REDEMPTION

Every now and then an album comes along that is so perfect in every way that I wish I could give it 6 stars. This is one of those albums for me. A true six-star, dessert island, run into a burning building to save masterpiece. Highlights are "Sapphire", perhaps the most perfect song ever written, and "Parker's Eyes", an incredibly emotional look at childhood's end. Nick van Dyk's songwritting, both musically and lyrically, is at the top of his game, and Ray Alder's vocals have never sounded better. Not in 25 years with Fates Warning, not in his own project Engine. Never. In every way, this is a perfect masterpiece of progressive metal.

AN ALBUM THAT IS SURE TO GROW ON YOU---

This is the 5th release from the progressive metal elites, REDEMPTION and it's an album that is most likely a need for most to listen a few times to fully appreciate the dark, emotional content of this album, THIS MORTAL COIL. 

What should be known clearly is that in 2008 lead Guitarist, NICK VAN DYKE was diagnosed with a rare blood cancer called, Multiple Myeloma. This album is a very dark, emotional piece  that is about the feeling of mortality, coming to the understanding that death looms over us all and that we have to accept the best things in life even though we as human beings we have to battle the frailty of our own human condition. Ergo, THIS MORTAL COIL is sure to Rick your psyche and make you think about how precious life is and the best way to do that is through fast and Furious prog Metal at a very elite level of musicianship. 

THIS MORTAL COIL starts off with a huge bang with the track, PATH OF THE WHIRLWIND which is a very energetic song that is full of life with blistering drums and a strong chorus to boot. Excellent opener. The next track, BLINK OF AN EYE is absolutely sublime and is my personal favourite song on the album. The sound arrangements are incredibly well thought out and Ray Alder's voice is perfectly on key to complement this speed demon of a song.  Another notable track on the album is the emotionally laden, NO TICKETS TO THIS FUNERAL. This obviously has some deep rooted connection with VAN DYKE beating his cancer and saying to the NOONDAY DEVIL, that I'm here to stay and you can't take my life just yet, so tickets for my funeral to you! It's quite a theme with this track, but it really works and sparks some incredible guitar from Van Dyke and well as a few nice keyboard solos to slow things down a bit. Also, the chorus for NO TICKETS is very catchy and will surely get stuck in your head. It's like I said, this album will grow on you. Lastly, the power ballad LET IT RAIN is a wonderful track and really helps round out the album by slowing things down a bit so the listener can catch his/her breath because REDEMPTION don't take their foot off the gas for very long on this release. It is a serious prog metal ambush that attacks the senses boldly. 

All in all, I have to say that this album is not as bad as others have lead on for it to be. Personally, I feel that it would make a nice edition to any prog metal collection, especially if you were to obtain the 2 disc special edition of the album where by the 2nd disc contains a 6 track cover set done by the band. Cover tracks include, FUNERAL FOR A FRIEND/LOVE LIES BLEEDING which is fairly well done 2) JANE 3) HOLD THE LINE 4) EDGE OF THE BLADE 5) LOVE TO LOVE and 6) PRECIOUS LITTLE THINGS. A very enjoyable set list and fans of UFO will be in for a treat because REDEMPTION nail LOVE TO LOVE. The opening keyboard solo by VAN DYKE is melodic bliss. 

I'm giving THIS MORTAL COIL a 4/5. It was a fairly enjoyable experience, although it does contain some recycled material from their previous works, but i say 'who cares! It sounds good.' Enjoy prog heads. 

First of all I need to admit that I admire Nick Van Dyk, the mastermind behind Redemption. He's one of the best music composers and arrangers on this planet. If you are a fan of progressive metal you need to check out Redemption.

"The Fullness of Time" is the second album by Redemption and their first album with the master vocalist Ray Alder. They are really heavy and don't trespass the boundaries; they stick to the main purpose of their music and never give you extra annoying parts or stuff like intolerable instrumental sections or unattractive keyboard solos that need to force themselves into the ears of the listener.

