DICE

Perhaps it's the pressure, self-inflicted or otherwise, of the album-a-year release schedule. Perhaps it's the demands of songwriting and touring. Perhaps it's the blind insistence on 10+ minute tracks for 6 minute ideas. Perhaps it's the logical culmination of progressively weakening albums since the knot was tied on the "Within/Without Trilogy". While the DICE sound has essentially remained intact, the group has abandoned its commitment to the song in favor of a "PHISH" in space approach. When it works, it is glorious, as in "Every Open Window" with its compelling combination of melodic themes and space jam. But more often than not this effort just sounds bloated, the awkwardness of the group's reference to the Universe as entity, which we overlooked until now, fully exposed by ennui, as we wait desperately and in vain for a trademark hook. The dense and multilayered DICE remains, which works for as long as you want background music that sounds progressive enough in the car, but if you crave more than the superficial, you should pull off the "Comet HIghway" and load up almost any of their earlier efforts.

Cosmic rockers DICE are virtually always good for a pleasant listen or 100. their prolific nature in the face of what must be a modest audience is laudatory, almost as if the group carries on as a project as much for the fans as for themselves. The last few releases have eschewed variable song lengths in favor of consistently extended pieces, perhaps in an effort to appeal to progressive fans who presumably constitute the lion's share of their base. They have also added flutes and saxes in an attempt to stave off predictability and stagnation.

On "Newborn", their 2011 offering, the commitment remains the same, notwithstanding a few very welcome and hypnotic keyboard passages. The vocal melodies continue to veer towards the type of AOR that we wish we could get out of our heads, particularly in the choruses of "Dancing with All Gods" and "Crying Angels", the weakest numbers here, and it's all a bit too languid too often. However, most of the remaining tracks like "Tomorrow's World" and "the Future is Still Waiting", while far from earth shattering, do more than survive on the goodwill of previous albums, and might serve as entry points to the group's expansive new agey meets PINK FLOYD approach. In fact, "On the Way", in spite of the aforementioned shortcomings, possesses a riveting outtro, all the more impressively so for its minimalistic keyboard melody and woodwind accompaniment.

While I yearn for the enthusiasm and energy of "Waterworld" or the emotion of "Within vs Without", if you seek to become a newborn fan of the group, almost any role of the DICE will do just fine.

I have listened to this even more than most of the DICE albums I have devoured in the last 3 or so years, perhaps because it is becoming harder than ever to characterize their sound, even as it occupies the same bathymetric range as their umpteen previous releases, and moves at about the same warp speed. The DICE stock in trade remains elaborate, if not intricate, melodic progressive rock with a song orientation but lengthy track lengths that allow for extensive soloing and ensemble work.

Chronologically, "Eternity's Ocean" slots in right after the "Without/Within Trilogy", and picks up where the final installment left us, extending the freedoms of Jens Lübeck's sax and flute, while offering ever more intense lead guitar options for Peter Viertel. As a result, it seems as though the inmates are running the asylum, which, while musically not always a bad idea, results in the busiest and perhaps least focused DICE album in some time. Here it seems like many of the cuts are simply way too long, particularly the aptly named closer "Falling Apart", which clings pit-bull style to a decidedly pedestrian beat, reminiscent of 80s BOWIE for most of its 10 minutes, and throws in dreadful radio "noise" to boot. Luckily little else here plumbs those depths, although "Secret Harmony" is a bizarre misstep that proves that even shorter material is not safe from the quality control police. From its frantically paced opening there is simply nowhere to go but down, and boy does it.

The rest of the tracks are good or better. I have to specifically call out "The Last Hour" which is blessed by divine flute work that sets off the more restrained but still skilled lead guitar before the sensuous sax has its turn. The pace is more deliberate and unhurried. Nove handles the keyboards, and here his supportive organ work is especially praiseworthy. "Venus and Mars" resides closest to other DICE album openers we have come to love and, while "Following the Wind" seems the heir apparent to its predecessor's "Hold the Spirit" combined with a tickling nostalgia. it also suffers most from Viertel's least subtle work as it draws close to a close. Hopefully in subsequent releases he will be more reined in and the balance between guitars, wind, and keys will be struck.

This release shows a group perhaps unsure of their next move, and, while they are by no means salting away their future, I can't help feel this won't be the DICE album to live on in eternity.

I haven't heard about this band for years! They were founded somewhere in mid 70-s in former German Democratic Republic, and were not too much known even in that time's Eastern Europe , where common figure of existed rock bands was smaller than in one middle-size English town.

Later I found the information in one Polish rock site,that they re-founded band and successfully play and even regularly record albums. It wasn't easy to find more information on them, but I realised that they are still based in Leipzig and are mostly popular around former Eastern Germany and some Western Polish territories. Let say -good local band.

So it was really interesting to hear their new album - after few decades! No big surprises though - I found almost what I expected to find: melodic straight forward rock, but with nice, almost symphonic arrangements,and compositions are really long (almost all -longer than 10 minutes), what shows band orientation to prog listeners.

