SILENCE

This is a great album! Silence is even better then their former album Impression!

This dutch intrumental sympho prgo band rocks! Leading in the music is Bastiaan Peter on guitar. Andrew Latimer and David Gilmour can be heard directly by him: fantastic melody and a great sound. As I understood he is member from the beginning and the band is very defined by his guitar and his melodic approach.

Also Peter Kosterman on bass has influenced this album very much. The bass on this album has a important role, sometimes playing the lead and otherwise contributing to the basics of the tracks, and has got a beautiful fretless sound.

The keyboards have a great sound on this album: broad and very seventies and eigthies. Jeroen van der Wiel creates great atmospheres on this album. The drums of Menno Boomsma are creative and very contributing to the sound of the band.

My favourite track if this album is Chinese Waters. I's had already seen their video clip on RTV- NoordHolland. Strange to see that I can't find any information of a DVD of this recording session on television. Nevertheless, Chinese Waters has a fantastic atmosphere, with curiuos sounds of the keyboards! Also Flags without a heart with a beautiful piano and fretless bass is a track with a lot of emotion. 21 reminds me the most of Camel, with great guitarlines, beautiful keys and a supporting great rhythm of drums and bass. Continental Motion has different spheres, sharp rhythm alters great melodic keyboard and guitarlines.

If you're into Camel, a bit of Rush and Pink Floyd, this is the album to listen to!

In modern Symphonic Prog, originality is not so important. We can end up pretty quickly with conclusion that everything was here before and so this is rubbish because it's just clone / copying. But this is NOT the right way I want to take.

There are more important factors for me. For example when I from time to time listen this kind of music (about two albums per day from this genre, this is still my home genre - the one I listen most), I don't want to feel like listening the same thing over and over again. This doesn't happen here. It's probably not masterpiece, this goal is very hard to achieve, but even though you can read remarks like "if you are into xxx (few bands)", by the way very common review ending, this album still manages to be interesting. Oh, how often do I write this. But it's always true.

My favorite track here is Continental Motion, beautiful connection of guitar & synths with quite original melody.

Because there are limited possibilities (this genre can't be as experimental as eponymous genres - Metal, or Avant that should also be quite adventurous, because that's what makes it interesting), one should enhance these little things that makes Sympho interesting, not to deny all modern Symphonic in general. Flags Without a Heart has beautiful flute, something like default instrument for Dutch bands and at one time also some kind of organ like synths

4(-), not masterpiece, oh no no. But not bad album either, when we consider with what these guys have to work.

Sometimes waiting patiently can elicit some fine human tendencies as long as expectations are kept on a even keel, just like a blossoming love affair on a magical first date that longs for a reprise. This album I have waited for, unsure whether I would ever enjoy more of the same brilliant melodic guitar-led prog that permeated Odyssice's 2 previous offerings. Bastiaan Peeters is an accomplished fretman on par with the Gilmours, Hacketts and Latimers, yet he is unknown to most and many. The addition of premier bass player Bert Kosterman (previous dude was good though!) only liquefies more the sonic expanse with some glittering fretless playing, washing within massive mellotron washes, silky piano runs and clever synth forays. But the star of the show is definitely the 6 string monster, a colossal sense of grandeur and inherent search for maximum passion colors each of his instrumental caresses. The opener "21" is a scintillating anthem of utter beauty that defies description. Except on this baby, they like to mix it up with punchier material as on the sophomore "Memento", a spicy ramble that rocks, weaves, glitters and fizzes seductively, like some hot lady on a trendy dance floor, high-heels clicking with lust and suave hair tossing around manically. (Keep that thought, boys! hmmmmm) This is amazing stuff and we are only 2 tracks in! Gasp! Peeters' axe moans, groans and shrieks when prompted, cattily undressing the sensual images already rooted in our minds. Showing a more experimental side, they push the previously successful Oriental motifs on the "Impression" disc even further with a slow-building Sino effect on "Chinese Waters" which aptly convey a modern rock feel to very traditional music. This is reinforced with some clever percussion (Mr Boomsma is no slouch!) and some whimsical fretless bass noodling that makes this arrangement breathe , gathering lungs for another slithering guitar solo that would make many cry in sheer exasperation. Simple but devastating. "Colours of Silence" possesses a main melody that is beyond haunting, a trait of intense melancholia which Peeters and crew clearly understand and cavort in. Yet there is a definite positive tinge to all the drama as if heaven would be near. This essence is what attracted me to this group in the first place and they never disappoint. The maturity of their craft has concocted a moodier, yet more accomplished catalogue of sounds, unafraid of searing the grandiose and boldly facing the bluesy inner pain. The hope and courage theme overtakes the proceedings by offering up some passion and flinging Bastiaan's axe into stellar activities on the board. His various pedals add such a huge dimension, always done discreetly and well within the temperamental mandate. The acoustic guitar and piano dance a majestic waltz on the sad "Flags Without A Heart" , a reference to the former East Bloc countries banners that had a red star in their mid section, petulantly cut out by the oppressed with scant hesitation or argument. Gently somber at first, the piece flutters suddenly forward with a cool groove that gives all musicians a platform to roll with the punches. Very sexy, lovemaking prog this is. That undeniable smile of defiance is audible and delicious. Bastiaan unleashes his finest controlled solo, elegantly passionate and determined nevertheless, the perfect lover. Music lover, I mean! Carlos, Dave, Andy and the Steves would be applauding lustily, a solo for the ages. "Continental Motion" is the big 10 minute epic here and arguably their shiniest moment as a complete band, a clear indication of the commitment level of all to the romantic style, putting in a nice 'mise en place' before going to the ovens and cooking up a storm of savory sounds. This is where art and music coalesce, establishing a memorable adventure that cries out for an audience. A mid?section introduces wispy voices, atmospheric horizons and a grandiose choir, beckoning the saturated guitar back from the warm beach and onto dry land. The bass propulses and the urgent axe solo shrills like some raging crow , with a very obvious but utterly delightful Santana feel adding even more class to it all, the mellotron pushing for attention. This is prog heaven , kids, the synthesizer and the 6 stringer enveloped in a crushing caress, bodies perfectly intertwined in a loving embrace, reaching orgasmic proportions. Wow! Enough said, I have to clean myself off. LOL . "Swank" ends this jewel on a sprightly note, a stable deck from which to launch screaming jets of sounds, rapid fire slinging, missiles set to shoot and terrorist targets scurrying for cover. Insistent, devastating and merciless, Odyssice show they are no wimps and bold enough to dare forging ahead. I almost dread waiting so long for another salvo of scintillating instrumental prog, even this caliber would do nicely, thank you.

