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Chain - Chain.exe CD (album) cover

CHAIN.EXE

Chain

 

Heavy Prog

3.74 | 31 ratings

From Progarchives.com, the ultimate progressive rock music website

b_olariu
Prog Reviewer
4 stars Top notch album

Chain is an american progressive metal band formed around excellent musician Henning Pauly in late '90's. They released so far two albums, their second one named Chain.exe from 2004 and issued at Progrock records is a killer release in every aspect. Around Pauly the main composer are gathered some very competent musicins who handles instruments with an amazing ease. Some guest of the highest calibe featuring here, MIchael Sadler from Saga , guitarist Mike Keneally and two female vocalists. Music offered by Chain is very well performed with excellent instrumental passages, progressive metal most of the time but aswell with hints of progressive rock and even some jazzy interludes here and there, sporadicaly . The album is opened by the monster piece Cities, almost 39 min long track divided in 7 parts, absolutly killer , the instrumental sections are super, the musicianship is top notch, the keybords offered by Stephan Kernbach are one of the best I've heared on a prog metal album just to be check out the second part of Cities, simply great. The guitars of Henning Pauly is brilliant , he is capable to shift in only few seconds from prog metal chops to purely atmospheric passges and aswell he interlude very well with Keneally guitar. The druming is awesome, very busy drumer with some great and complex chops, just the gear Chain needed to come with a special album. Now, about the guests, Sadler voice is great, he is ina big form and he fiting like glove in the Chain music, his tone of voice is perfect for such aproach, very fine moments specially on Cities. Great choruses on Never leave the past behinnd another highlight of the album, lenghy again 11 min, with plenty of super passages , catchy vocal parts and groovy atmosphere. All in all an excellent example of how must sound a prog metal album, quite in the shadow of many other releases of that period and for sure needed a far more wider recognition. 4 stars easy and warmly recommended fans of the genre will be pleased to maximum after few spins. Very strong, I don't know their first album, definetly I have to check it out, but this second offer and aswell their swansong is quite impressive.

b_olariu | 4/5 |

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