OUT OF MYSELF

Quite posssibly the most notable newcomer to the worldwide prog scene on 2004, Polish band Riverside, a band that has got a buzz because of their new record deal; "Out of Myself" will be released in America on Sept. 21, 2004, on Ken Golden's label The Laser's Edge. Riverside is a band that has managed to produce and create dramatic, dark and moody atmospheres onto its musical journey. A way to explore and describe reflections, dreams, nightmares and feeling withouth names. Their music can be technically described as Neo-Symphonic Prog, with a dark edge on its structure, on the likes of dark prog bands like White Willow and VDGG, with psychedelic and prog metal elements a la Opeth or Pink Floyd. Onto the musical landscape of Riverside's sound, the sweet swept atmosphere of the mellotron and the voice of Mariusz Duda biuld an instinct of drama and depression, and as any psicological effects this could cause, or just as a psicological element, music with a very dense atmosphere requires a special amount of attention, and Riverside has a very interesting sense for details to be explored by the listener. The first track "The Same River" and the album ending "The Curtain Falls" have a capturing sense of space, that make an interesting contrast with the straightforward aspect of tracks like "Loose Heart". As a conclusion for this review, Riverside is a band that can (and will) breakthrough to a wider audience. It's highly promising.

If you want to hear a great album from a new group, you have to to listen to Riverside. It's music like PORCUPINE TREE and PINK FLOYD. It's great music that everyone has to give a tray, I''ll hope that their next album is even beter, when it's possible. Even their singinging is great, without a accent.

My CD player is ¨hooked¨ on this one. I have this one on Laser's Edge since Sunday and all I can say is that I'll be keeping an eye on this new group. I'm not giving 5 stars here cause I'm sure that these guys have in them something even more intense to offer. But this should not be taken as a let down for those interested. It IS a fantastic record and comes highly recommended. 1/2 star bonus here...as I think they deserve...

I think this album is very complet. We have a great solo guitar, great key solo and ambient.The riff of the bass is very original and rytmic.Some track we can't find a psycho aspect.But in general is nice symphonic and melodic prog.The vocal deserved a big respect we can't compare with maybe Daniel Guildenlow(Pain of Salvation) in dark passage.He make nice backing job . The band remains me Pink Floyd particualy the atmosphere. For this first album Riverside prove is not just a band ordinary and for the next years,Riverside for sure become a one of best New -Millenium prog band. I recommand for any fan of prog. .

For a first album this is a stunning effort from Riverside. There are elements of so many great prog bands from such a wide variety and yet they retain a real originality to their sound. I hear bits of Floyd, Opeth and Anathema in the vocals and a real ambient sound at times which evokes Porcupine Tree. If that wasn't enough they can really turn it up a notch and get those heavy prog sounds you find from Dream Theater & Rush. I think you will start to get the picture looking at all these references, Riverside have created a marvellous debut with ' Out of Myself'. Still hard to believe it's their first disc and I can't wait to hear the follow up.

I may be stepping out a bit early, but this is one of the best recordings I've heard this year. A new band with a sound and quality not found on the third or fourth release from more well-known bands. Terrific. A bit of something for everyone. Influnces range from Pink Floyd to King Crimson, Dream Theater (w/o the horrid vocals) to Porcupine Tree. Muscular and hard driven to pyschedelic and subtle. Touches of Opeth and POS also shine through. I'm not a metal fan, but the harder sections seem to grow on you rather then push you away.

I was captured right off the mark, The Same River is a wonderfully mesmeric opener. The vocals, more Steve Wilsonesque than anyone else, are dreamlike and impossible not to appreciate. Mariusz Duda even dips into the Hogarth style vocal, but pulls it off better. There are a few "cookie monster" moments, but they are brief and carry a certain element of angst which wouldn't be as poignant if delivered more subtly. Whispers and screams from In Two Minds to the title track. Engaging.

Two instrumentals, Reality Dream I and II, open the keyboard guitar duels that sound fresh and inspired. Jacek Melnicki and Piotr Grudzinski trade off over the power drumming of Piotr Kozieradzki. (The names remind me of my high school days...) Bassist/Singer Mariuz Duda holds down the bottom and occasionally moves to the front of the mix.

A concept album, the lyrics tend to embrace the mind, a man who suffers an emotional collapse and reenters the outside world and fight through failures, but refuses to quit trying. Dark, but inspiring.

This is a band to watch, er listen, for in the future. They have plenty of talent to build on and have enough vesatility to capture listeners of other genres.

It has been very quiet in the Polish progressive rock circuit, but be prepared for the new sensation, called RIVERSIDE. This 'Out of Myself' will be a big surprise in many musical environments, a cd that will let you dream away in a world, balancing between a grey, lonely existence and a colourful future, filled with emotions and carried away with thrilling songs, played by four excellent musicians. You get the feeling having heard this music already in the past, naturally it's full of references, but the compositions are so tight, really impressive for a debut album. And I've said it before, it becomes a trend to make a transition from playing death metal or metal to atmospheric art rock. But, it was never performed in such an original way as the group RIVERSIDE.

The intro of 'The same river' sets your teeth on edge, an intriguing voice, the swelling music, a Floydian guitar passing to aggressive progmetal and later on in typical neoprog style. The melancholy is really everywhere, mainly by the intense voice of Mariusz Duda. This is one of the nicest compositions, that I've heard this year.

Some tracks are more in the vein of progressive metal, like the short but heavy "Out of Myself". And apparently the guys much appreciate sound effects, because most of the songs have some weird introduction. After the beautiful, sad acoustic 'I Believe' all stops are pulled out with whirling synthesizers and a pumping bass guitar in the first part of "Reality Dream".

Don't listen to this cd when you are in a depressive mood, because you will not get any happier after hearing it. 'Loose heart' is completely drown in a mood of dark melancholy, as you can hear very often on OPETH's 'Damnation' : beautiful mellotron varied with 'Gilmouresque' guitar solos. And you even can hear the metal-roots of the guys in a very short but not disturbing grunt voice.

To keep this review relatively short, I will let you discover all the other tracks, anyway it has no sense, because each track is so diversified and has so many tempo and mood changes and technical highlights. The entire cd keeps constantly that high level, the dark side of ANATHEMA, OPETH and GREEN CARNATION, the song structures of PORCUPINE TREE and the symphonic fragments of PINK FLOYD or MARILLION.

Travis Smith being chosen to make the artwork is not really a coincidence, as the man has already made a lot of nice covers for bands like OPETH, ANATHEMA, DEAD SOUL TRIBE and other PSYCHOTIC WALTZ.

2004 has proven to be a fantastic year for progressive rock and metal, but I'm sure that 'Out of Myself' will never disappear from my Top 3. And I have not the slightest idea, how they can equal or even improve this performance. You should be in the store already!!

Well, I don't think this is a "prog-metal" band. Sometimes they use distorted guitars, some "hard rock" bases, but... the sound is pure PROGRESSIVE ROCK. For me, progmetal are the bands that follows the "Dream Theater" influence, that think for the first time in heavy metal, after this in make sounds in progresssive ways, or then the bands that only want shows empty guitar and keys solos, that never ends... But RIVERSIDE is over all this dullness. They present here a solid work, with great influences of PORCUPINE TREE, and a little FLOYDIAN touch. Sometimes they show a heavy guitar, like in "Out of Myself", but don't make the same mistakes like the progmetal bands, that only want show selfish playing... I will not give 5 stars for this disc, because I don't think they can be compared with the Great Masters of Prog scene, but the polish guys did an excelent debut album!!! I hear this album very assidous times, and I like it more and more...

RIVERSIDE music is a blend of space, psychedelic and symphonic with some influence of progressive metal. Band-wise it's a sort of influences from PINK FLOYD, PORCUPINE TREE, OZRIC TENTACLES, MARILLION (early) and DREAM THEATER / PAIN OF SLAVATION. Quite a lot of influences, composed in an excellent harmony with catchy melody in many segments. Vast majority of the music style is symphonic in the vein of space psychedelic music (50%) with some neo prog (35%) and progressive metal (15%). This is an excellent debut album.

"The Same River" starts off with an ambient intro dominated by electric guitar work in the vein of Gilmour backed with symphonic keys and soft bass line at the background. It reminds me to the beginning part of "Shine on You Crazy Diamond" of Pink Floyd "Wish You Were Here" album. Superb opening! The music then flows naturally with drum stools come into way in a soft entry and brings the music into "beats". The keyboard sound is still maintained at the background to deliver the nuance. It reminds me to Ozric Tentacles' music. The guitar riffs then come in the music followed by stunning solo guitar in the vein of neo prog music. Oh boy . this is really COOOOOL ..!!!! The first half is purely instrumental. The vocal line is also nice. Excellent track!

"Out Of Myself" kicks off with dynamic bass line followed with voice and soaring keyboard in space style (reminds me to AYREON). The music turns slowly to faster tempo but still maintaining the space and psychedelic nuance.

"I Believe" starts with voices in the crowd followed by powerful vocal. The acoustic guitar brings the music in a rather ballad style at the opening and moves to a continuous music. It ends up with an acoustic guitar fills. With some quiter transition the music turns to a kind of prog met style with heavier guitar riffs and faster tempo, accompanied by dazzling bass and symphonic keys as part of next track "Reality Dream I". The influence of Ozric music is obvious. Electric guitar solo is backed with excellent percussion sounds at background.

The music flows to 5th track "Loose Heart" which is in medium tempo neo prog style with nice electric guitar (performed softly). It continues with short solo drum to start with next track "Reality Dream II" through soft guitar solo. At some transitions the guitar turns to heavier style with some riffs to accentuate the transition. If you know Dutch band FLAMBOROUGH HEAD, this part reminds me to the band. Some guitar solo is FLOYDian. Excellent track. Superb.

"In Two Minds" is a song heavily influenced by PORCUPINE TREE. Even if this song is played without knowing who the band is I would say this is PT! At the opening, the voice line is very similar with Steve Wilson. The song has great acoustic guitar rhythm and soft electric guitar solo. Another excellent track.

The intro of "The Curtain Falls" reminds me to ARENA "Immortal?" album. It is then followed with a catchy Floydian guitar. Really cool! This is a psychedelic song with sort of Steve Wilson singing style. The album is concluded with "OK" - a song performed mellow with clear voice of its singer.

Well, I admire the band despite the fact that it's their debut album. It's really an excellent album: beautifully composed and excellently performed. I tend to give FIVE star rating but I believe that this is too naïve as it's really new. So, overall I give a 4.5 / 5 rating with a potential upgrade (later, by passage of time) to a full five star rating. Highly recommended. GW, Indonesia.

Prompted by that ubiquitous enthusiast Danbo I managed to get my hands on a copy of Riverside's debut album and boy do I owe him thanks! This is a major achievement, it references several bands (Floyd, Porcupine Tree and Marillion spring to mind) but still manages to sound fresh and vital. The album opener;"The Same River" is absolutely breathtaking. It builds from an atmospheric,Floydian opening into a full-blown angst-ridden epic with all the right ingredients:plaintive guitar solos,pulsating bass, gyrating drums and melancholy vocals. Out Of Myself is next up and whilst it heavily references Porcupine Tree,not a bad thing in my book,it has enough going on to be fresh and enjoyable. I Believe with its acoustic moods sets just the right tone and the instrumentals Reality Dream I and II are a riotous joy of fretboard and keyboard jousts á la Colosseum II. Loose Heart and In Two Minds are more straightforward but are highly enjoyable nonetheless.The Curtain Falls is another mini-epic in the Pink Floyd tradition and has a wonderful psychedelic feel to it.The final track OK is "OK" with nice whispered vocals and dreamy synths. All in all a very good album with great performances throughout. Special mention must go to the vocalist Duda who by dint of his relatively accentless singing manages to give the whole package an international appeal. This lot will go far!

I'm a bit relutant to give it 5 stars, for the album is still fairly new to me, but this is brilliant music. It encaptivates the best sounds and melodies known to prog lovers, the ambient Pink floyd waves, the genesis/marillion sympho-feel, great musicianship, songwriting everything. Riverside has managed to create a landscape in which one gets lost and have no desire to leave. Though there are many ways to link this music with the old classics, it is very much a current band in it's musical outings and has a great deal of an own sound. Highlights on this album are The Curtain Falls and The Same River. If this is the future of prog I'm very content. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

One of the prog revelations of 2004. Every prog fan must love this Out of myself. The Polish band Riverside did an amazing job in creating its own sound with their debut album. The sound has a great variety of influences, still it's highly original. On this album you'll get a mixture of metal, progressive and psychedelic rock. If I search for a name of a similar artist I must mention Anathema but only to give you a clue of the sound of Riverside. Unlike other new bands in the land of prog, Riverside uses modern atmospheric sounding keyboards which are a delight to listen to. It's hard to believe this is a first album when you listen to the way all of the instruments are played. The guitarist gave definitely a good listen to the guitar work of Steve Hackett. The vocalist has a beautiful voice but maybe the voice should be more dominant in the sound. Most of the time he sings delicate melodies but every now and then he turns his voice into a death grunt for a second. The bass lines are simply fantastic, especially on the title tracks which is one of the highlights for me. It's unusual for progressive rock but on several occasions the bass line seems to function like some kind of bridge between calm and more violent sections. You can notice this easily thanks to the fabulous production. In the calm sections Pink Floyd and Procupine Tree come to mind. When the sound is getting loud I notice some influences from Dream Theater and Marillion. The main theme in the lyrics of this albums is to cope with feelings of depression but don't worry. In the end there's hope. This album gives also hope for the future of progressive rock. It won't die alone.

Prog is dead? No young bands willing to create progressive music? No progression in prog today?

Well, I don't know how many brilliant debut albums I reviewed lately; definitely enough to notice a certain tendency: 2004 was the year of the debuts, at least seemingly. And now I will review another great debut album, for me the highlight of all debuts I rated.

I have to admit that I never cared for / didn't know any band from our neighbouring country poland. Due to Danbo (thx again chum!) I discovered "Out of Myself" and was totally enthused right away. And referring to the ratings I'm not alone. The four guys from Poland created an amazing piece of music, a mixture of different styles and influences with a very own touch. It sounds new and fresh, Riverside are far from being a clone of anybody, even though you can spot some touches of Opeth's Damnation, Porcupine Tree, Pink Floyd or Forgotten Suns. But it's just a point of reference. Regarding all their facets, Riverside is quite incommensurable. Their music can be described as a compound of psychodelic, so called retroprog and some prog metal ingredients which immingle to a very nice mixture in this case. The atmosphere is kind of dark and full of suspense throughout the whole album.