"Sapphire" is one of the masterpieces of progressive metal. Almost 16 minutes of pure mastery. The lyrics are so powerful and full of emotions. The music arrangement is perfect and excellent so that it stands alone among many other bands. It is almost unlike Dream Theater or Symphony X. Nick Van Dyk has a unique relation-of-parts on his mind. He always surprises you with his melodic connections and vocal lines that are somewhat extraordinarily the glue of the songs. Nobody could bring the vocals such amazingly to the progressive metal music.

"Parker's Eyes" is yet another great track from this album. You can always enjoy great melodic solos and melodic structures integral to the song.

"The Fullness of Time" is a four-part song. Again, the vocal melodies stand out. Nick Van Dyk seems to know where to take us with his powerful imagination in music.

I'm speechless ladies and gentlemen; you need to enjoy great progressive music by listening to "The Fullness of Time."

It's strange to me how people's opinions on music differ so vastly. I came to Redemption's area on Prog Archives to review this album, and saw that their previous albums had averages above 4 stars, and this one was the first to dip below. But the funny thing is that this is the album that finally convinced me that I loved Redemption. After this album, I went back to their older albums and discovered I loved them too, but before this album I used to tell a good friend of mine who was a big Redemption fan that I felt like the band was 5 instrumentalists soloing at the same time. When I heard this album, I felt like I was hearing how the band had matured and cohered. I remember also that it seemed like every time I listened to this album, my favorite song on the album changed as I discovered I loved another song on the album. It is still hard to pick a favorite, though I would like to mention the song, Keep Breathing. This song was written by one of the two guitarists, Nick Van Dyk, about his daughter Parker, who has a degenerative disease causing her to lose her eyesight. The lyrics explain how as a father he can't stand to see his daughter in pain, but at the same time is amazed at her strength and bravery and tells her that it inspires him to go on. As a Progressive Metal fan, this doesn't happen to me very often, but the first time I heard this song I had to pull over as the tears began to flow. The whole album is powerful, and don't be surprised if your speedometer begins to climb as you listen to this album.

fall from grace!

i'm sorry, i tried...i really did but couldn't get around to appreciating this effort from Nick and the boys from Redemption. i only got into Redemption with the beautiful Snowfall on Judgement Day and then went into their back catalogue as far back as the debut (which was the only other albumthat i didn't really like).

given that the calibre of the band - Nick's and Bernie's prowess with guitar, Ray's illustrious "past life", the tight rhythm section of Chris and Sean and the layers of wonderful bars from Greg's keyboards remains unchanged from the previous album, its hard to understand where they went wrong. and they did go wrong somewhere...

the chugging guitars that start in Path of the Whirlwind just seem to go on (and playing the same chords) through the first 4 songs including the lacklustre Dreams from the Pit.

Noonday Devil manages to get away from this mechanised flow but isn't really a great song. The highlight of the album is most likely Let It Rain which is catchy, melodious and in a similar vein to Redemption's "ballads" from their past.

then, its back to the sludge factory and, after listening to the album now some 15 times (like i said, i really tried!) i still cant tell the next 4 songs apart...but hang on, its not over yet!

we still have the closer, the "epic" Departure of the Pale Horse. now, this is a masterpiece in all the wrong ways. yes, its 10-min long but there is probably not a minute-long piece of good prog-metal. somewhere along the way, they try to work in phrases and sections from the first 10 songs and its totally confusing. end-result: 10 minutes of torture...

sorry again, folks! this is almost totally a wasted effort. i was very tempted to go with just the 1 star but hey, these guys were one of my favourite bands after the last album, so give them a break, ok? just hold on for the next one and hope they get it right

I often say to myself: "Self, a song without a guitar solo isn't worth listening to". Now, that just may be my reaction to people that don't appreciate solos, but what is abundantly clear in all of Redemption's work, and in particular this one, is that they feel the same.

The guitar solos on this release are superb and BV deserves special credit. Redemption put all the things that make metal good into their sound. Progressive? Well if musicianship, skill, dexterity, melody and songwriting are hallmarks, then yes. But they do fit better into the straight ahead metal with a bit of thrash category, where this album should receive 4 stars.