Music itself is quite simple, but soulful, plenty of sax and flute are added and it makes the music even more nice. Vocals are competent, if a bit old fashioned. Main problem in musicianship field is for sure the drummer - his level is strongly below average there, and too often his drumming reminds cheap drum machine's sound.

For sure, this band isn't one of higher league (even not from the first one), but their melodic symphonic rock (more rock than prog),with some Scorpions-like guitars and a bit naive and old fashioned compositions has it's own beauty. Just if you don't judge them at the high standard requirements.

No way album for real prog fan, but for those with love to melodic not too complex pop-rock with symphonic arrangements, long compositions and dreamy,romantic atmosphere, this album could be nice listening ,I believe.

My rating (with a some advance for their naive beauty) is 3.

Terrific, simply astonishing album. I have to admit that I'm greatly impressed by this music, even though when I dig down into these songs and analyze them deeply, ingredients forming it, elements of which it's made are common in Prog music. Yet, it's big.

Reminding a little bit The Tangent (especially vocals), Guy Manning's work (song composition) + synths & flute, or saxophone. It sounds vague, but it's like with blurbs. They sometimes sounds silly, but they can surprise pleasantly.

Guitars, I think that important part of Dice's sound is guitar department, but the most important thing here is not indepth examination of count of each particles here, but as I said, it's rather about feeling you get from this music as whole.

5(-), there is "something" in this music.

Dice is a german band with a very long story and quite a big discography. Only recently I found out about this group and Versus is my first entry into their sound. Their music is very hard to define. It is at the same time quite familiar and yet original. Pehaps I should have asked KennethLevine for counseling? Well, it is obvious that they are influenced by the 70´s space rock german craze. But there is a lot more into it. There is a retro, symphonic feeling, doubtless helped by the extensive use of mellotron and other vintage sounding instruments. On the other hand, the production and recording techniques are very modern, with all the instrumentation and vocals very well balanced and clean. The result is an excellent exemple of good prog that mixes very well the old and the new.

I must say it didn´t grab me at first. The opener, Who Inflames The Universe Tonight? and the second track When The Darkness Comes took a long time to sink in. And still I don´t think they are the best ones in this CD. They are very good, ok, but there are better things on the record. However, from the third track on everything just clicks! The highlight of the album is the long and excellent 23 minute epic Hold The Spirit: an amazing roller coaster of great melodies, shifting rhythms and moods, terrific solos and perfect arranged instrumentation that gives you the impression that this tune is quite short, really. Secret Sun is another fine example of this group greatness, specially the second part.

All the musicians are very good. I found Jens Lubeck´s sax playing is a bit cliche, but his flute is just amazingly beautiful. Thre are few guitar solos but in general I liked the guitar work on this album a lot. Leader and vocalist Christian Nove handles all the bass and keyboards duties this time and he does a very good job on them. His voice is not one of the greatest on earth, but his emotional interpretation is quite strong and convincing. It fits well into this kind of music I guess.

Conclusion: it took me quite some time to fully digest and enjoy this album, but it was worth it. it also made me curious about their previous (and latter) releases. if you like space rock with good melodies and excellent modern production then you should not miss this one. A very interesting band indeed! 4 stars.

While DICE formed in 1974 and cites progressive bands of the day as prime influences, this compilation mostly from their 80s output is much more a product of its era, and sounds little like what DICE would become as the 90s came to a close. This is basically 80s rock with some pop sensibilities, conjuring up some of the more popular artists of the decade with a whiff of continental flavour.

I enjoy this up front style once in a while, and tracks like "Walking in the middle of the night" and "Try to Remember" are certainly pleasant enough upbeat tunes, while the excellent instrumental "Close Your Eyes" combines electronic ambience with programmed percussion quite nicely. The melody of the Buggles-like "Forgive me" later surfaces on the slowed down proggy "The Hope has Died Forever" on the first "Within/Without" recording. "God Bless you Mr Lennon" is an earnest tribute to the Beatle that sounds like something LINDISFARNE would do. Even the track "DICE" holds some interest as a jilted lover's tune. All that said, "Dice 1979-1993" is mostly dispensable except on historic terms, if you want to explore what some of the prog bands of today might have been doing during the between times.

A quick glance at the track list of this, the final installment of the "Within/Without" trilogy, suggests that DICE has herein forsaken the relatively simple and direct themes of Part 2 for a more involved approach. While this inference is based on track lengths, none of which (apart from the final reprise of the trilogy theme) clocks in much below 10 minutes, in reality the overall sound of the group has not changed much. Even the addition of skilled flute/sax player Jens Lubeck merely colours the generally mellow and rich space rock, adding perhaps half a dimension to their sound rather than engendering a sea change.

The anchor for this ambitious undertaking is the 23 minute "Hold the Spirit", which offers so much more than quantity. While I personally have been convinced of the group's skill and adventurousness, this track has the capacity to silence those more demanding listeners. It giddily floats from vocal theme to instrumental theme, using hooks to enhance rather than signify its pedigree, nearly establishing a genre in the process. More than anything in the DICE discography, "Hold the Spirit" sets the group apart in progressive rock for their own style and for their beguiling range of influences both modern and classic. The flute dominated section in the latter part is particularly worthy of mention for its dancing quality, and Alex Klimentov, dedicated to the use of acoustic guitar, adds a more organic quality to some of the relaxed atmospheres.

