland is a fine vocalist in the Geoff Tate of Queensrhyche vein and works well with the backing vocal contributions of the rest of the band.

The music is often complex but not at the expense of melody, more so when they move into one of their often extended instrumental workouts, none better than title track Digital Ghosts where the band really show what fine musical chops they have. The music throughout constantly shifts from the more bombastic metal elements into more light and shade moments and does take a few plays to reveal its secrets but once discovered it makes a captivating and exhilarating listen. Particularly enjoyable is Gold Dust winning my award for strongest melody on the album alongside some fine playing. Also unlike many prog metal bands the keyboards are pleasingly given plenty of space, playing a key role rather than being merely used for texture and colour.

Overall then an excellent album highly recommended to prog metal fans that are partial to strong melodies. I'm pleased to have bought an album by Shadow Gallery at long last, my only regret being I left it so long to do so. I'll certainly be investigating their back catalogue.