THE PROBLEM OF PAIN: PART 1

I really don't know why so many people have given this album one star reviews. The rating is almost as bad as Metallica's 'St. Anger!' Now, while it's generally agreed this album isn't a masterpiece by any standard, I've actually found it enjoyable to listen to at times, although the negative aspects of this record certainly prove to outweigh the positives.

One of the problems people have had with 'The Problem Of Pain: Part I' is the apparently unprogressive, short songs. To be honest, I've never considered the songs to be standalone works. It's always felt like an album-long epic. If there wasn't any break in the actual music (as in, no fade outs or silent parts, in order to make it really sound like a single song) I'm sure it would be easier to rate this album higher. However, repetitions in musical ideas (there are musical ideas that recur all the time throughout the album) give the album a sense of oneness as to make the thing feel very sustained and ongoing, although the fact that the recurring ideas offer nothing fresh to the mix detracts to the point that it feels like the second half of the album is just a replay of the first.

Musically, I think there's definately prog there, and Torman Maxt is a talented band at that. The guitarwork in particular is incredibly well done. The thing that probably turns so many people off are the whiny-sounding vocals. While I do agree that they sound a bit much like Rush for their own good, the same could be said for Dream Theater on their debut (which was called the 'best Rush album that they never wrote or performed') and look where they ended up going.

'The Problem Of Pain' really sounds like a bunch of kids trying to make a Rush concept album, and besides the irritating vocals, and the constant note-for-note reprisal of come-and-gone themes, it turns out okay. Although the concept could have certainly been explored more deeply, there are some awesome parts to this album, and the atmospheric jams are incredibly done. And as far as free music goes, why should anyone be complaining?

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