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Salva - Off the Deep End CD (album) cover

OFF THE DEEP END

Salva

 

Crossover Prog

3.45 | 23 ratings

From Progarchives.com, the ultimate progressive rock music website

alainPP
4 stars SALVA started when S. GAVIK and P. MALMBERG were young: they played handball and found themselves in the same love of hard rock music. Over time, they scoured a lot of stages before becoming the group here in 2003. So, we can say that it is a group that was able to soak up a lot of musical genres! Personally, I have been following them since "Left to burn" in 2007. Note that W. MACKIE (HOGGWASH) and R. REED himself (MAGENTA) have worked to have them recognized.

Question musical genre, I had originally been seduced by the fruity Hispanic prog sound (another personal trademark, but I will not change my annotations!), Then by this symphonic prog style, eclectic prog metal, jazzy rock (very fashionable lately I think in a good way), grandiloquent and inimitable prog rock. The Celtic and Irish atmosphere emerges over certain compositions. We surf on MARILLION, PINK FLOYD, JETHRO TULL, TOTO, YES by certain flights of synths. More WITHIN TEMPTATION, EPICA, OH reviewed lately, BIGELF, ERA in some ways! There are also hard rock bands from the 70's period with big riffs and organ, all that making me think from afar also of RAINBOW, of DEEP PURPLE! It's a lot of reference...but be careful, I'm just giving a representative idea of ​​ their sound because their sound is by definition theirs first and foremost. Because of the singer's very singular, very captivating, almost intoxicating voice and the instruments ideally set up for each title! Also note the title in several parts "Clarity" alternate with longer titles and a little more prog!

Well, we attack with "king of nothing" with a mouth-watering title, well brought intro (beginning of BOF!) then atmospheric energetic with violin and breathtaking guitar. "Clarity I" starts with a DEEP PURPLE sound with organ and well-typed musical extension. "Skyclad" the album's soaring post ballad with a very hard guitar break that gives fat to this title. "Clarity II" or the FM hit (I find it hard to say pop!) that could have taken place not so long ago, it's well played, energetic and a bit like the "Reality dream » of RIVERSIDE it allows to prepare in a fluid way for another musical theme; what happens with "The ghost of fives" and its aquatic entry, that's good, the river title of the album all in delicacy, with Irish-folk sounds then with almost orgasmic rises of guitar solos. Again a calm, calm sound, we can find BLACKMORE's musical research in it. "Clarity III" another playful title à la JETHRO TULL, then à la JONASZ for a blues and jazzy air at the same time. "Under the fear" leaves with a very fat sound, a rather heavy rhythm, a gripping echoing voice, here I find a little of what LIGHT DAMAGE has been doing lately with its style by offering a varied melting pot of the best bands of the 70's. Here I find a JETHRO TULL riff, a PINK FLOYD melody, but I let you discover! Ah if the musical interlude on the piano and phrasing voice a must for me! "Clarity IV" the second ballad of the album with a higher voice, soft choirs, acoustic guitar, piano and Spanish atmosphere with an acoustic guitar solo. "Al dente", country-folk just to attack the last slope of the album with "Brickshort", can surely finally be the centerpiece! Here, no concessions, it starts with Wagnerian organ then it goes up with donf drums (in French bad boy in the text!) and synths to lead to symphonic prog metal à la SALVA! A female voice is even more reminiscent of this group that I will not mention, SALVA has finished conquering me, I just let you listen to yourselves, but GOD it's good!

You will have understood it, I was waiting for it, I listened to it. I had a hard time at the beginning for certain songs, the time to remove all the influences, then you feel the ear let go and interfere even longer in this album. The previous ones were good but this musical fusion of all styles was missing. There it is done almost automatically and we recognize in fact the work done for many years to offer such a masterpiece. Personally, I love these bands who do their musical research and who offer a new genre without repeating themselves, now you will know by listening to them if you think a bit like me.

alainPP | 4/5 |

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