SILENCE

I was extremely hyped when I finally got the album and put it in my stereo! Although I was somewhat confused after my initial experience the album has definitely grown on me over the years. Many complain that A.C.T are getting more commercial but I personally found a lot more creativity here than on most progressive-releases of the last few years. Now let's talk about the release:

First off I really liked that Thomas finally managed to transfer his great live sound to the studio recording. The sound that comes from his drum-kit can only be compared to likes of Neil Peart! And if I understood correctly there is even a minor reference to Rush song Trees at the beginning of the album!

Ola Andersson has probably been my favorite guitarist ever since I've heard his work on the track Svetlana off Imaginary Friends! Even he has managed to outdo himself on tracks like Out Of Ideas, Silent Screams and many more.

The keyboards and vocals are as great as they have ever been my only concern is for Peter on the bass. Although his live performances are awesome, I have difficulties of following his work on the albums. But what could one expect when the bands sound is so rich and there is almost no time to show off any particular instrument.

After listening to the album for the first time I was a bit disappointed about the increased number of violin-numbers and the increased melodic feel on each track. But eventually I managed to see beyond all that once I discovered that every track is incredibly well thought through and that there are quite a few truly progressive moments on it, all I had to do was to pay attention! The same thing happened with Consequences (The Long One). At first I was disappointed that the song wasn't as over the top and energetic as the previous long compositions, especially Personalities. But already after the second listen I found the first traces of pattern in structure and began realizing the songs true potential.

Finally I would like to add that my favorite thing about A.C.T is that the band has never tried to show off their great craftsmanship, instead they managed to insert it all in their amazingly accessible music. Hopefully they will eventually get the recognition that they truly deserve.

***** star songs: Truth Is Pain (4:09) Out Of Ideas (4:47) Polish, Reduce, And Enlarge (3:55) Call In Dead (2:51) Silent Screams (1:58) Introduction (0:51) The Millionaire (2:10) Joanna (3:09) A Father's Love (2:32) Memory to Fight (2:43) The Diary (3:10) A Wound that Won't Heal (4:32) The Final Silence (1:36)

**** star songs: Puppeteers (4:13) This Wonderful World (4:20) No Longer Touching Ground (4:11) Useless Argument (4:49) The Voice Within (3:55)

*** star songs: Hope (4:29) Into The Unknown (3:55)