After somebody adjusts a radio (you can hear "Hotel California" by the Eagles for short), a dark droning bass and melodic guitar take over. A long psychodelic, almost hypnotic intro commences, mellifluously, until finally vocals accrue. After 12 minutes it's official: "The same river" is an amazing opener. The title song affirms it, "Out of Myself" isn't a very blitheful album. Elegiac guitar, Gilmore- like solos and dark keyboard layers create the perfect atmosphere. "I Believe" is an atrabilious acoustic piece and can be descibed as the calm before the storm, because the following instrumental "Reality Dream Part I" shows why I mentioned prog metal trimmings. Keyboard and bass solos in the beginning, awesome, melodic guitar solos in the middle section and the end. I have to mention the great bass, Mariusz Duda did a great job here. "Loose Heart" is a dreamy, quite psychodelic song with a devilish emotional ending, some would describe it as "cookie monster vocals" and contemn it, all I have to say is: simply amazing! It fits so good. "Reality Dream Part II" features great bass again. In the beginning it's one long guitar solo but the instrumental commences just like Part I ended. Watch out, some really terrific guitar solos will cross your way here. "In two minds" begins mellow and acoustic and stays it apart from short solos on electric guitar. "The courtain falls" is a highlight and one of my favorite songs lately. Very amtospherical, superb bass and even better vocals, Mariusz Duda in top form. It's remarkable how this song builds up a feeling of eagerness, an enthralling song. "OK", featuring trombone, marks the punch line of a great debut.

So just like all others I really recommend "Out of Myself". It's an exceptional debut by a very talented band. They raised the bar to vertiginous heights, I'm really excited about the second album because it's very difficult to maintain such a high level. Check out Riveside if you don't believe in contemporary Prog, because it will prove that black is white.

Buy this and you'll automatically get maybe the best release of 2004. It's big words for a small band but don't you just love when a total no-name steals the show!? 4 guys, totally out of nowhere (no offense Poland) slapping silly the face of all the great prog princes of the new millenium.

Since the late 90's, progressive metal really kicked in gear. Seems like there's a buzz around making darker, gloomy music. Double pedal bass drum, razor sharp riffs and a good amout of screaming seems to satisfy the new millenium proggers. But with Riverside, the whole concept of metal is so well balanced that you're forced to admit that Out of Myself is simply one of the best easy listening record around. I said this album is balanced and how. The album is relatively quiet and gets meaner as the song progresses. Riverside is inspired by the Gilmour type of guitar playing, but thank god they don't use it often. They also seems to apply themselves not making it too complex. The caliber of the musicians is obviously high, but it's like they kept it simple on purpose. The results? Songs easy to get into and a sound that share a lot of similarities with today's FM productions. Especially the singer's voice could be easily mistaken for bands like 3 Days Grace. The signer is REALLY good. He's not the Labrie's type....thank you so much!! Man am I tired of the same old opera/castrate vocals a la Dream Theater or Symphony X. Riverside sings softly and the singer's range is way better that way. The music could be more aggressive, but the voice is soothy it all and keeps the mood to relax. The best to understand is to listen to it.

Apart from the FM shape of many songs, the approach is based often on a rather complex but tasty, dirty bass line. Then a solid and rapid drum line's joining it. The keyboard is mainly there to embellish by giving a spacey feeling rather than being rythmic. The guitars are not giving the melodies all by themselves. The're more to support the major bass line by being razor sharp bar chords. More bands should follow that logistic because it's keeping the tune accessible but also leaves space to more atmosphere.

Any Nickelback/Incubus/3 Doors Down kid could get into this, no problem. It feels good to have such an refreshing record without being innovative. It could sound paradoxal but that's exactly what this record is....something to get you out of yourself.

Honestly I really can't follow that much the hype going on about this album expecially in the prog scene. In my view it's only a quite good record, but masterly only with regard to the perfect blend of elements reminiscent of multiple bands.

The Same River, the best song without any doubts sounds almost like a rip-off of GREEN CARNATION mixed with some floydian guitar. Out Of Myself reminds very much to an alternative hard rock band called FILTER, not very much prog-ish in my view. As one co-reviewer mentioned already, one has the impression, that one had heard every song already before. Yes indeed, I fully agree, because there is really nothing new on here, but why is that a reason to rate this album with 4 or 5 stars? Next song I believe is as well a standard quiet and dark one done in similar way by numerous bands, mainly in the Alternative Rock genre. The instrumental track Reality Dream is the second good one with very good guitar lines and rhythm, a bit reminiscent of ANATHEMA, but actually not very intricate and versatile as well. Loose Heart reminds as well to that band, Mariusz Duda's vocs even reinforce this impression. A nice song, although not very original. The second part of "Reality Dream" is as good as part one and in some way a little bit reminiscent of DREAM THEATER. In Two Minds could again be a song on an album by ANATHEMA or maybe PORCUPINE TREE, quite nice but not very exciting. The Curtain Falls has some nice gilmour-ish guitar lines mixed with some riffing typical for GREEN CARNATION later on. Nice to listen and the third highlight of the album. OK is a slow and atmospheric song, quite nice but nothing special in fact.

As a SUMMARY I'd like to say that OUT OF MYSELF is a quite good album having three highlights with "The Same River", "Reality Dream Pt. 1 +2" and "In Two Minds" all of them being rather reminiscent of one or several of the mentioned bands and therefore I would call it more a derivative than a real innovative one. Although I like to listen sometimes such bands, especially if I need some good, but not too difficult music to run in the back, it is not my top favorite one. It's a perfect blend of multiple influences and I really appreciate the effort of the musicians. Well done,guys! Nevertheless in my view this albums seams to be overrated on here, IMHO an average rating of 3.5 would be adequate, since the lack of innovation is really quite obvious. So I'm giving three stars, which means GOOD!

When I learned that this prog rock band is from Poland, after having noticed some similitudes with Polish band Collage's sophisticated drums, punchy & complex bottom bass and floating keyboards, I verified if some members were not from Collage before: NONE of them!

The lead singer has a voice between the Pearl Jam singer (Ten album) and the ultra known French ballad singer of the 60's & 70's Joe Dassin. The overall sound is very powerful, floating, VERY atmospheric and it may make you feel a bit melancholic. The bass is very bottom, the drums are very elaborated, especially the cymbals patterns. The dramatic keyboards are very modern, the VERY powerful and saturated floating ones reminding me the Jean Michel Jarre's work on the Zoolook's Ethnicolor track; the overall genre is on the border of neo prog, with just a slight dose of alternative rock. It is not a very joyful album, and the singer seems to express his discomfort. The electric rhythmic guitar sound is more metal than alternative, being not bad, like on "Reality dream". The sustained guitar solos notes, sometimes slightly bluesy, like on "Curtain falls", are decent and full of echo. There are some good rhythmic acoustic guitar, often played with a whining clean voice. ALL the tracks are excellent!

Rating: 4.5 stars

Great! I wondered that I can find so big pearl in my country! This kind of music - cold prog is what i I like so much. First number on CD is the best -full of fear and nevous pulse ( I hear Anathema somewhere...) Nexts are full of passion and musicfull. Riverside is the best debut in Europe ' 2004. I will be waiting for next CD with big heartbeat.I belive will be more better. It's will be very difficult for RIVERSIDE. They can't stand the slaves of the own succes. Not now!

A debut album of great promise, from a hitherto unknown band, ( to me anyway ). As other reviewers have said there are traces of FLOYD , PORCUPINE TREE, and OPETH.

Generally the playing is very good. The vocals are excellent, considering the band is Polish.

It will be interesting to see if the band can maintain this high standard, I hope so!

To the uncomitted I say give this band a try.

Riverside - Out of Myself

This Polish progressive metal band has released an amazing debut album in late 2003/early 2004. It is indeed, as the sticker on the front of the cd says, "a mixture of PORCUPINE TREE, PINK FLOYD and ANATHEMA". I think they missed out on forgetting to mention OPETH, but that is just my own opinion...

The CD starts with muted radio sounds, before the twelve minutes lasting epic opener The same River really takes of, wandering through spacey synthesizer spheres accompanied by some very subtle guitar licks and bass lines. This song is mostly instrumental and can somehow been described as bringing tribute to the British psychedelic/space rock band PINK FLOYD, but not sounding like a copy of them at all! Perhaps this is the sound of a modern day Pink Floyd? The song features some very weird effected/sampled vocal lines. The song features many changes in direction. It has a space rock side to it as well as a (progressive) metal side. After about seven (!) minutes in the vocals start. These vocals are very warm and gentle. The best part of the song I think is the last couple of minutes. It features a very melancholic part with some nice laidback guitar work, which is followed by an amazing one minute long guitar solo, which ends the song. This song is worth buying the album by itself!

What I noticed right from the start is that this album is well produced. I have never heard all the individual instruments this clear before on ANY CD. Even the bass guitar is well present, in a pleasant way. Normally this instrument is hardly noticeable; here it is featured as a 'leading' instrument on itself.

Track 2 Out of myself features a variety of vocals. The warm voice is omnipresent and again nice to listen to, but even the rare scream that comes to attention is enjoyable. It totally fits the song. The synthesizer is worth a special mention here. It makes some techno-like sounds throughout the whole song! It gives the song this little extra touch and it worked out for me. It is a highly unusual sound for this type of music. The instrumental metal parts between the sung verses are extremely well done!

The next song is called I believe. It starts with the sound of a bunch of people talking before the acoustic guitar comes in to play. This song is very mellow and relaxing. A lovely ballad that has the same kind of atmosphere as any of the songs on OPETH's 2003 album "Damnation". The vocals are very warm and gentle. A lovely ballad and I just know anyone will instantly like it.

The first one of two instrumentals is called Reality Dream. The song starts with the ticking of a clock and some weird synthesizers. Than the metal begins. Aggressive guitars begin to play assisted by a very spacey synthesizer solo. The bass is very well present on this song (throughout the whole album actually) and it's very well played. About halfway through there's this nice guitar solo. This is one of the album's highlights. All the band members are present and are showing the listener how good they are (not in a DREAM THEATER way, thus meaning they're NOT playing more than four different melodies on EACH of the instruments at the SAME time, just to show off, they simply, well. ARE brilliant musicians).

Loose Heart was the first song I ever heard by Riverside. I heard it through the ProgArchives.com website and instantly loved it. It is a very well thought out musical idea. The first ¾ of the song consists of sophisticated mainstream-orientated pop/rock with warm synthesizer sounds. Not aggressive by far, until the last minute then the metal part comes in, with shouting by the vocalist. The vocals on this track are very nice and gentle even the screaming is fitting the song. It's a very well thought out part of the song. The song features some nice guitar solos.

A drum solo kicks of the start of the album's second instrumental song, Reality Dream II. The song contains samples of a telephone. I could easily copy-past the description of Reality Dream I for this one, because they're both well-played instrumentals, the only major difference being that part II is a bit quieter than part I.

In two Minds starts with effected vocals, accompanied by a relative simple, but good acoustic guitar. The chorus is very nice and shows again what kind of variety of vocals this album features. The electric guitar is again well present and gives us a very nice solo halfway through the song.

The song starts with some laidback sounds, until the electric guitar begins to shine. This is the intro to The Curtain falls, probably the best intro on the whole album... I absolutely love it. The song features some nice solos by each instrument. The vocals sound a lot like OPETH's Mikael Äkerfelt's. That is definitely a major compliment. The instrumental parts in this song are pretty heavy but still maintain that laidback feeling I had while listening throughout the whole album.

The closing track OK is very laidback. It's a very melancholic and dark ballad. The drum is very cool and groovy but not fast or heavy at all. This song is like the opposite of all the other tracks on the album. It features a trombone, which is a very nice addition to the whole package. The vocals are very nice to listen to and can calm a man down. The chorus is very nice and dark. There could not be a better way to close the album, than with this marvellous track.

Overall I would not consider this album to be progressive metal, for the same reasons that make PORCUPINE TREE no progressive metal. The album has its heavier parts, but the atmospheric space rock side is more present and the majority of the album is mellow and softer.

This album was in my top 3 of 2004 releases and I can really recommend it to all of you that like: Pink Floyd, Porcupine Tree and Opeth.

(I might even have detected a couple of PAIN OF SALVATION influences throughout the whole album.)

Mix 50 grammes of PORCUPINE TREE, 25 grammes of PINK FLOYD and 25 grammes of OPETH in a large bowl. Add a teaspoon of IQ (but don't overdo it, or the result will be saccharine) and a heaped tablespoon of psychedelic powder, and stir well. Wait for the frothy tunes to float to the top, skim off and discard. Roll the mixture into a wafer-thin disc and cook at 100 degrees C for 53 minutes.

Not bad if you want to chill out and break a bottle of wine or maybe put one down, but is it to my taste? I was piqued when I first tried it a few months ago, but have to say that, although I think there are some tasty axe parts, ultimately I find it unmemorable and prefer the raw ingredients. But still some good parts, so 3 stars from me (Good, but not essential).

Riverside is another of those heavy modern prog bands (I don't know if I'd call this group prog-metal since less half the songs on this debut album have metallic touches) that make some of the right noises yet leave me cold. Riverside's influences range from anyone from Marillion and Pink Floyd to Dream Theater and Eloy but I'm not a fan of the end product.

My frustrations when listening to Riverside can be summed up by the first track The Same River. After taking an age to really get going, it is anchored by a nice rumbling bass riff (in fact I found Mariusz Duda's bass playing to be the highlight of Riverside's music) but despite some nice synth touches and highly capable drumming, the unconvincing guitar work (in terms of melody, not skill) and meandering song structure left me bored. The title track too, has a good opening bass run and some powerful guitar riffing and yet I don't rate the song.

There are all kinds of tantalising yet ultimately fruitless moments on this album. I Believe and In two Minds are lovely acoustic numbers ... the former sounds particularly good once the whole band kicks in (oh so delicately) but it's hardly what I look for in a progressive rock band. Reality Dream begins with a spectacular keyboard lead that had me drooling and then descended into another bass heavy number that Dream Theater could do in their sleep ... despite a nice outro melody too much of the piece has been done before. Loose Heart has a lot of passion, I liked some of the zany fills in the Floyd-style stoner ballad OK and the metal instrumental Reality Dream II also contained some excellent playing.

At the point at which Riverside made this album, they must have known that there were dozens of bands out there who were doing the same thing, and had been doing so for nearly a decade. As such, this album feels like a wasted opportunity to me. ... 24% on the MPV scale

After reading the largely positive reviews on here, I found this album to be a bit of a disappointment. It's a very assured debut with some excellent playing but overall it's a bit uneven and unfocussed.

Things get off to a good start with the 12 minute opener The Same River, which is built around some lush keyboard sounds and some very Floydian guitar - Porcupine Tree are an obvious point of comparison here, but there are also hints of Ozrics and Radio Gnome era Gong in the interplay between guitar and synths. The vocals are well down in the mix, being used more as another texture than as the focal point. Atmospheric and beguiling, it's a fine slice of contemporary prog.

Unfortunately, the rest of the album never quite fulfills the promise of the opening track, although the instumentals Reality Dream amd Reality II come close ( the sampled telephone noises on Reality II get a bit annoying after the first few listens). What really lets the album down is the occasional descent into plodding prog metal riffing - it sounds like the real band have taken a break and the poodle haired, spandex clad road crew have picked up the instruments. The acoustic interludes are also not so inspired - if they want people to start waving lighters over their heads they'll have to try harder than this.

Out Of Myself is a promising debut from a band with an excellent sound, but the writing slips too frequently into neo prog/prog metal cliches. If they follow the direction indicated by The Same River there may be great things to come from them.