Easily in my top 20 all time and that says a lot. Dead perfect album from start to finish. I have heard an awful lot of music in 54 years but this is killer old school prog.

5 whispers

It is not an easy thing to achieve to make an instrumental album which speaks to you. Odyssice, a Dutch symphonic band, have done just that with Silence, another in a growing list which will compete for the album of the year.

As with all great instrumental albums, the musicianship is excellent. Indeed, as a lover of Camel, Steve Hackett, Pink Floyd, and Mike Oldfield especially, it is a huge compliment from me to state that the playing here is on a par with these fine artists.

The guitar work of Bastiaan Peeters is quite incredible, and I wonder just how on earth I had never heard of him before listening to this album. He deserves a great deal more attention and praise, and I would hope that this album will provide that launch.

Peter Kosterman, on bass, achieves that very difficult feat of using the instrument in a lead manner, in much the same way as Reingold and Trewavas from the modern era do, or Squire did in classic times. On the second track, Momento, his is the sound which leads the rest of the band around him.

Jeroen Van der Wiel provides the keyboards, which, at times, are very reminiscent of Tony Banks, and, in the best symphonic tradition, they swirl and soar.

Menno Boomsma completes the quartet. He provides competent drumming (no more, I'm afraid), but also chips in with flute.

It is difficult to describe where this band get their influences from. No, actually, it would be better to state that I find this refreshingly original. For example, Chinese Whispers has shades of Oldfield and Hackett about it, but only in the sense of the atmosphere it creates, which can be disturbingly dark and intense. For an example of how good lead guitar and bass can be in tandem, look no further than this track, which contains an incredibly haunting lead.

The emotion that is drawn out of Colours of Silence really is stunning, and I wonder just what life event occurred when this was written in order to produce such a moving track. Exceptionally intense, this is the highlight of the album for me. It also provides the finest drumming of the album, with a very complex time signature very well performed.

Flags Without A Heart has an acoustic interplay between guitar, bass, and piano, which set a dreamy, melancholic mood, one that is dedicated to former oppressed nations, before the track resonates with an electric guitar solo that is standout, with the band coming together to create a modern symphonic masterpiece.

There is no track below five and a half minutes on the album, so to describe Continental Motion as the standout "epic" is probably a bit misleading, but it is the lengthiest track here, and features some very deft, original, keyboard work interspersed with some more moving guitar work by Peeters. It also has in between all of this an extremely interesting new age passage, which I hope will feature strongly in any future work the band produces. It closes with perhaps the strongest nod to classic symphonic prog with keyboards and guitar which would not have sounded out of place on later Genesis epic tracks such as Fading Lights.

The closer, Swank, reminds me very strongly of Floyd in their Gilmour era pomp, and is a good atmospheric way to close the album.

