LEGER DE MAIN

3.5 really

The second offer of this discret band, issued at same PMM label in 1997 , named Second first impression is almost in same league as first, but in places is little experimental, and the progressive arrangements are more then ok but not as great as on debute. Two instrumental pieces here , the second instrumental Silent Monster that goes in King Crimson direction (Red era) with some avant/experimental prog rock, not bad but nothing spectacular. The next 2 pieces are great Changes With The Day and Some Shall Search, here they are in bussines, and sows how underrated band they were. Complex and complicated aswell instrumental parts, melodic and yet furios, they combine so well some prog metal passages with prog rock elements that in the end they don't sound at all like a prog metal band, the arrangements are subtle and good. So, little less intresting then first one, at least to my ears, but still good for sure. 3.5 stars. Great band that goes rather to unnoticed in prog rock circles, and the Rodler brother are simply amazing, such high calibre musicians are hard to find in prog rock scene in last 20 years.

Leger de Main is one of the unfairly unnoticed band coming from USA from the '90s formed by excellent two musicians the Rodler brothers. Named The concept of our reality issued at PMM in 1995, this little treasure worth to be discovered by many listners as possible. Some really impressive instrumental passages here made by Rodler brothers, Chris is responsable for guitars, keyboards and bass and Brett for drum parts, the resoult is amazing, nothing less. helped on vocals by Melissa Blair who will become a Rodler later on, married with one of the Rodlers done a good job on vocals, she had a deep voice that fits perfectly here. All 5 pieces are extremly well crafted, specially the first two pieces, To Live The Truth and Crystal fortune are killers, my fav from here. Some Rush hints here and there, but Leger de Main is more then a copy/paste band, they have right from the beggining their own sound, lots of changes in tempo, nicely smooth acustical parts combined with electric ones, excellent and complex druming and outstanding guitar parts. So, overall this album goes recommended , their is plenty of impressive musicianship and outstanding ideas offered on this first opus, the Rodler brothers might be two of the most underrated musicians in history of prog music, every band where they were involved like the colaboration after disbanding this band in 1998 with Kevin Hultberg named RH factor again great, Mythologic, Razor Wire Shrine, all acts being above easy listning and sounds from good to excellent. 4 stars easy, I like it a lot.

I do think this is an improvement over their debut "The Concept Of Our reality", but it's not much better. The female vocals that i'm not a big fan of are more restrained on this one, which is good. And that edge that the debut lacked is here, but on three tracks only.

"Running Interference" is an instrumental opener to get us warmed up. Kind of haunting really. "Silent Monster" is another instrumental, and if the first one didn't get your attention this one will. One of the better tracks actually with some actual instrumental fireworks (thankyou). The guitar is even a little dissonant late with a barrage of drumming. Nice. "Changes With The Day" is laid back with vocals, it does pick up before 6 minutes, but i'm not a fan of this one.

"Some Shall Search" has vocals which come in around 2 1/2 minutes, but it's the powerful instrumental work that has me impressed. This is a top two track for me. "Do Whispers Die ?" is another mellow song with vocals that leaves me indifferent. "The Story" opens with some cool guitar melodies as bass and drums come in. The tempo picks up and check out the chunky bass ! Vocals 1 1/2 minutes in as it settles a little. The tempo continues to shift the rest of the way.

Unfortunately I can't get excited at all about their music, even though these guys clearly have talent.

LEGER DE MAIN's debut is pretty good, but I wish it had more of an edge to it. The female vocals (Melissa Rodler) do little for me, although they're not bad by any means. She would go on to sing on the MYTHOLOGIC record which had much the same affect on me as this one does.

"To Live The Truth" opens with gentle guitar and synths as vocals come in. A full sound 2 minutes in with prominant bass and piano as drums pound. The guitar comes and goes. Not a fan of this one. "Crystal Fortune" is better with it's powerful intro as the guitar takes the lead. Some scorching guitar before 3 minutes. "Immobile Time" opens with vocals, bass and drums standing out. The vocals get pretty passionate on this one, especially a minute in.

"Enter Quietly" is the 20 minute epic. There is a lot of acoustic passages in this one as well as flute. Vocals don't come in until 7 minutes.The song turns aggressive 9 minutes in then settles as this contrast continues. The guitar lights it up 11 1/2 minutes in. It really gets quiet a minute later. Heavy again 15 1/2 minutes in with some scorching guitar to follow. Vocals are back after 17 minutes. Synths and piano 18 1/2 minutes in. Nice. "Distorted Pictures" opens with some good drumming as vocals join in. Even better drumming after 2 1/2 minutes, with some ripping guitar to follow.

I just can't get past the vocals unfortunately, but even without that obstacle I would give this 3 stars.

Another box under Progressive Metal .

Why do I say so? It's because of the kind of music Leger de Main plays is quite different with those delivered by Dream Theater - who has been widely used as reference in any progressive metal scene - or Symphony X or even Pain of Salvation. They are different in style and approach you can feel it right away when you listen to this album for the first time. You might have expected some heavy riffs in the vein of "Metropolis" for example, but unfortunately .. you can hardly find such riffs typical with any Dream Theater song. Their riffs are different in nature. The riffs are not created to accentuate some parts of the music - typically just before interlude or during transition pieces - but they are more directed toward making the riffs as part of the whole composition - like guitar solo as natural part of a composition. That's the way I see the band's music.