O.K. first ever review but here goes Just bought this CD after hearing a track on Delicious Agony and downloading the mp3 file on this very site, and I must agree with some of the other reviews it does send one in mind of Pink Floyd and Porcupine Tree crossed with very dark lirics, not that this is a bad thing by any means in fact I think it is an excellent recording with not a bad track on the disc, and if you didn't know that they were Polish you wouldn't guess. Hope they continue to issue such high qulity work.

To tell the truth, I've got a great problem with writing this review. I really like this record for its modern sound and brave experiments. I find many nice melodic themes here, I respect the band members' instrumental qualifications and I'm glad to know that people consider the record from my country as one of the best in new millenium. Great! But give me some hits, for Heaven's sake!!! There were times, when ambitious bands composed songs, that could be whistled while shaving. I can't see them here. Melodies are charming, but too complicated. More pop, less experiments, please!

This album is one of my favorite. Riverside can be called real artists, this music is poetry and the lyrics complete this (my opinion) masterpeace. Also, I think this album cant be taken apart by this "Progressive Metal" genre ( i hate genres ), its full of melody , darkess , pure feelings and a w e r s o m e music in general. Who is tired of the styles , of the same cd's with different names: Riverside - Out of Myself , just buy it and give me reason :)

3 stars fot this album perfectly. Its a great debut album for the band- but I can see a lot of room for improvement- This band is going places- I see a very sucessfull career comin to these guys. This is a good album to pick up if you like your prog to be on the 'chill' side- the opening track is a little drowning...but the album picks up soon after and keeps a good pace. Good start for this band.

It took me a while to find this gem in the states, but once I did, it did'nt leave my car deck for 2 straight weeks. As others have mentioned, the tone of the disc is a little dark and sullen. The music however is top notch. The sound quality is superb. I love the sound of the drums throughout. I'm not one to usually like a recording this laid back, but the emotion and delivery of all the tracks is beyond compare. Instead of listing my favorites, in this case I'll mention only 1 weak track. OK the last song rates 3 out of 5 for me. Every thing else gets 4 stars or better in my media player ratings. I can't wait for their next full studio release.

Well...another fine band that i've discovered browsing through ProgArchives! Makes me wonder how many hidden gems i've missed so far... I must have listened to this one at least fifty times so far and just keep returning to it. Now to the music itself: It is indeed an excellent additon to any prog music collection. Everything just kinda fits perfectly together; there's a constant mood throughout the album that picks you up and never lets you down. The opening track is just fabulous and prepares you for the ride. The intricate pieces of music zig-zag between soft atmospheric prog to hard-edged progmetal and back again. A must-have. A journey into what PROG really is and should be. Really close to a 5-star rating, let's wait for the follow-up !!!

Well... How can I put this is words... As a prelude I was overwelmed by the excellent tunes that Riverside compiled in their debut album "Out Of Myself". Great songs, definitely inspired by bands like Porcupine Tree, that make you travel and experience really beautiful sadness. The album is an excellent debut and I recommended to the people that is beginning to enjoy progressive music/progressive metal. The sound that you can ear is not as heavy as Dream Theater, Pain Of Salvation, Evergrey or Pagan's Mind... But then again, I think that that wasn't there main goal... I'm curious for the next chapters, and I think that the people that enjoyed "Out Of Myself" will not be disappointed.

Those who know me well acknowledge the fact that I'm a bit compulsive about the things I like. I have to admit I am that way to some extent. Some things I can't just casually enjoy, I get almost fanatical about them. Fortunately, that's only the case with a few selects things. Another thing that's part of my character, is a strong inclination towards the unconventional, that which hadn't been done yet or that which is extremely original and heartfelt. Right now, I can tell you of at least one band that fits all these bills: RIVERSIDE.

"Out of Myself", RIVERSIDE's debut album, is a concept album about one finding inner peace, understanding of himself and the surrounding world. According to the band's vocalist and bassist, Mariusz Duda, this is the first part of a trilogy dealing with the aforementioned subjects and, let me tell you, if the next two pieces are on par with this one, then I can't wait for them and this trilogy will become a huge classic.

I wouldn't say RIVERSIDE are strictly a progressive band but they surely approach it in a very strong manner. So much so that this album can clearly appeal to 70's progressive rock lovers. The closest they come to being really progressive is right on the first track, "The Same River", an ambitious 12 minute piece which goes through different moods and emotions, always showing a band that's unbelievably tight for a debut, aswell as instrumentally superior. Take for instance, right after the first section of the song, how ethereal the guitar that enters the scene at 04:40 really is. Piotr Kozieradzki's drum work is always precise yet rather complex and Michal Lapaj's keyboards provide a sweet backdrop to the song (and the rest of the album too).

Throughout the record, the idea I got is that RIVERSIDE are the perfect cross between PORCUPINE TREE (in the sense of ever present surprises and unexpected turns in their songs) and OPETH (especially with their "Damnation" album). In fact, Duda's vocals reminded me more than once of Mikael Akerfeldt's clean vocals. Also thrown in for good measure are some PINK FLOYD influences.

Speaking of Duda's vocals, rarely I listened to someone sing with such warmth and feeling. Take for example "I Believe", "Loose Heart" and especially "In Two Minds" which starts with a telephone-like sort of whispered and echoed voice (another PORCUPINE TREE trademark and possible influence) and then becomes crystal clear. This song's arrangement blew me away. This is top notch composition, as far as I'm concerned and Duda's vocals always give me goosebumps. Piotr Grudzinski's guitar work is also amazing and perfectly balanced.

"The Curtain Falls" is a more experimental tune, yet rather good, and "Ok" basically gives Duda singing softly over a sort of trip hop-ish backdrop. Interspersed within the album, are also two moody pieces "Reality Dream I" and "Reality Dream II" which serve the concept purpose of the album making use of interesting samples - the sound of a phone call producing a dial error, an alarm clock going off, a clock ticking. Both are probably the heaviest numbers on the album showing the metal side of the band. I suggest you check the section in "Reality Dream I" from 03:58 to 04:51 for the ultimate demonstration of what this band is instrumentally capable of, in particular the odd time signatures produced by Kozieradzki and of course Grudzinski's guitar work. The whole of "In Two Minds" show just how good Duda is as a singer.

The production is top notch and that's a relief because it would be a shame if such a truly beautiful piece of work got ruined by it. The worldwide release of "Out of Myself" features cover art designed by Travis Smith (of OPETH and ANATHEMA fame) which pretty much suits the underlying concept.

My compulsiveness towards the things I like may sometimes be a problem, but bear with me on this one. Usually when a band debuts with such a great album it either disbands immediately (CYNIC comes to mind) or is destined to great things. I sense RIVERSIDE are on the latter group. I just hope they get that little bit of luck everyone needs to succeed, because the talent, the emotion, the technique, the ability... well, it's all there. Saint-Exupery once said that "perfection is not achieved when there's nothing more to add but rather when there's nothing more to take away". While I don't claim "Out of Myself" to be perfect (despite the hands-down 5 star rating) it certainly comes very close to fitting that phrase.

You want to have this album. Don't say I didn't warn you.

This album started off promisingly, with the brief sound of The Eagles on the radio. It sounded like the beginning of a great concept album or something. I was quite impressed by some of the playing on this album, especially the guitar work. Although after listening to a whole album of this it became boring very quickly. Riverside have both prog metal cliche style musicianship and a bit of this album that sounds fresh but both of these felt weak and boring. The album was a real drag to listen to and I didn't enjoy it as much as I would enjoy Dream Theater.

"Out of Myself" has some good ideas, themes and lyrics, plus a lot of talent, but it really doesn't hit the spot for me and comes across as just another prog metal release for me. I still see some potential in this band and will probably look out for any future releases, but this album is not so good.

Riverside - Out of myself is awesome. For me this album is the best album I ever heard. All songs is great. Guitar solo in reality dream is AMAZING !!! ALL GUITAR SOLO is VERY VERY COOL. Mittloff is very good drummer. Very good vocals, bass and also very good keyboard. Everything in Riverside music is COOL AWESOME AMAZING...

This is one of the best records i listened in the recent years. Not only one of the best progressive records but generally one of the best.I like a lot of the harmonies and the melodies they create.The vocals are great too sometimes it reminds me of Depeche Mode Singer.This is better than second life syndrome wich is a bit heavy for me.Dont get me wrong, i still like a lot but i think this one is their masterpiece until now at least. I hope they make a lot of records with this quality.A surprising band from Poland.Great one guys.Keep on proggin.Best New Year wishes for all at progarchives from Portugal.

well, I must say that I like so much music like dream theater, pink floyd, pain of salvation, etc. When I read Riverside´s reviewes, I decided to buy the first cd of them (out of my self). At the beginning, I didn´t like it very much, I thougth that they had some god songs, but..that was all. Then, after listen it a lot of times, I discover, how god this album is. The lyrics, the music, guitarrist and singer are excelent, they give me some kind of relax, that I can´t explain very well. I recomend this album for those people who like good music

In terms of creating Progressive Metal, this album, suffice to say, does indeed meet all elements required to create an astounding album.

The variation in Vocals ranging from mellow whispering and Primal Screaming. Duda puts on an astounding performance really.

The prominent bass work, Giving a groove to the correct sections, being used as a true instrument, rather than just a backing up of the guitar, which happens oh so often in modern ProgMetal releases.

Drumming, using what I would say as a appropriate style, using a lot of bass drum rolling, it gives the music a deep intensity and power without the continuous pounding, one might hear from Portnoy or Rullo.

Guitar Work, Cutting. Rather than challenge his virtuosity, one should note that the Guitar work cuts through the music at the perfect times, and despite the relaxed mood of the album, is a sure-fire eye opener in most tracks. Melodies, not complex, but fit the structure of the music and progressions within it perfectly.

The lyrics of this album, are very ambiguous, however that is what makes them work particularly well for me. One can mould their meanings to fit to their own scenarios, and I personally have a connection with these lyrics.

Structure and composition are the only things here that really stop it from being one of the perfect prog-metal albums of all time. Because there is a lacking, at times, of both progression and metal. Some repetitive compositions, such as 'I believe', are still worthwhile songs, but with more thoughrough progressive compositions this album could have been unanimously acclaimed. Still, a Fantastic album, worthy of 5 stars.

91%.

I always is cool concerned to group which play metal and believed, that a loud sound try to muffle absence of musical ideas. Having collided with progressive metal I have cardinally changed the opinion. Here it is very interesting to trace communication of metal and progressive genre. Total turn in my consciousness has made an album " Out Of Myself" Polish group Riverside. Such unification of rigid guitar chords and shaking melodious admires. Plus to it fine pathetic vocal Mariusz Duda. The album is good from the first up to last music note. It complete and to come off it it is impossible. In general, I should notice, that progressive collectives from Poland play present time appreciable enough role in modern progressive rock. It is enough to recollect such groups as Quidam, Satellite, Collage. Coming back to Riverside - firm 5 stars. Any doubts. They have deserved it magnificent work.

Just stunned about this album... The best debut I have ever heard. It starts with the brilliant The Same River, with an ultimate intro and wonderful sphere....After this song the album becomes slightly less powerfull, but still awesome. This is simply progmetal at her best, a level which even bands like Opeth or Dream Theater usually can't achieve. Although I like Second Life Syndrom a bit better, this album also signifies a very, very promising band

I heard all of the hype surrounding this record. And I'd heard the MP3's posted here on the site. I thought (and still think) that "LOOSE HEART" is gorgeous. So, I bought the disc, and it hasn't left my CD player for week...until today. I've been trying to fall in love with it, hoping it will grow on me, and yet, every time I listen to it, I come away with the same mindset.

Here's my problems with the disc. Some of the songs lumber along for far too long, which makes me think that the group wrote the music first and then had Mariusz sit down and write lyrics. That's fine in many cases, but on "The Same River", he stopped writing lyrics far too early. Beyond that, his vocals sound less like prog vocals and more like something Brandon Boyd (Incubus) would do. That song just bores me to tears. And the sound effects and filtered vocals on that track and others here just piss me off. The filtered vocal effects should be done away with.

More, then...this disc has a very depressing feel to it, from the lyrics to the music to the playing. It's as if the 4 of them were influenced by only the DARKEST of prog bands...I'm thinking Opeth. Little do they know that there IS light at the end of the tunnel. Come on, guys!

However, the production is wonderful; the sound is organic and natural, clear but not digital. I can hear all the instruments clearly and not one dominates the other. I like the sound of the instruments as well. Piotr Grudzinski uses a clear, clean tone most of the time, sans effects, only using distortion when he's playing lead or when he needs some effects (like his subtle use of the wah). "LOOSE HEART" is a breathtaking song, with a downcast feel to it, which would be fine were there some more cheery moments. Damn...even Opeth's "DAMNATION" makes me feel better than this, and that's more downcast! Geesh.

This is why I'm only giving it a three-star rating. There are far too many problems I've noticed. I can deal with the derivative nature of the music. What I CAN'T deal with is the fact that Grudzinski uses only ONE tone throughout and the mood is so lightless. Ugh.

3.9 stars Poland doing prog?? Wow, what a surprise. I'm happy that this prog album is very strong and is involved with Insideout Records. Wonderful album ... It Reaches the level of musical brilliance of the successful prog band "Porcupine Tree". I am making comparisons as this album is very derivative of other prog bands. The songs may make you think of Pink Floyd, Dire Straits, Soft Opeth, Tool, and especially Porcupine Tree. Even if derivative, there are many things to love in this album. The sound quality is excellent, there is a lot of coherence, the musicianship is strong, and the songwriting is more than competent. All the music in this disc is strong and no tracks should be skipped as this is a concept album. The opener is a long space-rock trip with great atmospheres and layers and layers of sound! After the ambient intro, a cool bass line kicks in and the proper song starts. You'll realize that the guitar player is very talented, and the vocalist sounds almost like Steven Wilson (Porcupine Tree). Out of Myself is an effective rocker featuring another nice bass line. I Believe is an effective ballad with vocal harmonies that sound like they come from Porcupine Tree. Next song is the 1st part of Reality Dream ... a trio of instrumentals where the 3rd lies in their second album. The first part has a lot to offer and provides some synthesizers. A rocker with many tempo changes and yet another catchy bass line. Loose Heart is another ballad, but stronger than "I Believe" as the melodies are better, and it's much more interesting musically too. Reality Dream Pt2 comes again and blows you away with great musicianship and countless layers of atmospheric sounds. This instrumental is in my opinion the stronger of the two in this album. In Two Minds sounds like a Porcupine tree clone with the vocalist sounding a bit similar to Coldplay's singer at times. Not bad at all, but probably the least interesting track here. The Curtain Falls is both laidback and metal-like. An outstanding song that doesn't try to emulate another band. Definitively one of the highlights. OK is a mellow closer that finishes the album in a sad note. An excellent debut from an excellent band. Their next album is overall better done in every way and managed to be in the top 20 albums of the whole progressive rock genre. If you love Porcupine Tree (Especially Sky Moves Sideways and Deadwing), Im sure you'll find a lot to like about this album. Beautiful, but not very original. Highlights: Loose Heart, Reality Dream II, The Curtain Falls Let Downs: N/A My Grade : B

This is an interesting album. Although it is a debut album I kind of got the feeling that these guys have been working on their sound for quite a while, maybe it's because their style is so defined throughout the album. Quite a dark album I must say, very gloomy atmospheres and a kind of longing feeling given by the ambiences created in the album. It is quite a good release though, I still haven't heard their second full album but I bet it's much better than this one.