The album's opener "Who Inflames the Universe Tonight", is a more typical offering but includes fine sax and mellotron. As we have heard before from DICE, we can detect a certain gentle swing like affect. The Moody Blues' "The Other Side of Life" might be a good comparison as a starting point, although here we find much more expansive soloing by the returning Peter Viertel. "Secret Sun" is another fine wind-enhanced song with the most catchy chorus but also cool diversions that remind me of circus music, and Nove's talking on tune style. Both Viertel and Nove (who now handles keyboards and bass), shine in their melodic soloing to set the spine a tingling. Nove seems to deploy the mellotron heavily as a background for fluid guitars and flutes. While "When Darkness Comes" is somewhat less captivating, the final curtain on the main theme manages to impress more than usual perhaps because it is slowed down and some plaintive brass is added.

Not much to complain about here. While the first installment of the trilogy had me worried that the group was going to fold into the neo prog morasse, I needn't have been concerned. Right now, I wouldn't want to pit anyone else versus Christian Nove's group.

The music of "Dice" is preoccupied with trips to inner and outer space, so it was inevitable, if a bit superfluous, that they would eventually produce an effort entitled "Dice in Space".

The centrepiece "New Things in Space", is a 17 minute no-holes barred psych fest, featuring intermittent spoken and shouted lines, plenty of whooshes, and no discernible structure. This is not the first time Dice has dabbled in the like, thinking of "Croon" off "Silvermoon", but even there some sort of focus was brought to bear. So if you enjoy this type of noodling, be aware that herein may lie your favourite Dice album. It's not my cup of tea.

The pieces are linked by sounds reminiscent of those in PINK FLOYD's echoes, but on the whole this is much warmer and gentler music than Floyd. They manage to conjure a variety of emotions and stylings, many of which are throwbacks to the 70s. The most outstanding track is "No Return", with mystical overtones and brilliant guitar and synth solos galore. I have tried in vain to establish a single 70s reference, but it really contains an amalgam of many, including the obvious suspects but also SANTANA and FLEETWOOD MAC (think BOB WELCH's "Hypnotized" or "Future Games"). Suffice to say it is a dynamic and uplifting 11+ minutes, and one of my favourite Dice tracks.

Other highlights abound, such as the lilting lead guitar solo "The Journey", which would sound at home on a RUNRIG album. "Hold On" incorporates a bit of swagger and some horns (which may be synthesized) and scorching leads. The album also opens strongly with the melodic "What is Wrong with Me" in which Nove activates his distinct spoken style to delightful effect in a nursery rhyme style, and the captivating "Three Dreams", with its dirge like verses and outstanding instrumental breaks, some of which belie a certain Bavarian influence.

Taking away the incongruous title opus and the recap of "Goodbye", which had been a closer on an earlier album, we would have a 36 minute 5 star masterpiece and Dice's best album, no questions asked. This gives us plenty of space for 4 stars and an excellent entry point to the Dice universe.

German prog, be it Krautrock or the country's own brand of symphonic progressive rock, is often accused of coldness and general lack of emotion. While some of these charges are valid, particularly when one thinks of KRAFTWERK or NEU!, and even some aspects of the more melodically oriented groups like ELOY or RAMSES, in the case of DICE the theorem breaks down mightily, especially on this the second installment of their Without/Within trilogy. Here we find more real romance and comfort both in the lyrics and arrangements than can rightly be expected on the pop charts let alone in a genre known more for pyrotechnics. But please don't assume the instrumental fireworks are toned down, because they are not, in the least.

Virtually every track oozes warmth and soft colours, such that it is hard to pick out highlights on that basis. Even a glance at the titles reveals a philosophical and poetic inspiration, from the Italian symphonic inspired "More Worth than Gold" to the fantasy-laden "Ladder of Dreams" to the rousing vocal harmonies of "So Asked the Moon". Even when they pay homage to themselves as in "Dice Cosmic Blues", the blend of inspired lead guitar and keyboards is the stuff of nights in the hot tub under the full moon. "The Same Shadows" is a simple plea for greater awareness of our similarities as people, and the chorus is catchy even for DICE, with Nove in fine voice throughout. He also contributes plenty of mellotron strings without stealing the show from Henry Zschelletzschky and the guitars of Peter Viertel and his replacement Yugenji (who fits like a glove).

"In this life" and the reprise of "Without and Within" are the album's weak moments but they show plenty of strength especially in the former, which provides a valid counterpoint to the generally romantic melodies elsewhere. I just prefer the more textured and "lighter" DICE sound, if you will.

This is space rock for those who pine for home wherever one may be relative to that elusive place. It is music of the soul, mind and heart, and one of this group's as well as German prog's strongest efforts. 4.5 stars.