PERSPECTIVES

You have to hand it to the French - when they want to do something original, they do something original. At least that's the case with progressive metallers Lord of Mushrooms' latest opus "Perspectives".

After the surprisingly straight ahead no frills, yet quite quirky and kind of humorous 'Imago', Lord of Mushrooms show their true selves in 'Warmth in the Wilderness' which is riddled with odd metered grooves, something which this band obviously have a penchant for. What is interesting is that the first couple of songs come across as quite accessible in not particularly technical because of the use of catchy vocal melodies - but obviously that are very technically advanced, drawing a lot on odd time signatures.

This changes with 'Red Queen's Race' which is an overtly technical little instrumental, while 'Raindrops on my Wings' takes the listener through odd metered grooves, rapping and scratching, as well as highly melodic choruses. 'Nyx's Robe' is oddly groovy and features a jazzy fretless bass solo, while the title track is both aggressive and melodic.

Dynamic, spacey, deceptive, and extremely well put together, "Perspectives" is a likely candidate for progressive metal album of the year.

(review originally posted at metalmusicarchives.com)

Apparently Lord of Mushrooms started out covering Spock's Beard and Marillion alongside Dream Theater and Rush, a diverse range of influences which seems to have trained the band well when it comes to delivering the sort of diverse sound they offer on Perspectives. The album is a kaleidoscope of intriguing progressive rock and metal, offering (as the title suggests) a range of radically different moods. They're not the first prog metal act to slip calmer and more melodic segments into their sound, of course, but Lord of Mushrooms' quiet moments tend towards a lusher and richer sound than other bands', making them sound like a decidedly different and original prospect.