This album seems to have something for every prog-metal fan; the fast riffs (for Dream Theater fans), the dark atmospheres (for TOOL fans), and the technicality (for Pain of Salvation/Dream Theater/LTE fans). Not only do you get good musicianship, but also good singing, I don't know about the lyrics because I normally don't pay attention to them, but I find the singer's voice perfect for this style of music (so don't fret Dream Theater fans that don't like LaBrie and are scared of finding another LaBrie here). The vocalist performs with a lot of emotion.

I think the fans of Pain Of Salvation will find home in this band. I'm sure I liked it. Highly recommended...(my first review of an album, woohooo!)

When I find myself playing a record over and over again I know that there must be something special with it. After playing "Out of myself" dozens of times and after seeing them playing live in Holland they really hit me with their music. The music on this cd is from very heavy to very sensitive and everything in between. Great technical drums from Piotr Kozieradzki with fast and smooth tempo changes (I just love this guy's drumming', especially live). Then we have got an outstanding guitarist with Piotr Grudzinski. A bit of Steve Rothery like kind of playing' sometimes I think but for me that's an advantage. The keyboard player Jacek Melnicki does not only looks like a ghost (under those white lights but he also plays like a ghost actually. That means that he gives the music of Riverside an extra mystical and ambiance sound whiteout playing him to the frond. The bassist rocks and plays the bass guitar and he sings at the same time and both on a high level. I will not write a story of every song on this cd but every song has its own atmosphere. I am still not sure which cd is better, Second Life syndrome or Out of myself but for me they are both masterpieces you must have!

I don't know what's the fuss about this band.Although this is not bad album by any strech,it is noting exceptional.I'd call it a Polish version of latter day Porcupine Tree,less originality that their British counterparts posses.I'ts intended for younger prog-metalheads and as such fullfils it's intentions. still,far,far away from ovrall PT quality.

I love this album. I'm not sure I would call it Prog-Metal. I find this to be my go to album for the last month. This is a great debut album for Riverside. The musicianship is great and the vocals are wonderful. The album has a great flow to it. I like everything about it. Riverside's "Out of Myself" is a great album and so be given a listen to by all.

First when I listen to their music I thought- what a fantastic sounds, great balance between melancholy and agressiveness, vocalist's voice is so warm and clear...Then I was on their concert and I felt like smashed on the face and hit on the ground. It is very well earned "5".

The first time I heard a song from RIVERSIDE was at Delicous Agony Internet Radio. They played 'The Same River' and I was out of myself and changing the riverside - enthusiastic about what I was listening to. A wonderful song. First of all the exciting intro makes you very curious what follows - powerful rhythm work, fine guitar playing, good melodies and great variety.

For me this is neoprog sometimes bordering to progmetal - for example the title track or the end of 'Loose Heart'. The other longer track 'The Curtain Falls' is also a highlight. An excellent debut!

I think this album is very complet. We have a great solo guitar, great key solo and ambient.The riff of the bass is very original and rytmic.Some track we can't find a psycho aspect.But in general is nice symphonic and melodic prog.The vocal deserved a big respect we can't compare with maybe Daniel Guildenlow(Pain of Salvation) in dark passage.He make nice backing job . The band remains me Pink Floyd particualy the atmosphere. For this first album Riverside prove is not just a band ordinary and for the next years,Riverside for sure become a one of best New -Millenium prog band. I recommand for any fan of prog. .

I was browsing around on PA the other day and noticed that there was this band that was getting big time reviews on both of their albums. Of course i am talking about Riverside and well i got courious at how they sound. So i go to their website and found some Mp3s and decided to listen to both Reality Dream and Loose Heart. Well i'll admit i was expecting to hear just another band that does nothing but scream all day and has no music taste and well BY GOLLY I'M GLAD I WAS WRONG!!!! holy crap i've never heard a band quite like Riverside as they have such a sound combing that with some atomoshperic sounds and emotion combing that with a grand prog metal sound which is brilliant. and when i'm talking about emotion i'm not talking about this emo crap that talks about how much they hate there lives these guys do it the right way. I needed to get these albums so finally i got Out of Myself on Ebay and i was blown away at first spin how awesome this band is. The songs are tremendous with great progressive rockers like The Same River, Out of Myself, The Curtain Falls. Great Mellow and melodic tracks like Loose Heart which i'll admit was quite surprised at how heavy it got at the end along with some added screams, I Believe, In Two Minds, OK. But what i really love is both Reality Dream 1 and 2 HOLY CRAP these are possibly two of the best instrumentals i've ever heard i would be gracious enough to compare these songs with great instrumentals like, Stream of Consciousness, YYZ, and even Metallica's Orion. Now here's my in put on the band members what i can say they are all sick musicians. The lead vocalist/bassist/acoustic player Mariusz Duda is a great frontman for the band as his clean vocals are tremendous and remind me alot at times of Steven Wilson and Mikael Akerfelt. But at times when he is doing some screams it really does remind me of Daniel Gildenlow from POS which is a big plus from me. Now as a player he impresses me how much he puts into the bass and sing at the same time because he so good at it. with great bass leads and awesome solos in such tracks like Reality Dream he is definitely a player that should be recognized. Piotr Grudzinski really surprised me on this album as he is an awesome guitarist cause i thought he was gonna be this lazy guitarist that just plays these moronic solos that don't mean jack but dude i was wrong this guy rocks and he isn't afraid to stret his stuff because not only can he shred with the best but he also is great using alot of emotion to his style. Piotr Kozieradzki man what a great drummer he is just so tight with the band and he has got some killer fills. plus his drum intro to RD 2 is freakin awesome i will say if i wanted to be a very tight drummer i wanna be like him cause he is awesome. Jacek Melnicki reminds me alot of POS keyboardist because of his use to make great background effects to add a nice punch but he also has a few synth solos that will make you go man he is really good. So overal Awesome Cd high recommend it to fans that love bands like Pain of Salvation, Porcupine Tree, Opeth, or even Tool because these guys definitely have some similar traits to these bands.

Wonderful start to one of the few shining bands left today. This band plays well within itself, nothing too over the top, keeping the integrity of the song above all else.

The Same River is a favorite of mine, mostly because of its personal appeal to things in my life. Anywho, most of the songs hear are on the good to great status, but there's nothing "revolutionary" about any of it. It's just well done music. It's not groundbreaking, just some outstanding musicianship. Should break the stereotypes of "progressive metal", which is a poorly used term. This band is about substance and quality songwriting more than fitting into a niche. Much of the music has a very psychedelic vibe due to the role of the keys.

Highly recommended as a comfortable start for anyone looking to get into the "progressive metal" genre who is more used to traditional prog rock.

What could I possibly add to 135 reviews and an average rating of 4.14 out of 5.0?! Not much I guess. (Who's going to read the review no. 136 of this album anyhow???)

Let me keep it short and simple:

Riverside is probably my second still existing favorite band right now and my third favorite band of all times. Just after Porcupine Tree and Pink Floyd. (Indeed Pink Floyd doesn't make studio albums anymore). Very proggy album in the style of Porcupine Tree, Pink Floyd and Marillion that immediately made this band one of my favorites! Attended 2 live shows till now and life these guys are even better than on the studio albums!!!

Great guitar work by Piotr Grudzinski (love his playing style) Great bass and vocals (and even a growl now and then) by Mariusz Duda (he plays the bass kind of like a guitar, you actually hear it as an instrument!) Very good drums & percussion by Piotr "Meatloaf" Kozieradzki Very atmospheric Keyboards lifting the whole to a higher surface by Jacek Melnicki

5 star album all the way!

Out of Mystelf is an impressive album, the first release to the band Riverside. Recently I have fallen into an absolute obsession over the incredible Second Life Syndrome. Out of Myself is a great album, it's softer and actually has some really, really good songs on it. Such as "The Same River" and "I Believe". It clearly opens up the potential that this band from Poland has released. It's mellow, but exciting and dark. I the album is an enjoyable and I listen to it quite frequently if I want the softer side of Riverside.

Album, the album in general is dark, being Riverside's speciality. But it's mellow and VERY melodic. They use alot of mellow electric guitar rythms and melodies that touch you to the deepest and entrance you. These guys know how to make good music, truely. The album is altogether an excellent redition to introduce such a great Prog Metal band with great potential.

Songs, the songs on this album as I said before were rather mellow for the usual Prog Metal classification, but that doesn't mean anything when you look at the melodic and all together genious instrumental behind the band. If not convinced take a look at "Reality Dream I and II", they both express that quite thouroghly. A song that I found really cool as well was the great "The Same River" a 12 min song that really takes on the events of Rush's technique with songs such as "Xanadu" and "Cygnus X-1" where they play instrumental for the first 5 min then the rest is singing and incredible music. Probably my favorite song on the album. Other great songs is "Loosing Heart", "I Believe", "OK", and "The Curtain Falls".

Conclusion, if your insterested in Riverside, I suggest this album heavily. It's an excellent addition to your collection. It's an album I listen to very often and is really good, it's excellent. Whether you get Second Life Syndrome or Out of Myself I guarentee that you won't be disapointed if you like dark melodic (on the mellow side) prog metal. Give a listen, it's really good!

4.5 stars This band just pushes all the right buttons for me. Duda's vocals are warm and soothing to aggressive and angry. Grudzinski's plays a style of guitar I love, from the tone to the way he makes it soar. And besides he thanks the great ANATHEMA "for their music" in the liner notes. What a debut record though.

The first song "The Same River" is my favourite, the way it builds and all that atmosphere just blows me away. The louder the better ! The guitar 9 1/2 minutes in reminds me of PORCUPINE TREE, and I love the warm vocals that follow. Speaking of vocals, check out the great vocals on "Voices In My Head", and the aggressive, violent "Let me get this straight, let me get this right !" section 2 1/2 minutes in. Just an intense tune. "I Believe" is a mellow song that makes me feel warm all over (must be the vocals) .It opens with the sounds of a party going on as spoken vocals come in with lots of atmosphere. Gentle guitar and vocals follow. Beautiful and meaningful words as the sound of the party return.

"Reality Dream" and "Reality Dream II" are both instrumentals that have atmospheric keyboards, both scorching and soaring guitars with some killer riffs. "Loose Heart" has this cool intro as those wondrous vocals come in with synths. The guitar before 1 1/2 minutes and 3 minutes in are fantastic ! The song turns violent 4 minutes in as he screams over and over "Raise me up" !!! "In Two Minds" is actually a song that is both beautiful and emotional (maybe that was just me...the emotional part of course) haha ! Some nice guitar 3 minutes in. "The Curtain Falls" just builds and builds to a powerful soundscape, great song. "Ok" features some guest trombone before 1 1/2 minutes.This one also reminds me of PORCUPINE TREE with the reserved vocals, keys and percussion.

Thanks Ken Golden for bringing these guys to the world and especially to my home. Amazing music !

"There's sadness in my mind - ok There's darkness in my mind - ok"

Riverside is a way of expressing reflections, dreams and fantasies through music. It is an idea for exposing emotions, for an escape from the grey or unnaturally overcoloured reality. It is a music inspired by a time, a place, a thought and a word, a figment of their own and other people's imagination. It is joy and sadness, a whisper and a scream. (taken from Riverside's site)

What you hear on "Out of myself" the result of the above. It's one of the debut albums along with "In the court of crimson king", "Entropia", "Rage against the machine", that just couldn't have been more perfect. Having said that I don't mean that they are the best efforts of each band but they just give you the feeling that whatever you change on this records you just can't make them better. That of course is really subjective.

"Out of myself" is a real masterpiece. It demands either complete attention or complete rejection. You can either be fascinated by the bands musicianship, compositions etc or just let your mind travel while listening to it.

It's a concept album. It's about a man who is trying to find himself again in a society after a nervous breakdown. He thinks that this time everything is going to be ok but he fails again. However, he doesn't give up. The lyrics are amazing and it's like the hero is talking to you or to another person. The image that comes into my mind when reading the lyrics is him aying all this to his girlfriend who left him when he had the nervous breakdown "Please take a walk with me, Let me know - Am I to blame?", "As you know, I've always loved you and I know I will always love..."etc. However this is just a hypothesis.

The lyrics are perfect and amazingly performed by Mariusz Duda that vary from whispers to melodic and from melodic to screams. His voice is really warm and emotional. Mariusz Duda also plays bass and I have to admit that he is really up front playing amazing bass lines and adding effects here and there. He also does some guitar work. Piotr Grudzinski is an amazing guitarist whether this evolves playing riffs in strange time signatures or it's soloing with a sweetness that reminds you of Gilmour. Listening to Piotr Kozieradzki you would never have imagined he used to play in death metal bands. He is drummer with an incredible sound. So controlled but at the same time loose. So light but at the same time powerful. Outsatnding work! Jacek Melnicki appears on this album but was replaced one month before this album was released by Michal Lapaj. I have to say however that his work in "Out of myself" is much better than just good.

Generally this album is a balance of atmosphere and progressive elements. It's emotion placed over odd time signatures so fluently and effortlessly played that sometimes you can't even notice it. It's a masterpiece. Who would expect even a better album after this one? What will they do after "Second life syndrome"? These are real tough questions. What is easy to say is that this band is really promising. It's the future of our beloved music. On Riverside you can find sounds similar to Anathema, Porcupine Tree, Pink Floyd etc but not at all copies off those. It's something really new, something really unique.

This Polish band deserves the recognition it has on PA and even bigger. Everyone who is not stuck in the 70's should listen to Riverside. 5 stars for this total masterpiece.

This album pointed on promising future of this young, progressive, sensational band from Poland. First, I was very impressed with songs "Out of Myself", and "Loosing Heart". I have listened to these two songs over and over. This music was something new for me, and I was very excited. I got this album very hard, and it was pleasant experience to me. This is quite solid beginning for the band, which will give us many excellent albums, I believe. All songs are unique, melodic and atmospheric (with excellent keyboards that create all atmosphere), and singer/bassist plays unique and strong bass lines, so any fans of good bass will enjoy this album. Guitarist has nice, fruity, emotive sound, influenced by guitarists as Gilmour and Petrucci. He creates rich colors of guitar, and all songs are full of images and colored fine. This group really hunted me to be very excited about their music, but I tried, and later managed to figure out some weak sides of this. First is that the production is not the best. Well, as this was their first album, and they recorded it in very hard circumstances, it is to be expected that this is not top of modern production. But, believe me, this young band is very progressive, for their huge progress toward the second album. All elements got better, production, drumming, guitars, it is like they are searching for themselves with this record, and prepare for making of future masterpieces. Another weak side here is that I did not like vocal arrangements, but this element is progressing too. In their second album, vocals become better, and production stronger, as well as drums. This band will play essential role in future progressive world, which makes me looking forward for their next album.

