THE YOUNG AND RESTLESS

In 2005 Us had to face some major problems.Singer Stephan Cristiaans and guitarist Peter de Frankrijker decided to leave the band, while drummer Paul van Velzen started to lose interest in the project during the recording process of the upcoming fourth album.However Jos and Ernest Wernars decided to finish the album on their own forces (with the help of Marijke Wernars in some vocal parts).They even evented fantasy drummer Joris ten Eussens, so Us would seem as a normal band to the public, but actually the duo recorded the drum parts all by themselves.The fourth title of their catalogue was the 2006 self-produced CD ''The Young And Restless''.

And the truth is the Wernars duo did it pretty well.''The Young And Restless'' is definitely their darkest-sounding effort so far, a 56-min. tight long suite divided in 14 short parts with only a few interruptions between the tracks.Additionally it is also their most retro- and symphonic-inclined release with the Neo Prog influence a bit limited compared to the previous albums.To the music, ''The young and the restless'' holds a perfect balance between instrumental passages and vocal parts.It is a very well-structured and executed composition with epic keyboard deliveries and strong HACKETT-like guitar chops along with the always deep bass sound of Jos Wernars.Synthesizers, organ and mellotron parts dominate the album in series of atmospheric and powerful arrangements with a fair dose of changing climates and Jos' guitar lines range from the smooth GENESIS' performance to some huge electric explosions in the vein of IQ or COLLAGE.Especially the later guitar parts supported by the massive keyboard attacks are what make the album really dark regarding its atmosphere.On the other hand the male vocals are mediocre, sometimes sounding out of tune and without some needed color delivered by an experienced singer, while the drums sound a bit mechanical at moments, though the Wernars' did a pretty good work on this section.The soft acoustic textures remain a strong element of Us music and add the appropriate breath among the symphonic arrangements.

All in all this is another very good Us production.If these majestic instrumental passages were next to a better voice we would talk about a trully excellent work.But even this way the album deserves a relatively high rating and a strong recommendation...3.5 stars.