Do you want a great example? Take the second track "Silent Monster" which basically a dynamic instrumental song but it has great variation of styles and chords throughout this relatively not long song. What I like about this song is the fact that it cannot be predicted from the musical patterns they have laid down in the music making. I feel like being challenged with the band to guess "what's next?" after certain acrobatic parts. You will get a surprise, in fact, when the third track "Changes With The Day" (11:15) enters your listening pleasure. It starts with eerie keyboard work and acoustic guitar fills followed beautifully with vocal line by a female vocalist Melissa Blair. You might recall the music of Annie Haslam and Renaissance but it's different and I don't think that this is a prog metal scene with heavy riffs. It sounds like symphonic music. "Some Shall Search" (12:20) is then performed with opening part which is similar to King Crimson music especially on its guitar riffs which remind me to Adran Bellew's style. The music flows in complex arrangement using keyboard, drum, bass guitar and guitar exploration. Composition-wise, this fourth track is quite challenging in styles and varieties especially with the non-linear structure of the song. There are some curved lines during the performance of the song. In fact in some segments, the style of the music reminds me to bands like Finneus Gauge or Echolyn even though not exactly the same.

"Do Whispers Die?" (8:18) starts off with low register notes of vocal by Melissa Blair which flows in mellow style and performed with strong accents. The opening part is just like typical ballad music but as the music flows into further arrangements, the bass guitar plays wonderful lines as rhythm section altogether with keyboard. Even though this track lacks touchy melodies but the overall composition, musically, is good. Personally, I do enjoy the bass guitar work. The album concludes with another excellent track "The Story" (9:20) which has good melody line and soundscape. The guitar work during opening is stunning especially when it's combined with dazzling drumwork. The keyboard solo follows the music just before the vocal line enters the music. Again, bassguitar is a dominant rhythm section. There is even segment that gives chance the bass guitar to perform solo followed nicely with guitar fills. The ending part with long guitar solo is really good.

Overall, I do believe that this is an excellent addition to any prog music collection. The composition is tight, with varied arrangements (in styles as well as textures), combined with solid performance - even though overall melody line is not catchy. Good music does not necessarily requires touchy melody, don't you think? Keep on proggin' ..!

Peace on earth and mercy mild - GW

It took me a long time to get into this release by Leger de Main, but it was well worth my patience. Upon my first listen nearly a year ago, I would have rated it between three and four stars, but I am now convinced that this album is definitely worth five stars. Other than an above-average instrumental introduction, every track on this is exceptional. Although I haven't listened to their 1995 debut, I understand that it is in the progressive metal domain. Second First Impression is more closer to a mix of symphonic prog and art rock with some metal influences.

Second First Impression begins with an eerie sounding instrumental prelude. Nice, but it wouldn't stop a road runner in its tracks. However, things really begin to kick in on Silent Monster, the second track, being a highly energetic, sometimes chaotic instrumental. The song brings out influences from both Yes and ELP, has an incredible performance on the drums by Brett Rodler, and some powerful guitar work by George Jordon, nodding in the direction of Steve Howe. The third track, the 11+ minute Changes With the Day, is a great song. Vocalist Melissa Blair has a lovely voice, similar to Lana Lane, but much more pleasing to the ears. Oddly enough, in parts of the song, her delivery (not sound) is similar to Geddy Lee, which brings a distinct "Rushness" to the overall feel of the song. It's also a bit reminiscent of Mostly Autumn. The fourth track, the 12+ minute Some Shall Search, reminds me of a mix of early Anekdoten and Rush. Another great song, although it's probably a little too long and not as good as the previous track. The guitar work is wonderful. The remaining two tracks are both fantastic, again showing Anekdoten and Rush similarities, but also sounding unlike anything I've heard before.

Overall, a masterpiece, but one that took a lot of time to grow on me. I had difficulties getting through the whole thing on the first listen, but now I consider it one of the essentials of my collection. Leger de Main has influences from Rush, but with a darker sound, like Anekdoten mixed in. Influences aside, they do carry a sound that is quite unique. Incredibly energetic, with a great drummer, a great vocalist that sometimes uses a Geddy Lee vocal delivery, and some amazing guitar work. Highly recommended masterpiece. Easily worth five stars.

This album is softer that Leger de main's debut, more leaning towards the folk prog side, with vocals sometimes reminding me of Lana Lane, After forever, or Within temptation. One can still easilly recognise the King Crimson influences ("ConstruKtion" period comes to mind), and to me the music makes a more ballanced impression. All in all a pretty good prog rock product, although the production seems a bit erratic to me, at times (I would have used a different sequence of songs, but that's a personal thing I guess).

One minute you hear Trees ( UK folk rock ensemble)..the next... hard/prog rock a la ... Mastermind...only the female vocals are right up front (yeah i know..mastermind have had a female vocalist...but the music was harder!!)...time signatures and breaks fills this album to the brim....actually this record is a mix of hardprogrock and folkrock. I kinda like it......if you´re into female vocals with an edge of hardprog...this is for you !!! All is well played and performed..its just ...that ...there is nothing that, you havent heard before!! Leger De Main.....in my ears, sound kinda plain !! 3 stars......why?...because these Guys/girl knows their stuff! Nothing more!

This is the debut CD from ex-DRAMA members Chris and Brett Rodler, together with the excellent female vocalist Melissa Blair. Chris and Brett are doing the music while Melissa is writing the lyrics. This is highly technical progressive rock/metal that certainly will please fans of DREAM THEATER, JETHRO TULLl, KING CRIMSON, MARILLION, RUSH and UK, as it's very complex and intricate with many mood shifts. Although every track is almost equally good, the track "Enter Quietly" stands out a little bit more with its 19:50 minutes. On this track the musicians get a good chance to really show off. I would like to recommend this CD as it contains some of the best progressive music I've heard recently with excellent musicianship throughout the entire album. LEGER DE MAIN have recently released their second CD entitled "Second First Impression", that is said to me equally good to "The Concept of Reality".