This album was defently one of the best debut albums in reason time. When I first heard Loose Heart I was blown away! It had the spacyness i have always enjoyed and a good "groove" through out the song. I bought the CD off of amazon.com and was even more amazed when i listened to the whole thing strait through. It is labeled "progressive metal" but the interesting thing is they strayed away from the heavier side and mixed it up more with the spacy-softness. The production is a 10/10 for a debut album - all the tones of all the insturments and vocals were right were they need to be. The lyrics and very "down to earth" and can easily be related to by most people! Duda keeps a wonderful job of laying down the groove in this album with very tight bass lines that the whole song can build on. Now when it comes to guitar some people are disapointed by the lack of shreding but... given the feel the smooth riffs of gruzsinski fit the band perfectly. Ok now to the songs...

This same river - 9.8/10 Out of my self - 8.5/10 I believe - 8/10 Reality Dream I - 9.5/10 Loose Heart - 9.9/10 Reality Dream II - 9/10 In Two Minds - 7.5/10 The Curtain Falls - 9.6/10 Ok - 8/10

So overall average about a 8.7 making this an Excellent addition!!!

A nice spacy and sometimes heavy album of a talented band with great promise!!

This Polish Prog-Metal act really put a nice album together with Out of Myself. I first purchased Second Life Syndrome due to the high ratings that it was given on this site. I enjoyed that album immensely; and thus, went ahead and purchased their first complete album which I am now evaluating.

The Same River (96/100 * 721= 692.16) Great first song to the album. This is a much stronger opening track than what you will find on Second Life Syndrome ("After") as it incorporates all sorts of progressive elements over the course of its 12 minute length. While some may find it a bit dark and brooding, I find this to be a stunning song and the best on the whole album, in my opinion. It is mostly instrumental with vocals not beginning until a good five minutes into the song.

Out of Myself (89/100 * 223 = 198.47) The title track picks up where The Same River left off by delivering another outstanding arrangement, while using more vocals for additional texture to the sound.

I Believe (78/100 * 254 = 198.12) The third track is a strong ballad with a nice melody and lyrics. Even though I like this song, it is probably the weakest song on the whole album. Overall, Riverside does a very nice job with their ballads.

Reality Dream (95/100 * 375 = 356.25) Riverside can do ballads and they can do instrumentals. In fact, their instrumental sections are usually my favorite parts of their music. Please don't get me wrong. I think Mariusz Duda has a great voice for progressive metal. It is soothing at times and can also be a bit violent. But this group really shines when given some time to just jam out and that is what it sounds like they do with this instrumental song. It is a precursor to not only additional "dreams" to come in the future, but also provides a very similar sound to what will be found on the title track of their next album ("Second Life Syndrome"), which is a wonderful treat to the ears.

Loose Heart (85/100 * 290 = 246.50) Loose Heart is another ballad which grows in intensity and finishes with some growling vocals that provide a nice contrast over the course of the song. While I typically do not care for growling, I find that it is done here very tastefully and not enough to be annoying.

Reality Dream II (87/100 * 285 = 247.95) While this doesn't quite live up to the first Reality Dream, it is another well-crafted instrumental which moves the album along quite nicely.

In Two Minds (95/100 * 278 = 264.10) This is my favorite ballad on the album as it incorporates a wonderful melody with some fascinating lyrics. Duda does some exceptional vocal work as well creating a wonderful atmosphere and making this one of my favorite tracks on the album.

The Curtain Falls (92/100 * 479 = 440.68) This track is another very strong effort which is very reminiscent of vintage Pink Floyd. In fact, there are moments where you might think you are listening to "On the Run" from Dark Side of the Moon. But while it does sound similar, it also sounds very good. Good music oftentimes will sound like other good music and the Floyd-influence is very noticeable on this great song.

OK (84/100 * 286 = 240.24) This is probably the most difficult song for me to evaluate on the album. While I find the ending to be a bit anti-climactic, I think this is exactly what Riverside wants to do with the atmosphere and mood that they have created with this album. So while I may not particularly care for this type of closing track, I can appreciate the artistic mood that the band has achieved and is now bringing to an end. The song is quite nice, just not one of the highlights on this album.

Overall Score: 2884.47/3191 = 90%

Grading Score for ProgArchives: 5 stars: 92 - 100% 4 stars: 84 - 91% 3 stars: 72 - 83% 2 stars: 58 - 71% 1 star: 57% or less

ABSOLUTELY STUNNING RELEASE!! On my opinion,the hidden treasure of modern progressive metal scene.A little less structured than "Second Life Syndrome" but more intense and oniric,and I prefere the last two.An impressive album that you can love 'till death,or hate forever during your lifetime.There'snt a half way.With this debut Riverside strongly affirmed their role (predominant) in the prog metal universe,and they show to us that Poland is still an incredible musical land(for the Progressive) in the tradition of another great polish neo-prog bands like COLLAGE,SATELLITE,ABRAXAS and more.Out of Myself!!!Keep it immediatly!!

Riverside is a band that I have come to like very much. Anyone who would be turned away from the band because of their Metal classification should consider giving them a spin on the record player :)

They have a very clean, clear sound, and at almost no point do you loose track of what's going on. The music is very powerful and well orchestrated. Riverside put a lot of emotion into these songs.

At some points the music gets a bit aggressive, but not excessive, or annoying. There is no angry screaming while the guitar player strums some distorted lick in drop-D tuning, and the drummer randomly hits objects. Everything in this album is meaningful and controlled. Piotr Grudzinski produces very good, clean sounds with the guitar, and there are some downright beautiful solos. The lyrics are also clean (this is the word that comes to mind most when I think of everything this band does) and meaningful.

Everything about this album and this band seems to come from the heart.

The first attempt from a prog metal band usually ends up a little sticky. In this case however I found myself loving it the first time through. I heard Second Life Syndrome first, so I suspected that this would be a precursor to it, and probably not quite up to par. I was wrong. I enjoy this album every bit as much as SLS. It has the same raw emotion, more instrumentals than the latter, and just as many beautiful moments. I think the beauty is what really makes this band stand out from others like Tool and co. This is music worth listening to.

AS YOU KNOW I´VE ALWAYS...

Loved this kind of music. How couldn´t i fall in love with this band when they have all i like. Their sound is a mixure of some of my favorite sub-genres: Space-Rock, Neo-Prog and Prog Metal and their influences are from some of my all time fave bands like Pink Floyd and Porcupine Tree and other beloved ones like Anathema and Opeth. This has been said in almost every review of the cd and band in general, and acually i was afraid of reviewing this thinking in what else could i say after many excelent critics. The problem is that i am so enthusiastic about this band that i coudn´t help it.

The only thing i can add is just my personal feeling. And that is that i think this one of the best debuts in many years. What a way to start! And what a song to start! "The Same River" still my fave of the album, it´s incredible how they manage to keep my attention on a very long introduction and then the beatiful singing: As you know i´ve always... then the keys...then the scream...then the haunting guitar...then the calm...... Amazing.

And what to say about the other songs, all gems. Great compositions, powerful tunes like the title track and "Reality Dream" I & II and enchanting dark mellow ones like "I Believe" and "Loose Heart" with an explosive end. What else can i say, i mean, everything has been said.

Is this the most original band? Maybe not, but who cares. Is this a good album? YES, at least one of the best of that year. Is this one of the most promising bands on the Prog scene? Maybe it is, but who knows for sure. All this questions will be answered in different ways by all my fellow progheads, but only time will tell.

Viva el Prog!

I discovered this Polish band about three years ago thanks to PA. I went to see them playing live during a great prog conference together with "La Maschera" and "Knight Area" in 2005. What a day ! Three great bands in three different prog categories.

The absolute highlight of this album is the brilliant opening number : "The Same River". It is incredibely catchy, oppressing, repetitive. The vocals come quite late and bring some lightness in all this complexity. It is a sublime song. Guitar and keys are so pleasant, so strong. The final guitar solo is truely emotive and each time that I listen to it, I am transborded with joy.

The title track flirts with the heavy sounds (DT is not far away). Again it is very pleasant and the melody is rather pleasant. A very good song as well while "I Believe" is using a theme from "The Same River". It is almost acoustic and offers a bit of rest while listening to this album.

The second highlight is "Reality Dream, Part I". A great instrumental piece of music. Half symphonic (during the guitar solo) half metal. I have to say that I particularly like the combination. "Riverside" mixes the genres in a great and appropriate manner to ensure that the listener is never let down. This album is varied and prevents boredom.

Of course, "Loose Heart" reminds "Out Of Myself" and sounds as if this album would be a concept one, with repeated parts throughout the work. Keyboards bring some nice symphonic tone and the screaming guitar is another added value for the whole. So far, this debut album is rather convincing.

Some Floydian mood to start the second part of "Reality". Wonderful and Gilmouresque guitar work (but since the mood was Floydian, I guess that it is all but normal). Again, the song will develop on the harder edge and the same feeling than during "Part I" can be experienced. Great moment of music, no doubt.

The most emotional song is without any doubt "In Two Minds". The mood is softer. Vocals very delicate. Like "I Believe", which breaks the hard sounds from this album and bring a diversified approach. The spacey tone of "The Curtain Falls" is also a nice moment (but actually, there are so many...). It is maybe a bit too long to be fully interesting but it is fully in-line with most of the songs featured on "Out of Myself". Another pleasant track.

The jazzy mood of the closing number is not a fave of mine. Probably the weakest osng of the whole. But only one weak number is not too bad, right ?

This album is not a masterpiece, but still it is a great work. This band will certainly do great things if they build up their catalogue on this good basis. Their music is not only metal since "Riverside" combines several source of inspirations. The keys alos add such a special flavour to their music.

Four stars.

This is quite an amazing first release by a band. It starts off in the right vein and continues there for quite a while, but it kind of loses me towards the end of the album. In my eyes this album established them as an up and comer in the modern progressive scene. The album is just short of a masterpiece. It opens up with the best track on the album, "The Same River," the reality dream sequences are quite good as well. It's just a bit at the end that kind of loses me. This is a great place to start for the band but their next album Second Life Syndrome was an absolute masterpiece of modern progressive music.

An outstanding debut! Knock out! Riverside blows hard and makes us fall on our knees! Absolutely fantastic music! Great and memorable. Colourful and dark, fast and slow, full of deep emotions: sorrow, emptiness, loneliness, rage and craving for a new and better life. The music on "Out Of Myslef" is like furious and relentless crawling throgh a long, ominously dark and cold tunnel towards the warm daylight... Brilliant.

Whispers, beautiful singing, furious growling - all this make this album A TOUCHING STORY. It's a concept album revolving around one central idea and it is doing it marvellously.

Very fresh, extremely emotional, beautiful, powerful and powerfuly performed music. Highly recommended for all Pink Floyd and Steven Wilson lovers.

Prog metal wanted some ''fresh meat'',tired of being full with DREAM THEATER and FATES WARNING clones.It was time for RIVERSIDE to introduce themselves to the prog metal audience.The result of their first album is simply outstanding! The closer band to them are PAIN OF SALVATION but they don't sound similar to them.They are skilled musicians but they have thrown a good measure of psychedelia in their prog metal style.Unique in one word!!Feed your ears with their music...

Splendid debut of one of the most interesting bands appeared in the last decade!

The music of this album is not strictly progressive metal. For me it's in the same vein of crossover prog bands like Porcupine Tree or Anathema, with a lot of experimentation and complex passages, being the influence of Pink Floyd also very obvious. The metal comes in some parts, but it's not the main aspect of their music. The experimentation is the keynote, with marvelous keyboard parts and hypnotic bass lines. Most of the songs are really catching thanks the amount of small details they have and the ascending instrumental parts they contain. The bass lines are the body of the songs, and the complex layers of guitars alongside with the great keyboards. Mariusz Duda vocals are dreamy, deep and sometimes even ripped... This man is the soul of the band, with his outstanding bass and good vocals abilities.

Both the long and shorts songs are good, but maybe the last two are not so great. The Courtain Falls is not bad, but not so catchy for me despite being a classic in live concerts of the band. And OK, the slow and ambiental last track, is not the perfect ending in my opinion. It lacks strength and emotion, despite being an interesting trip-hop experiment.

But the rest of the album is really outstanding. The Same River shows what this band is able to do, with long instrumental parts, both peaceful and strong. Out of Myself is a short and powerful track. I Believe is a wonderful acoustic track, in the same vein as the later In Two Minds, one of the highlights of the album... In two Minds is really marvelous, a track in the same with strong Porcupine Tree but much more sentimental. I really love the lyrics of this song.

The instrumentals Reality Dream I and II are catchy and shows the band's skill and potential. And Loose Heart is another hit, a really catchy song, with beautiful lyrics and great tempo. If you want to know the true personality of this band, I think that Loose Heart is a perfect introduction to their sound.

Conclusion: if you are into experimental and progressive rock, you must hear this band. They have many influences, but they are able to translate them brilliantly into their music, making an original and exciting mixture.

If you like acts like Porcupine Tree, Green Carnation, Wolverire, Anathema... You must hear this band. And Out of Myself is perfect to start with them. Not so complex and cohesive like later albums, but with a very good songwriting and great musicianship from the best progressive rock band born in Poland since Collage.

Best Tracks: The Same River, I Believe, In Two Minds, Loose Heart.

My rating: ****

Riverside - Out of Myself 4.2 Stars

This unexpected release in 2003 was a breath of fresh air to the prog-metal scene.if you would call it prog-metal. The sound is very heavy and soft at times, but long ethereal keyboards remain throughout the album as well as quirky time signatures with some very 'gilmourish' solo's. All of the band members have had prior band experience before this project that was very distant from the sound that was brought out by Riverside. The band consists of Mariusz Duda on bass and vocals, Piotr Grudzinski on guitars, Piotr Kozieradzski on drums and Michal Lepaj on keyboards.

Marjusz was just originally recruited as a bassist.not for his vocal abilities, which were later discovered. The point I am trying to clarify is that they didn't just wanted the singer to play an instrument.cause this man's bass skill are enough justification for his inclusion. He is also just as good as a vocalist. His clean vocals are extremely similar to those in Anathema.a band that shares some of the flavor and has some grunty outbursts that aren't bad, but don't let it drive you away as there are very few moments of those. As a guitarist.right after I heard this album I immediately labeled Grudzinski as an influence. The man is not over the top with his solos at all. They are extremely spacey like the keyboard.he extends the notes for long durations with a lot of sustain and has an extreme sense of pitch. The beauty of his style is that he makes every single note count. He is the kind of guitar player where it is very hard to tell what direction he is going to take.very good player.

Musically speaking, this is an amazing album. The only flaw that has lowered my rating is that this band made it big with this release because of their new sound, yet they overused it just a little too much. The listener almost gets a sense that they might say 'haven't they played this already'. Other then the played out sound, this album is just about perfect. There are two acoustic ballad songs that are absolutely breathtaking, being 'I Believe' and 'In Two Minds'. There are also two instrumentals brought out in a series called 'Reality Dream'. This disc contains I and II, which are great jam tracks, certainly showing how tight this band is.