Again, the lyrics are very personal and mature, a hallmark of their sound and particularly poignant considering NVD's recent battle with cancer, but ultimately this record falls a bit short of their last 2-3 releases. It just sounds a little 'tired' for want of a better word and like other reviewers here, I too question the production, it's a bit too raw for my liking, but I find the mix fine (especially the solos!).

This is a difficult review that I 've tried to avoid writing. In a year that EVERYONE released great (to say the least) albums you expect mindblowing releases from your favorite bands. So here we have a very good album but few things hold it down.

My first problem is the production, which is a mystery if you consider the previous works of Neil Kernon. Some called it uneven, I will call it lame, too fuzzy guitars, no depth to the whole music. It feels like an old vinyl through a poor stereo. I agree with the comment that they should re-produce it.

And the second problem is Alder's sound. In some songs (especially the heavy ones) it doesn't fit. It is too low for this kind of song and the production drowns it. Is like a noose around his throat, it sounds single-dimensional. I don't believe that he lost it, something went wrong I think.

Third problem, there are great compositions that could gone better, I mean 3-4 songs here are at the level of Sapphire but the band choose to be more power than prog, more heavy. Nevertheless in the second part of the album things went better, since it is more emotional.

If you put these aside, what you get? Strong compositions, great melodies, incredible and technical instrumental parts. It is all heavier and dark, I think due to Nick's health issues. This is working well, Redemption were always heavy, early thrash infuences were always around, check No Tickets To The Funeral. Sometimes you wonder if these guys can play slow riffing. Noonday Devil is the heavier moment of this, just like Leviathan Rising was for the previous album. And then you get Let It Rain, one of this year's best songs and a couple more that are emotional like this, f.i. Perfect.

So after 3-4 spins I started really liking it. It is a grower, it is so strong that you forget about the problems. You just hold on to what you love about this band, powerfull riffing with emotional voice. This is no Snowfall and I don't ever consider comparing it with Fullness of Time, but it is a very good album. At the end of the day, I still consider myself a die hard fan of them.

good stuff, not bad. that's what i first thought when i heard The Fullness Of Time but maybe that was because my introduction to Redemption was the masterpiece Snowfall on Judgement Day.

Threads (5:43): not a great song to begin with; i mean its ok but doesn't have anything memorable

Parker's Eyes (6:15): sounds promising to start with, the first few minutes are great and then it gets repetitive

Scarred (7:56): weak riffs, not Ray at his best, average at best

Sapphire (15:55): the "epic" of the album, its well-constructed but not quite great

The Fullness of Time Suite: 5. Rage (5:01) 6. Despair (3:20) 7. Release (5:16) 8. Transcendence (7:59)

the "suite" doesn't really sound like one to me but its 4 good songs put together...i love the beginning of Rage (is that Ray in the narration leading into the killer riff?)

overall, above average but like i said, since i listened to this after "Snowfall..." it was going to be hard to impress me more...

'This Mortal Coil' - Redemption (5/10)

Being formed by members of Symphony X and Fate's Warning, it does not come as much of a surprise that Redemption are one of the most talked about progressive metal bands these days. Now close to a decade old, this supergroup has now put out five albums, all falling within a fairly close style to its parent acts. 'This Mortal Coil' is the most recent album from these titans, and anyone who has heard what Redemption is all about before should have a good idea of what to expect here. Redemption's latest falls into an ever-growing category of albums that while incredibly impressive from a production and performance standpoint, ultimately fails to move me in any way. For all of the talent exerted here, it is all the more disappointing that the end result is little more than a run-of-the-mill melodic power metal record.