This is a very good album, and one that I would strongly recommend to all members of the site. I award it a very strong four stars.

A collection of very melodic and emotional music that suffers, IMHO, from 'old' sounding keyboards and toms--and a bit of a computerized feel/sound to it. I find it difficult for instrumental albums to achieve 'masterpiece' status--especially in the "neo-prog" category. The 'risk' of including vocals makes the musical achievement that much stronger. Plus, this one might just be a bit too neo. Still, it is filled with many excellent moments of engaging and emotive highs. My favorite song is "Flags Without a Heart" with "Chinese Waters" coming in second. A 3.5 star album bumped up for its ability to lift you up and bring you back for more.

This band picks up a 70s tradition of Dutch symphonic instrumental Prog, following in the footsteps of Trace and Finch so to speak. I must admit I'm not the biggest supporter of that scene. But I can't help it, I'm Belgian.

Kidding aside, this particular release from Odyssice manages to overcome the misgivings I usually have. They bring bright and mellow music but they make it work with their sweet sad melodies and nostalgic 80's sound with the big lush keyboards. The band delivers their compositions with well-crafted melodies and splendid lead guitar work that makes us almost forget Andy Latimer.

Well, not really 'forget' Latimer, rather 'remember', as this music is a tribute to the instrumentals from 1979-1984 Camel, reminding us of tracks like Pressure Points, Sasquatch, Ice, Drafted-Docks and so on. And take it from a skeptic, they do this style with so much skill and feeling that I am almost tempted to rate this as an excellent album.

Silence is a gorgeous album when I'm in the mood to dream along with romantic instrumental rock music. However, for me, a 4 star rating comes with a need for a more personal sound then the one band tribute that Odyssice does. But in the end, they do it very well and I can heartily recommend this album if you just want to enjoy good symphonic songwriting and execution. 3.5 stars.

Tasty new offering from Dutch Progsters, Odyssice.

Seven excellent tracks of Camel-esque music, played by superb musicians. All nice n' long.

Be interesting to see what my brother makes of this one, seeing as he's a Camel fanatic....

It's all instrumental of course. Vocals would probably ruin a band like this, although maybe a FEW, and I mean a FEW, lyrics would have been nice. Suggest a Genesis style 'Los Endos' closing vocal next time chaps ?

There's something to savor on every track, including a bass solo that's rarely heard these days.

I was a bit worried about the last number, 'Swank' which could have been a horrible mispelling in it's own right let alone a bastardisation of the Gensis track 'Squonk' also from Trick of the Tail. It isn't, but it could well be a Hackett/Banks outtake.

If you like Camle/trick era Gensis, Also Eden, and similar you'll enjoy this.

Oh, and best of all, the band look like the bloke next door.

Not the most prolific of bands, Silence is only the third album from Dutchmen Odyssice since releasing their debut titled Impression in 2000. It would seem not a lot has changed in the Odyssice camp since then as Silence continues in that vein of melodic symphonic prog.

Odyssice are widely regarded as being similar to Camel, a view I wouldn't disagree with. This is too a large part down to guitarist Bastiaan Peeters soaring Andy Latimer style lead work but they also tread a similar path of easy on the ear melodic prog. This may lead some to find the band's sound a little dull and if Sleepytime Gorilla Museum are your thing, then unless you have wide ranging tastes Odyssice probably aren't for you.

Silence is however pretty good, well played and whilst their sound largely centre's around Peeters guitar work there's also a strong keyboard presence, less retro sounding than you might expect from a band like this. The seven instrumental compositions are all enjoyable enough but could do with a bit more variety with nothing standing out as exceptional to lift it above the average. I do enjoy Peeters lead work in particular though, the rest of the band laying a solid foundation as he soars away over the top, which he does throughout.

A good album then which could benefit if only they'd take the bull by the horns a bit and rock out a bit more, like even Camel do at times. This they do to a degree on final track Swank but it's a case of too little, too late. However, if it's not their thing then fair play to them.

For a very weird reason, that I don't even know where it came from, I was really interested in this album when it came out and wanted to hear it really bad.

Odyssice is a band that pretty much got stuck on time, as many others, by the time of Pink Floyd's The Division Bell (1994)/PULSE (1995). And this is simply unexplicable.

This albums may have got some Prog faith back but in terms of quality they are far away from being masterpieces, and some of those sounds look so dated today.

That's exactly why I can't understand how bands like Odyssice can release albums like Silence (2011), almost 20 years later and having EXACTLY the same sounds of the 90's, fake sounds. Keyboards, drums, guitars, bass, you name it.

The band tries hard but in the end of the 50 minutes one can hardly remember anything.

If you do like that particular era I mentioned go for it with your eyes closed, but you have been warned,