The opening track, 'The Same River' is a great introduction to the sound of Riverside. It is pretty lengthy, at 12 minutes and the opening at very atmospheric/psychedelic like Floyd. It really sums up what we are for as far as vocals, timing and guitar work goes. 'Out of Myself' is quite the angry one, as the guitar and drum dynamics are very hard and rampant with the vocals can only enhance the effect. 'Loose Heart' is probably my favorite track off the album. It is a much better version of 'The Same River' except much shorter and catchier verses and chorus. The end of the album was the part that held me back from 5 stars. 'The Curtain Falls' is more of the same from what we have already heard, but that track is certainly not worthy of the word 'bad' or 'lacking' but on the other hand, the track could be considered those two words is 'Ok'. This song is pretty bad by any prog standards. Especially since it is the last track, I feel kind of empty when the album is over. At least 7 of the tracks were stellar though.

This is recommended to just about any fan of prog. Do not be afraid to check it out because of the prog-metal label.it is far from the other contemporary acts. For any fans of Anathema, Pink Floyd, Pain of Salvation, Opeth, and Dream Theater, you shall not be disappointed. This is brilliant music.

sources: www.riverside.art.pl

One of the most powerfully creative, moody, emotive, and artistic debuts in recent years, showing off a perfect blend of subtle atmosphere and heavy aggression-- Out of Myself is a must have for fans across genres... so long as they like their music bleak and usually depressing.

If the slow build up to the heavy instrumental chorus of The Same River doesn't hook the listener, then Mariusz Duda's powerful bass and incredibly smooth vocals will. His deliveries range from quite whispers to a confident tenor crooning and, yes, harsh guttural roars as beautiful juxtaposed as one could hope for. This, combined with the sprawling, lush, dynamic songs and dark energy make for very, very enjoyable listening.

While comparisons and inspiration can be obviously extrapolated, none of them can deny the creative sound and style Riverside has created here, with only their first release. Highly recommended.

Songwriting: 5 Instrumental Performances: 4 Lyrics/Vocals: 4 Style/Emotion/Replay: 5

Part one of Riverside's 'Reality Dream' trilogy came out of nowhere. By now, the band probably doesn't need an introduction, because fans of progressive music recognise them almost as much as Dream Theater these days, but even with their debut, they earnt rave reviews from almost everyone.

And for a good reason. Each member of the band is top-notch, and their skill in composition is consistently fluid and dynamic. They may not play the most complex brand of progressive rock, but their styles meld together to form a unique brand of music all the same. If you've read other reviews, you've seen all their main influences cited, so I'm just reiterating: this is the perfect combination of Pink Floyd, Marillion, Anathema, Porcupine Tree, Dream Theater and plenty of others.

'Out of Myself' highlights Riverside's atmospheric abilities, but it also showcases some more aggressive elements, which they'd explore later in their opus magnus 'Second Life Syndrome.' This means each song is varied, the album doesn't get repetitive, and its length is just right for what they wanted to achieve. Best of all, they maintain a high quality throughout - every track except the last is excellent in its own way:

The Same River (9.9 out of 10) - This twelve-minute intro sets the mood for Riverside's trilogy; ambient and introspective at times, fast and dynamic at others, and always characteristically atmospheric. After a slow build-up of ethereal keyboards and chanting, the song progresses towards guitar riffs and solos, only to change again halfway through the song, bringing Mariusz's vocals in at about the seven-minute mark. And - let's get this out of the way now - his singing style is the best I've heard on the progressive rock scene. To showcase his talent, the song ends brilliantly with the lines:

I am your fear, I am your hope I am your grief, I am your joy I am your deed, I am your word I am your hate, I am your love

The Same River earns a 9.9 out of 10 for being one of my top three songs of all time. This is the sort of track you can listen to over and over (and over) again, and it still takes you to different places in your mind. Beyond an excellent start to the album.

Out of Myself (8 out of 10) - Following that, Riverside explores the next side of their abilities in this both furious and catchy tune. The title track launches off with a clean electric riff that drives the song, fluctuating in the background as Mariusz alternates between whispering Voices in my head, singing soaring melodies and almost screaming in the bridge. Once again everyone plays in a patterned style, with all the instruments working in beautiful cohesion. A solid track.

I Believe (8.5 out of 10) - This sweet acoustic ballad starts off on a strange note, with a cacophony of voices from a formal party in the background. This sets the scene surprisingly well for a melancholic, peaceful song. Once again, the outstanding vocals are the song's focus, but the sound effects from keyboard player Michal Lapaj also play an important, yet subtle, role. I Believe is a great indication of Riverside's lighter style, setting a serene mood that stays with you long after you've listened to it.

Reality Dream Part I (8 out of 10) - Following a short ambient introduction, the first of four Reality Dream instrumentals (there are two more on the albums to come) fires off with another catchy riff from Piotr Grudzinski, who has until this point restrained his role in the album. Here, the hard electric guitar dominates the song, intermeshed with a soaring keyboard melody that sometimes replicates the main riff and sometimes goes off in its own direction. Towards the end, Mariusz returns for some tribal chanting and while Piotr launches into a melodic solo. This track turns out to be yet another example of how well each band member fits into the song, forming patterns in odd time signiatures that create a very unique feel.

Loose Heart (9 out of 10) - Settling down after the firestorm of the last track, Loose Heart starts off as a keyboard-driven ballad, but soon works its way into a heavy finish. At the end, Mariusz shouts, Raise me up, raise me up don't let me fall! to flawless effect. The focus here is on the desperate and ominous mood, which (need I say it again?) the perfect interplay of instruments pulls off effortlessly.

Reality Dream Part II (8 out of 10) - Kicking off with a short drumming solo from Piotr Kozieradzki, the second Reality Dream phase elevates into another solid instrumental. This one is more laid-back than the first, giving off the actual impression of a strange dream. Part II is more inviting than Part I; it feels warmer and more relaxed, even though it's quite similar. An upbeat ending leads into...

In Two Minds (8.5 out of 10) - The album's second ballad. On the downside, this one sounds a little too similiar to I Believe, though in its defense, both songs are so good that it hardly matters. Another melancholic intro; this one starts with Mariusz's whispered vocals, and builds into a soaring climax where he hits notes too high to sing along to. In Two Minds is peaceful, atmospheric, beautiful, everything you'll come to expect from the light half of Riverside.

The Curtain Falls (8.5 out of 10) - Apart from The Same River, this is probably the album's most progressive song. Beginning with a relaxed keyboard and bass segment, it suddenly changes a couple of minutes in, to an instrumental full of chanting and unusual playing from each band member. Over the remaining six minutes, this spontaneous segment becomes faster, climaxing into a frantic electric guitar riff and settling down once again into a calm ending. Each transition is very fluid. It took a while before I began to really appreciate this song, but sure enough, this is another of the album's many gems.

OK (6 out of 10) - Ending the album with a trip-hop influenced track was a strange decision, and perhaps not the best one either. The song sounds strangely empty. Maybe it's just not my style, though other reviewers have agreed this is the low point of 'Out of Myself.' All in all, the song is still good (or just okay, to use a terrible pun) but it doesn't really compare to their other efforts. There's a song on their EP 'Voices In My Head' called Stuck Between, which followed the same pattern as this one, but they executed it far better. So, the album ends on a somewhat disappointing note, but the rest of it is good enough to earn at least a four-star rating.

This is one of the best debuts I've ever heard from a band. Excellent production, masterful cohesion of instruments, outstanding all around. If you haven't already, pick this album up. It suits just about everyone, and it never takes long to get into Riverside. 'Out of Myself' is worth the buy for the opening track alone, and seven more wonderful tracks seal the package. Highly recommended.

I have already reviewed Second Life Syndrome and Rapid Eye Movement from Riverside so very unlike the way I usually review a bands discography I have done it backwards. It doesn´t matter much in the case of Riverside as all three of their albums are very similar in sound and style. This doesn´t mean that there hasn´t been a development in their style, it´s just not that significant. It doesn´t matter to me though as I think all of their albums are excellent pieces of prog rock with metal tendencies.

Out of Myself is no exception to that. The music changes from melodic metal inspired pieces to more mellow prog rock pieces. It´s a nice mix even though I feel their metal riffs are a bit generic. Mariusz Duda is a real treat of a vocalist. He has a very personal style and he means a lot to the sound of Riverside. The Pink Floyd, Porcupine Tree, Tool and Dream Theater influences are very clear, but it doesn´t mean that Riverside are clones. They mix all their influences into their own style.

Even though I like Rapid Eye Movement the best of their three albums, this one is definitely also an excellent addition to your prog rock collection. Don´t be fooled by the fact that Riverside is in the progressive Metal catagory, they are generally a very soft prog rock band. The metal only shines through few places on the album. 4 stars is a fair judgement here.

A very good debut from these Polish melancholic progressive-rock-savers.

Riverside is certainly must be checked up by every progressive rock fan. This Polish band plays high- quality melancholic and sad prog-metal with neo-prog flavour. I can notice mainly Pink Floyd and Porcupine Tree influence in their sound (just like everyone notices), but overall Riverside has their own unique sound.

I suppose their debut album has better production than the following ones have. Drums sound perfect, bass guitar sounds solid, guitars sound soft and gentle and keyboards are clear.

By the way, before I bought Out Of Myself in 2005 I had heard from some people that Riverside's vocalist sometimes growls and I was afraid that this wouldn't let me like this band. But, after listening to the entire album, I understood that these not numerous growls are in place and don't spoil Riverside's music - quite the contrary, this is an integral part of Riverside's specific sound.

The album includes 9 excellent and different tracks. My favourites are: [b]Out Of Myself[/b] (9/10) - with angry growls and tremendous musicianship; [b]Reality Dream (I-II)[/b] (9.5/10) - wonderful instrumental songs with nice solos and complex structures; [b]Loose Heart[/b] (9/10) - a perfect song with mellow beginning and angry ending; and [b]In Two Minds[/b] (9/10) - a semi-acoustic well- structured song with a pretty guitar solo and vocals. [b]The Same River[/b] (8/10) has nice Floydish intro and wonderful main part, but it's too long. [b]I Believe[/b] (7.5/10) is a very sincere and heartfelt slow and acoustic song. [b]The Curtain Falls[/b] (7.5/10) is a good song, but a bit overextended from my point of view. [b]Ok[/b] (7/10) is a very sad and long ending of the album, though the song is not bad.

I cannot give this album 5 stars, because it is not a masterpiece actually - nothing outstanding here. Out Of Myself is just an excellent addition to any prog music collection - a very appropriate definition for this album.

I still remember getting Riverside's first album shortly after it was released. How the sharp basslines seemed to oddly complement the layered keyboards. The melodic electric guitar rising up from the mix to bring it all together. I knew they'd catch on. I probably couldn't have guessed that this album would still move me after all these spins.

Now that Riverside's Reality Dream trilogy has come to an end, most of us who are familiar with the band's work have come to recognize that it has been faithful to a pretty successful formula. We've come to expect a fairly balanced array of riffy anger, complex instrumentals, dreamy soundscapes, and piercingly echoed guitar solos. Predictable? Sure. But the interesting thing about OUT OF MYSELF is that while it pulls out many tricks out of this same bag, the album never seems to get tired. The band's two follow-up albums are both good in their own ways, but I always seem to get the impression that they're trying to sound like OUT OF MYSELF. Sure, this may be because the debut is the starting point for the trilogy and thus forms the basis for many of the motifs throughout, but when listening to OUT OF MYSELF, I hear a consistently raw emotion that I only find in certain spots scattered through the next two albums.

Listen to the deliberate but natural buildup in the album opener, The Same River, for example. The band tries to do it again in both their follow-ups, but their structuredness results in an effect less emotionally moving than the opener here. I Believe is still one of my favorite songs from the band, brilliantly melding soundscape with melodic structure, and In Two Minds continues to send chills down my spine every time I hear the beautiful combination of acoustic strumming, harmony, and crying guitar soloing.

OUT OF MYSELF doesn't feature any of the epic songs we can find in its two follow-ups, but I think this is one of the album's charms. Instead of weighing down the middle of the album with all of the greatest moments, OUT OF MYSELF spreads them throughout a coherent whole. In many ways this release is the most dream-like in the trilogy. It can pass you by if you're not listening carefully, but it leaves you with that feeling that you'll keep thinking about but never be fully able to grasp.

UPDATE (2/24/16) - With Piotr's recent and tragic passing, this debut album takes on an even more important place in my life. I will now not only continue to see this as the classic and formative modern progressive rock album that it is, but I also cannot escape the mixed feelings of loss and beauty that I hear in his magical guitar playing. It is now eight years after writing my initial review, and I cannot help but feel that a piece of my young adulthood has passed along with Piotr and his intensely emotional guitar. I hope your passing is what you'd imagined it would be, and I'd like to thank you for the magic you made me feel as I made my dream-like journey through my early twenties.

Described as Progressive Metal, the Polish four-piece RIVERSIDE feel much more like a heavy space-rock band. This, their debut, establishes the band as a serious heavyweight on the progressive scene.

There is real depth to the music. The keyboards and guitar brush the space-rock canvas with broad strokes, but unlike many other bands of this type the bass and drums are also excellent and an essential part of the sound. Least convincing are the vocals, but I have to remind myself MARIUSZ DUDA is singing in a language other than his native tongue.

As might be expected, this debut is not without its obvious influences. You can hear PINK FLOYD, ANATHEMA, PORCUPINE TREE and DREAM THEATER, but that's no bad thing and can be tolerated in a first record.

The album begins with the outstanding 'The Same River', which over seven minutes sets out the band's stall, before the vocals emerge. Well-integrated sound fx, smooth, ethereal keyboards, the requisite soaring guitar, crushing distorted riffs and an excellent rhythm section. And the vocal hook ('I know I'll ... always ...love') to me marks the genius of this band: they know how to compose great music, saving something for the vocals.

The rest of the album does not quite reach these five-star heights again. Oddly, the title track is one of the weakest on the album, pure and formulaic prog metal a la ANATHEMA. 'I Believe' is a fair ballad, followed by the instrumental 'Reality Dream I', a DREAM THEATER-ish track with a haunting central section. It's counterpart, helpfully titled 'Reality Dream II', is a continuation. 'Loose Heart' is another, heavier ballad, as is 'In Two Minds'. The bass does a fair ROGER WATERS impersonation in 'Curtain Falls'. None of the remaining tracks are poor, but none have that wonderful spark of the opening track.

A promising debut, and that promise was to be realised on their next release.