Glorious things have been done in the past by both Fate's Warning and Symphony X, and I would even have some great things to say about some of the music that Redemption has released in the past. However, I get the feeling that the label of prog metal is being watered down now to the point where it is perhaps unintentionally crossing over into power metal and even melodic rock much more than it did when the fusion of prog and heavy metal was still young. If there is one thing that progressive metallers and Redemption in particular have however, it is musical skill. This is a well-produced album with strong performance and even a handful of jaw-dropping instrumental sections. The times where the band breaks into technical segments or solos is where Redemption really shines, sounding a great deal like the bombastic instrumentals of Symphony X. Sadly, the proggy moments have been toned down on 'This Mortal Coil' in favour of more melodies.

All in all, the melodies and songwriting here are both fairly good, although it is most often predictable. One thing that surprised me here was the voice of Ray Alder, for the fact that his delivery here is so much different than his work with Fate's Warning that I have heard; he aims towards a soothing melodic delivery that nails pitch perfectly, yet I can't say that I prefer this dimension of Alder. I would never deny that Redemption have talent- they are in fact a collaboration of some of the most gifted and enduring musicians in progressive metal. All the same, their work on 'This Mortal Coil' feels tame and predictable. This streamlined effort is reminiscent of the disappointment I felt with Symphony X's latest release. Where I'm left wanting a roller coaster, I'm stuck riding a tilt-a-whirl, albeit a very well-oiled one.

Every new album from Redemption is something to celebrate in the progressive metal community, especially considering that this American powerhouse has been on quite a winning streak lately. Hot off the heels of the killer Snowfall on Judgment Day is This Mortal Coil, the fifth full-length album from Redemption. Everything that we've come to expect from Redemption is here in full force - powerful and technical guitar riffs, lush keyboard palettes, outstanding musicianship, and powerful vocal lines that can only be delivered by Ray Alder. This Mortal Coil is ultimately a successful entry into their discography, yet I can't help but feel a bit let down by a few key aspects of this release. Although this is musically an outstanding album, the production flaws and uneven mix leave my enthusiasm for This Mortal Coil a bit more restrained than it should be. Fans of Redemption should be sure to check it out, but this isn't the best starting point for those new to the band.

Those familiar with Redemption should immediately recognize the sound on This Mortal Coil. Expect a strong influence from Dream Theater, Fates Warning, and Symphony X within the sound, even though Redemption does have their own distinct brand of progressive metal. The songs are generally pretty conventional and accessible (in a good way), and always contain unforgettable choruses and killer riffs. The technical acrobatics of the band are as impressive as ever, and plenty of furious guitar and keyboard duals always keep things interesting. This Mortal Coil's most appealing factor, for me at least, is the vocal performance from Ray Alder of Fates Warning. Even though he may not hit those same notes he used to sing in the late eighties, he proves that he's still one of the most powerful and emotional vocalists in the prog metal world. The melodic sensibilities of his singing style parred with the extremely memorable songwriting structures make for plenty of unforgettable moments contained within This Mortal Coil.

In most regards, This Mortal Coil is a near-flawless album. Actually, the quality of musicianship and songwriting are so high that I may even consider it one of Redemption's best albums to date. So what is the hold-up that restrains my full enjoyment of this album? Unfortunately, it's the iffy production and uneven mix. Even though the album doesn't sound horrible, the sound here is hardly excusable for a band with this much reputation and popularity within their respective genre. The sound comes across as overly compressed and distorted, and the mix seems to emphasize all of the wrong things. The vocals are awfully low in the mix, often being drowned out by a flood of loudly-mastered riffs and drums. The loud and compressed production certainly doesn't do a prog metal album any justice, and I really wish that Redemption would re-produce this album sometime in the future. The current sound quality ends up nearly crippling all of the album's other assets - something that I will rarely say, especially in this day and age.

In spite of its glaring production flaws, This Mortal Coil is still a very successful observation from Redemption that most fans of the band should check out. I've had a really good time experiencing this album, and there are enough killer tunes here to keep me revisiting again in the future from time to time. With songwriting and musicianship this strong, it's hard not to at least be left somewhat impressed by This Mortal Coil. The album is dragged down by a poor production, but the redeeming qualities are still enough to warrant a 3.5 star rating.