When a debut album comes out of nowhere (not that Poland is nowhere but I mean the group) and creates an immediate worldwide buzz, you know that it's a rare occurrence and that it must be somehow deserving of all the praise from pretty much all us proggers. To put matters even more into perspective, when those first notes blasts through the speakers are excellent, it's like an Apollo rocket exploding into space. Riverside slickly begin their career with the slurred distortion of scanning the airwaves on your FM audio system, issuing newscast items, snippets of Hotel California, silly commercials and suddenly, out from the slime oozing from your set, the guitar screeches with ominous synth washes, the bass shuttles into position, cymbals rattle on the job, all emitting an electric buzz waiting for the relentless beat to grow in stature, inexorably gathering steam while elevating the doom- laden riff to heights of psychedelic pleasure. When the lead guitar soars majestically over the aural landscape, Riverside have in a matter of a few minutes made an indelible impression on any incredulous listener. Few albums in the history of Progressive music have kicked off a career quite as convincingly as on "The Same River"! Other reviewers have correctly dissected the Floydian influences, as well as the occasional Opeth winks, particularly when the overall tone veers into rage and harder edged substance. Piotr Grudzinski has certainly digested his Pink collection but truthfully, he possesses a bulkier style and a rawer tone than Mister Gilmour, sounding at times more like Inquire's Dieter Cromen, both fondly preferring a "bleeding" sustain when soloing. The keyboards are essentially massed synthesized back grounds full of lush symphonics, giving the entire production a fuller sound and the drums are certainly way more propulsive that anything Mister Mason would come up with. Vocalist, bassist and main songwriter Mariusz Duda is obviously the musical direction motivator, a mood conductor capable on so many different fronts, from gentle ballad crooning to out right metallic grunting and growling as well as letting his reptilian bass sort of reconnoiter the road ahead. All the tracks are of exceptional quality, well-balanced between the softer moments and the outright volatile blowouts, with the 2 part "Reality Dream" instrumental sequences raising a few eyebrows and some superb songs such as the imperial "I Believe", the simply gorgeous "Loose Heart" and the dreamily majestic "In Two Minds". The overall sound and the production are rarely a weakness from Polish or Hungarian prog bands and this is no exception. One other atypical compliment is that this is some of the best drive-in-your-car music you will ever slide into your auto's system. Definitely autobahn material, Vroom-Vroom, so try it out on the highway. Riverside offer pristine art of the very highest caliber that has really nothing much in common with Division Bell, simply a young progressive rock band with the right philosophy, out to conquer the Prog World and leave a legacy of quality music that transcends styles and really searches out new frontiers. The artwork from Travis Smith at Seempieces is well worth the hype. A definite 21st Century prog must have. Can this be bettered? 4.5 dudas (car horns in Hungarian).

What's this? Polish prog? I'd been reading up on these guys recently, so while on vacation in Ottawa, I picked this one up to see what the fuss is all about. I can safely say, I need to check out new bands, because these guys are nothing short of amazing.

The Same River starts off with the radio, which I liked. Building a soundscape takes stuff from everyday life, they really put this to good use. The bass line comes in and it gets really heavy. I'm just sitting there in the store, frozen to my seat, waiting for what's gonna happen next. Whats this I hear? Guitar and drums? Oh how amazing! It's like I've never heard those instruments before. The synths come in, the fills get more syncopated. Then it becomes this unison between keys, bass and guitar. Amazing! Then the heavy guitars come in, I'm expecting this to keep building until it reaches the boiling point. Boy does it ever! Man, the sudden time change caught me off guard the first time I heard it. It was so well played, I enjoyed this section, which was filled with some moog and nice guitar/keyboard unisons. Then the song breaks for this slower bass driven section, with some sweeping reversed vocals. Very ambient. Then this section keeps up with the lines And you know I will always.... This is becoming a very long sample in the store. Some tasteful guitar solos lead the song into it's vocally powerful ending. It reminds me a little of 2112 for some reason. Perhaps it's the bass player/singer that makes it so similar. Ends very powerfully and AMAZING. Best song on the album. (10/10)

Out Of Myself, starts with the reverse cymbal blasting into your ear. Then with the amazing bass playing and the cool Voices In My Head effect. This song is very promising. The lyrics are amazing, no doubt there. This song gets pretty intense with some very freaky time signature at the chorus. The Let me get straight, let me get this right really shows the amazing power vocal of Mariusz Duda's vocals. Amazing song! (9.5/10)

I Believe starts off with some lines being spoken. A cigarette is lit. Ambient noises are made. I love the atmospheres these guys create, they're so amazing. The accent for the spoken line really just cracks me up. When the guitar and bass line come in, it's so beautiful. It's just amazing. The vocal harmonies in this song are really well done. Overall great ballad. (9/10)

Reality Dream, the official moniker of the trilogy of records released by these guys. Let's see is the name lives up to itself. OH WOW! Some beautiful keyboards! Ambient sounds and very nice organised playing is the winner here. I'm not one for instrumentals, but this is nothing short of awesome. (9.5/10)

Loose Heart, sort of filler for me. I have to admit I liked the I think we ought to find ourselves again line a lot. It's a good song, it just doesn't stand up to the grandeur of the other tracks on the album. (8/10)

Reality Dream II starts out with the drum fills. Then with the dialing phone, which for some reason, I didn't find all too cool. I guess I find it cliche. Meh, i'm weird. Anyways, more instrumental. This one is definitely the guitar driven one, Reality Dream I being keyboard driven. I LOVE the Rush style music at the two minute mark. I really found this to be great and be one of my favorite moments in this album. Overall, good, but its predecessor prevails in my book. (9/10)

In Two Minds, reminds me A LOT of Porcupine Tree. This song has the really prominent organs, which was a nice touch. But the winner in this song is the beautiful singing. I absolutely LOVE this song. It doesn't go anywhere really, but where it does go goes a long way. The ending really surprised me. Its the same singing but with a heavy bass line in the background. It's just beautiful. I love Riverside. (10/10)

The Curtain Falls reminds me of this video game RPG. Chrono Trigger. The beginnings sounds familliar. In again with amazing atmospheres, it never stops. The bass line couldn't be any better. The drumming is actually very good on this track. It didn't seem to shine on the other tracks for some reason. The guitar playing is really awesome isn't it? I noticed on the other songs, but on this one it stuck out. Then, when The Curtain Falls, only one song came to my head. Cinema Show. It reminds a little of the ending half; why it does is beyond me. Right after the 5:30 mark, it gets really intense; Amazingly well written. Then after that section, another guitar solo. This one being the best off the album, with Piotr fooling around with echo and volume pedals. The synths in the background create this truly amazing atmopshere. It's truly a masterpiece, I really enjoyed this song. (10/10)

OK, is this mellowed out, really pretty ender. In most contexts, an ender like this would get flamed to no end. But it fits perfectly in this frame. This is a pretty simple piece, but it means so much, I can tell. What's going in the story is beyond me, but all I know is this means something. The trumpet adds to the atmosphere. The song ends with one minute left hanging there. Listen long enough and you'll get to hear some reverse vocals. They really, again, add to the atmosphere. (9.5/10)

This beautiful piece of progressive music, is seriously, easily one of the best prog releases in recent memory. I must admit, the drumming is a bit noobish, but it's easily forgivable because of the amazing songwriting and great singing. This band is one to look out for.

5 Stars

High Points: The Record

An explosive start from out of nowhere.

If you're looking for a debut album to blow you away from a band that comes out of nowhere, this is a great place to look. Sure, Poland isn't the first place you're going to go looking for progressive rock, but these guys may very well have put their country on the map of modern progressive rock. While they're considered a progressive metal band, I think that this album is more of a psychedelic progressive rock offering with some bits and pieces of heavy metal. The doses of metal will become bigger and more obvious on later albums.

Riverside's debut, like I mentioned, is more focused on creating psychedelic soundscapes while adding traces of metal to some songs. One of the things that originally surprised me was how prominent the bass is on this album. Some of Duda's licks get very interesting to hear, and he also provides acoustic guitar on some tracks as well as serves as the band's vocalist. His singing is slightly hypnotic and very beautiful, which fits the music very well. The keyboards are very atmospheric and help to set the feeling of all the songs. The guitar and drummer are also both very excellent. I remember first hearing the praise this band was getting and decided to check them out, while hoping this wouldn't be a Dream Theater clone. And they certainly were anything but that. If you want a band that's beginning to develop a progressive metal sound with a strong progressive rock influence and sounds very, very original and refreshing, this is an album you should consider checking out. My only real complaint is that I wish there had been more of a clear metal influence on this album. Some of the highlights for me are The Same River, the title track, Reality Dream, and Loose Heart. I also think that the album loses some of its punch on the last two songs. For those two weaknesses, I can give this album 4 stars, as it is still incredibly enjoyable. This is something anyone who enjoys modern progressive rock should check out.

When Metallica, Pink Floyd and Porcupine Tree go together, you get an album like this!

Riverside is yet another great progressive metal band from the second (or third, it depends on how you see it) generation of progressive metal, originating in the late 90's and early 00's, when progressive metal was already a solid and well established genre of both metal and progressive rock. This new generation tried to expand even more the horizons of progressive metal, not only trying to refine and polish metal so much that it became progressive or adding classical music, jazz and progressive influences like the pioneers did, but going further in the refinement of metal music and also adding even more diverse and colorful musical influences into their music, making it sound great and (more importantly) different.

So, due to what i just said, Riverside have a wide variety of influences. However, there are three bands that just stand up from that mix, and those would be Metallica, Porcupine Tree and Pink Floyd. Pink Floyd is probably the most evident influence of Riverside, since the whole album (in fact, all three albums) have that space rock feeling, that gloomy and quiet desperation that Pink Floyd translated so well in their music, with moody / spacy keyboards and guitar melodies filled with emotion and feeling. Intricate thrash metal, like Metallica during Master of Puppets and ... And Justice for All, can be seen in probably every heavy / metal part of the album (and every heavy / metal part of all three albums), specially in the aggressive drums. Porcupine Tree also can be found here, as the band is kind of in between of metal and prog rock, though being inclined more towards prog rock. In the end, Riverside will sound more like Pink Floyd than anything, because Porcupine Tree also have a great deal o floydian influence.

Most songs here are very, very good. The opening track, The Same River, is just awesome! The emotional guitar melodies, heavy riffs, energetic drum beat, moody keys and powerful bass lines combined create a great atmosphere. The songs Reality Dreams I and II also are great, they alternate strong and calm parts very well, though sounding heavier than the opening song of the album. The closing songs, The Curtain Falls and OK, have an even bigger Floyd influence, to the point that you identify the albums were some melodies came from or the albums that inspired them, which is not too good, although not being too bad also.

The highlights go to The Same River, Reality Dreams I and II and The Curtain Falls.

Grade and Final Thoughts

This excellent debut from this polish progressive metal band is a very good album. New and refreshing, it is a decent starting kick and show Riverside's great talent, but also show that they still have to grow, so it will be 4 stars. On a side note, i would like to say that Out of Myself is also yet another proof o Pink Floyd's great and unrestricted influence among rock and metal bands around the world.

4.5 stars really. As most people on this site already know, Riverside is a kool newer band from Poland. The singing is very emotional in a good way and I can find almost no trace of an accent in the English. The music ranges all over the map from quiet mellow to loud headbanging guitar. In a lot of ways, this band reminds me of Anathema, or maybe Anathema reminds me of Riverside. Anyways, this is definitely one of my favourite albums that have come out in the last few years. Although 'Second Life Syndrome' is slightly better. The first three albums form a trilogy so you will more than likely want them all.

When I first saw the name Riverside I had no idea what the fuzz was all about. I saw the name in a list of the best prog albums ever in in IO pages. I kept on wondering why this 2 albums both could score so high and be abble rank among all this enormously legendary albums of prog history. Now a couple of years later I know why.

I went to my work and decide to order the first 2 albums. And they blew me right of my socks....and think the music is better than Dream Theater or perhaps even Porcupine Tree. Very often that I was playing the albums on my work and over and over people kept on asking me what it was that I was playing. So we had the albums in stock for a long time, and almost sold them every week.

As for myself......I copied them to my MP3 player and I think over and over I returned to them..or I think for a while I didn't play anything else than Riverside.

As for this album...its track after track that grabs you by the throat..right from the amazing opener The Same River the stakes are high and stay high. I think there is really no bad or lesser song on this album....All songs are having their moments and vary from quite heavy till extremely sensitive. I think the different themes and the styles that are displayed here really show that this is a band of exeptional quality...And I think the vocals are the same......then so touching like in Loose Heart and then almost like grunge......that supported by some great bass, guitar and keyboards this is an album that every proglover should have or atleast heard.

Quidam is I think the best prog poland has to offer, but Riverside is a great contender.......I can only dream where this is going to and how long it will take before they will play for greater public.

Thank god I discover this band! They are simply great! This debut album is almost perfect the only imperfection is represented by the last song of the album ("OK") I would expected for a concluding song (even 2.00 minutes long) that in some manner would recall "the same river", but that's my personal opinion. Besides that, there is alot to say about this debut album: first of all it really represents a new sound in the progressive environment, even though someone says that Riverside are inspire from Pink Floyd, well I have to say that the only influences in the Riverside Sound comes only from PF (but in only a few songs in this album) for the rest this new project is completely innovative, there are no other influences just pure ART! Then the opening song "The Same River" can be (according to my personal opinion) classified among the best 10 progressive songs of all time. It's Epic! Thank GOD that this band was formed!

Riverside have released some excellent albums in their short (so far) career, none better than their latest Anno Domini High Definition. Returning to their 2003 debut, Out Of Myself I'm reminded that it's a decent album showing potential for future greatness but ultimately it's nothing special.

Apart from the occasional moment there's not a lot of the prog metal they get characterised under. Think of a heavier version of the trippy psychedelia of early Porcupine Tree and a touch of Pink Floyd and you'll be nearer the mark. All too often the songs lock into a simplistic and repetitive groove, usually bass driven which after a while become a little monotonous, none more so than opener The Same River just making things a little predictable. The musical tension that they create on future albums is missing here. In Two Minds stands out as it offers something different. Building on an acoustic guitar intro, it's one of the strongest pieces melodically speaking.

Don't get me wrong though, Out Of Myself is not a bad album, far from it, just a little uninspiring. Nevertheless there are enough moments here that make you think they might be onto something. Of course time has proved they were. Here's a band finding their feet and learning their trade. 2 ½ stars.

This was my second encounter with the band that I consider to be one of the true innovators of the modern Progressive Metal scene. After hearing Second Life Syndrome it left me craving for more so Out Of Myself was the logical direction to go, considering this was 2006.

This debut album didn't feel as balanced as their mighty follow-up. Although I could spot the Riverside signature sound on this release it left me feeling somewhat unsatisfied by the overall experience. In fact I will go as far as to say that it's my least favorite Riverside album of their first four studio releases.

My reasoning has to do with a certain trend that I've observed with many starting up metal band. Just like Tool's Undertow and a few other debuts this album shows us the band we all learned to love but without that spark/edge that is so apparent on their later releases. Which is completely understandable since everybody has to start somewhere.

To me this is a fun little experience but I can't go further than calling it a good, but non-essential release.

**** star songs: The Same River (12:01) Out Of Myself (3:43) Reality Dream (6:15) Reality Dream II (4:45) In Two Minds (4:38) The Curtain Falls (7:59)

*** star songs: I Believe (4:14) Loose Heart (4:50) OK (4:46)

Total rating: 3,74

I finally decided to write my first review and for this occasion, surely much consideration would have to be placed in choosing the album. Should I go with my favourite masterpieces from the 70's or one of those lesser known albums with only a handful of reviews?

Eventually I chose Riverside's Out of Myself, simply because it started it all. This is the album that opened my eyes (or should I say ears?) to prog. If not it, I wouldn't even have discovered this site in the first place. Personally, it has a special meaning for me and I see it as a marker of my coming of age. A friend introduced it to me 4 years ago when I was 18 and music was never the same for me after that. Enough with my sentimental ramblings.

A word of warning: since this album means much to me, this would mean that this review is somewhat biased :)

However, I do consider Out of Myself a 5 star album even after factoring out the 'fanboyism' out of the equation. The first time I listened to this album I was just speechless, at that time I've been a metal fan for years but this just blew my mind. If there's such a thing as an 'eargasm', this is it! The experience left me wanting for more and thus, my journey into the world of prog.

The musicianship is top notch, the melodies moving and the atmosphere dark and intense. I still consider the opener, 'The Same River' the definitive Riverside sound signature. From punching riffs to mellow and yet powerful bass lines, it got it all. The rest of the album follows this formula to good effect and the final product is just breathtaking (keeping in mind this is just their debut after all!).

Envelop yourself in darkness, close your eyes, and let your mind drift in this maze of aural perfection.

Until somewhat recently, I was not familiar with Riverside. Sure, I heard the name, and a very good friend of mine is a Riverside fanatic, but I did not really delve too deep into their music. However, when that same friend of mine sent me "Out of Myself," I was hooked, albeit a few in-depth listens later (it seems to be something that grows on you, but grows quickly).

My first reaction upon being hooked: "This is amazing! I wonder how their earlier stuff sounds." You could imagine my surprise when I discovered that "Out of Myself" is, in fact, their debut album. Seldom have I heard such a strong first album. Usually, bands go one of two ways. Either they begin with a relatively weak debut and gradually work their way into a signature sound that they become famous for, or they start out strong but gradually go downhill afterward. From what I hear of Riverside, their tendencies for quality music remain consistent. Not only that, but their music improves (my friend considers Second Life Syndrome their best album). Few prog bands have maintained such a level of musical consistency (Dream Theater being perhaps the most notable of them).

The album begins with the 12-minute opener, "The Same River." It takes the song quite a long time before it really kicks into high gear. In the meantime, you hear some calm, atmospheric keyboards beneath a series of heartfelt guitar licks (which sounds to me like a stylistic balance between Dave Gilmour and John Petrucci). Slowly the song gains momentum, and, although it reaches its intense point, never unexpectedly "explodes" with such intensity. The build-up is so gradual that the heavy part more-or-less sneaks up on the listener. The instrumental intro goes on for about seven minutes. In that time, the talents of all the musicians are showcased sufficiently. From the first verse onward, the song maintains its initial calmness, while introducing the clear, enchanting voice of singer/bassist Mariusz Duda. All in all, this epic track is a great introduction to what Riverside is all about.

Next comes the title track, "Out of Myself." This song maintains the same calm atmosphere while sporting a bit more intensity than the verses of the previous track. Near the end of the song, Duda incorporates shouting vocals into the song, which are rough and on the border of growling. Another great track with great musicianship all-around.

Next comes the album's first ballad, "I Believe." After a narration, the song begins on a swelling keyboard chord with some beautiful guitar work (both acoustic and electric, which both define the song's celestial vibe). Mariusz's soft, emotional vocals round off this amazing song.

After "Reality Dream," the album's first instrumental (and perhaps the most intense song on the album, complete with an AMAZING bass line from Mr. Duda) comes "Loose Heart." While it is edgier than "I Believe," this song still comes close to achieving the same otherworldly atmosphere as said track. This song ends with an unexpectedly intense conclusion, complete with distorted guitars and Duda's rough shouting vocals.

Next is the second of the two instrumentals, "Reality Dream II." This track showcases the same instrumental quality as its predecessor, and truly defines Riverside's progressive style in a nutshell. After that comes "In Two Minds," another soft song with amazing acoustic guitar work (one of my personal favorites on the album).

The second-to-last song and (in my opinion) the last GREAT song of "Out of Myself" is "The Curtain Falls." Beginning with Riverside's signature atmosphere, the song kicks off with a wicked bass groove and remains calm until the last verse. After that, the song builds to intensity (in case you haven't noticed, Riverside has a knack for building up to their heavy moments). This particular part of the song is accompanied by some excellent guitar playing. All in all, a great finish to a great song.

The final track is called "OK." Honestly, I would've preferred "The Curtain Falls" to be the closing track on the album instead. "OK" is just as it is titled...OK. But, it does not compel me in the ways that the rest of the album does. Although it is not a bad track, I wish the album could have ended on a stronger note...a bit of a disappointment, there.

In conclusion, "Out of Myself" is one of the most well done and mind-blowing albums I have discovered this year. Their unique progressive rock style defies classification. If you do not believe me, listen to "Out of Myself" and try to name a band whose style is anywhere near comparable to Riverside. It's not easy...not easy at all. Expertly combining heavy riffs with smooth, beautiful atmospheric elements, Riverside has set the bar in debut prog albums with "Out of Myself."

It's really hard not to like Riverside. They have musicianship, passion, melody, great tunes and they use all those features to play a respectful tribute to all other great bands out there: Pink Floyd, Porcupine Tree, Marillion, Anathema and many more. And on top of that, they're such sympathetic dudes.

There's one issue I have though. With their first three albums in particular, it's a symptom called 'playing it safe'. Now, I wouldn't go as far as to call them formulaic, but there's no denying that Riverside has applied a recipe that could not fail. And sure it did not fail, this album is one of your safest prog purchases for the year 2003 and they have become quite successful because of it. Suits me fine.

So where it concerns the music, it's perfect, too perfect. There's not one wrong note here. The musicians are skilful and the singer must have the most warm and charming and inoffensive voice in the entire history of progressive rock. But it may not surprise you that I prefer the songs that deviate most from the norm: the Middle-Eastern opening section, the harder edged Out of Myself, the smoky bar ambience of OK and the slightly more adventurous Reality Dream I. Also the Anathema homage Loose Heart is adorable. I had expected to throw 4 stars at this but no, it's not enough.

When I listen to music, I prefer the occasional odd flavour or one or other sharp spice that makes me look up in surprise. Something that stirs my interest, something unexpected, exciting or challenging, something that will make me revisit the music and have another taste of it till I finally acquire it. It's an affliction I call proggophrenia, a personality disorder that makes a lot of music sound tame and derivative, it may be contracted from too much exposure to prog and especially from too much reviewing so watch out there!

My favourite Riverside album.

Being well acquainted with the bands' first four releases, I felt like one deserved to be bumped up to a 5 star rating. Whilst 'Second Life Syndrome' and 'ADHD' are at least equally as impressive, I chose this album because it was the one that broke onto the stage and enchanted us with that new sound. A 5th star more for creativity and freshness than for flawlessness.

It is clear that the band work together well in constructing memorably aural art with maturity and restraint (which can lack in metal music). The solo guitar work is just orgasmic!

"The same river" is an absolute KILLER of an opening track, just beautiful! Great build up of atmosphere, then the establishment of an underlying rhythmic foundation. When that guitar enters...

"Reality Dream I and II" are almost flawless instrumental tracks.

"...Raise me up don't let me fall raise me up.... Raise me up don't let me fall RAISE ME UP...." I love this beautiful power ballad!

I really enjoy the laid back interludes "In two minds" and "OK". They do fit in.

"I believe" is a slightly weaker track.

Rock on Riverside \m/

4.5 stars

A Minor Masterpiece that's is too keen to show it's influences on the sleeve.

Riverside - Out Of Myself (2003)

Overall Rating: 13 (That's a weak, almost a 12, really)

Best Song: THE SAME RIVER, or REALITY DREAM II

Let me just take some time out of your busy schedule of fapping to your Dream Theater records to show you something really cool! Er, let e also begin by mentioning a few names: Pink Floyd, King Crimson, Pain of Salvation, Brian Eno. If you like one or more of these particular artists, I implore you to go out on a limb and get yourself acquainted with Riverside's debut. It's real good! Why is it real good? Well, it takes all the good chunks of these groups and globs them together like a musical potluck gumbo surprise.

What's next? A Shine On guitar solo full of echo and space reverb? An alternative rock song with a big slab of prog metal jamming right in the middle? An instance of sheer beauty? A Dream Theater inspired jam that I don't care for too much (only once or so). Now here's a collection of individuals who don't have stupid debilitating ear disorders luring them into the trap of delivering a record with, I dunno, melodies! Yeah, this album's rife with rich melodic passages, the bastard greedy sellouts! You can't be a Rush tribute band if you put those on thar! Run!

Boy howdy, The Same River is an eye stabbing opener, full of all the stuff good openers are chock to the full brimm full of, like interesting musical fullness. It hops around from being this instrumental space jam mirroring the Floydsters directly from Wish You Were Here or Animals, then it morphs into this soft indie pop tune with downer vibes and a real Eno inspired fluidity, until it all comes together at the end. It's a weiner! I mean, it's a winner!

Yar, the concept is something about ental torture and lucid dreaming or maybe astral projection or using dreams to escape harsh reality, or maybe finally realizing you've been deluding yourself ll these years, living a false life, or something. I can't really be bothered to pay too much attention to the lyrics, I'm too busy paying attention to the music, which is GOOD with a capital R which actually doesn't stand for good. Instead, I decide it stands for Rip-off. Hey, that's the only easily noticeable flaw with this entire disc. Which, by the way, is a decent 53 minutes. If you'll give me a moment to rant...

And rant I shall!

I cannot stand the compact disc culture we're in, where each disc allows for almost 80 minutes of music. This actually gives contemporary bands the impetus to fill them up. More music for yer moolah, I guess? Anyway, it has caused a vile resurgence of the sickening devil known as 'yo momma'. Wait, I mean filler. Yes, you have every Tom, Dick, and Winthrop giving us 70+ minutes of music with each release, and maybe ten minutes will be worth your time. I'm not saying Out Of Myself is a masterwork of subtlety and concision, but it definitely don't do much to go overboard. Really, it's a devoted, admirably performed tribute to some of my favorite bands. These Polish sausages would go on to further define their own melded sound in subsequent releases, but that doesn't keep this from being a real good 'un. I just wish more bands would cut back their flabby excesses and actually release something with definitive substance. Sigh, I'm asking for too much again, aren't I?

The other album highlight is the sickeningly tasteful jam Reality Dream II, that has all the sound effects and pizazz that screams 'class act'. It also screams 'David Gilmour', with the shrill guitar drilling that I love so much. You might not love it, but let's face reality, folks, and this album is firmly steeped in the concepts of reality and dreams. My opinion is more important than yours. Go away! Don't forget your copy of Out Of Myself, though. I gotta say how emotionally resonant the bass lines are in this album. Rarely ever are bass guitars used to such a moody effect.

In the end, this is just really, really great music. It's not world shattering, and no, not all of it is as memorable as even the band themselves would become just a couple years down the road, but rarely does a band come in, fully armed with their arsenal like Riverside does. Golly, this is good, dark stuff.

****1/2

The most impressive about this album is that it is a debut. The character of Riverside, now well known and distinctive by prog fans, is obvious and solid from the first to the last second of this album. Probably the most famous prog band from Poland today, Riverside managed to play prog metal with character, assimilating their influences (mostly Porcupine Tree and Dream Theater) and presenting a very emotional work similarly followed by "Second Life Syndrome" two years later. The intro of instrumental "Reality Dream II" one of the most inspired and intense I have ever listened to. The guitar solos in the epic "The Same River" are amazing, "I Believe" is a great ballad (Steven Wilson is present here), and "OK" is the best melancholic closing. Favourite tracks: "I Believe", "Reality Dream II","OK".

"What a great debut" said hundreds of people around the world in 2003, when the first Riverside' record came out. Well, I cannot agree with them. I really tried to like it, believe me. For me Riverside' opus magnum is "Second Life Syndrome" and that's that. I don't claim that "Out of Myself" is a bad album though. It's fairly good one, but it lacks...

...good composition. I know that "The Same River" has nice melodies, good harmonies and great atmosphere. But it is composed in a way which I would describe as "immature". Sometimes themes change unexpectedly and I don't know what's going on. I would even venture that some parts are a little bit boring. Some of them are very good, that's right, but the whole album seems to be a little bit chaotic.

Another thing is the mood of the record. It's highly subjective opinion, but it is somehow banal at times, at least in comparison with Second Life Syndrome. The ballads aren't as enchanting as they should be and sometimes I'm a bit bored with them. I know that this album is the most Marillion influenced Riverside' release, so maybe that's why my impression is rather negative. Nonetheless, the heavier parts of the record are good and they elevate the rating. Especially first Reality Dream deserves attention, since it is fantastic prelude of Riverside' potential, fully manifested in Second Life Syndrome.

Generally speaking "Out of Myself" is the weakest Riverside' album but it still deserves some attention. 3 stars.

If I has written this review some years ago, my appreciation had been close to 5 stars... But time passes and now I have the chance to compare this promising first Riverside album with their later discography.

Perhaps this one is a very succesfull effort in order to built a powerfull list of songs, it's a little weal than other Riverside albums. Even when I really love and enjoy songs of high quality such as "The Same River", "Reality Dream II" or "The Curtain Falls", there's some lack of originality between notes. Here, Riverside sounds for several minutes like a bunch of other pretencious prog metal bands who built their music on technical skills over the epic moments reached by the whole band.

But in between the personal appreciation of this reluctant prog metal fan, I found concret signals of a band in search of their own style and later albums are proof of this search. But the signals in "Out of Myself" are very clear in this way. Enough to listen tracks like the mysterious, soaring and for moments pretty heavy "The Same River", the powerfull instrumental "Reality Dream II" or the heartbreaking ballad "Loose Heart" to feel that Riverside attempts to raise an unique kind of music.

The mix between some floydian passages (such as in "The Curtain Falls") with some power metal irruptions (such as in "Out of Myself") becomes in a trade mark in the late discography of Riverside, beside the awsome vocals by Mariusz Duda, nowadays, one of the most talented frontman in the prog music scene.

At last, a very respectable first effort, but looking backward, far away of Riverside masterpices such as "Second Life Syndrome" or "Shrine of a New Generation Slaves". 3.5* to me...

Listening to this debut album I'm a bit concerned about the subgenre in which the band is included, unless Pink Floyd can be defined progressive metal as well. Of course there are heavy guitars and some screams so they can fit in some ways in that genre, but listen to the first track:

The radio which introduces this long song can remind to similar entrances: Wish You Were Here, One Of My Turns, Is There Anybody Out There, and also Gilmour's Castellorizon and Waters' The Ballad Of Bill Hubbard. It's totally floydian but when the drums enter the song we are between Porcupine Tree and Ozric Tentacles, so it's like saying "it's totally floydian". An excellent instrumental (the first half) as first track of a debut album is very promising. After about 5 minutes the signature changes. The bass seems played by Richard Sinclair while the guitar plays a very good melody. Just three words: I like it. The second half of "The Same River" has lyrics. It can considered as a separate song as it's totally different from the instrumental part. However it's as good as that. A five stars song for me.

The bass which introduces "Out Of Myself" remains on the same chords. It's a sort of follow- up to the previous song, but it's darker. The signature on this song is enough to justify the presence of this band on PA. Porcupine Tree fans, if you're not disturbed by screaming (just here and there, it's mainly clean vocals) this is for you.

Some gimmicks, crowd voices, a keyboard backbone and a whispering voice. When the 12- strings guitar overcomes I think first to Mostly Autumn then to Porcupine Tree. A melodic acoustic song in PT style, "I believe".

A clock....background noises like a nightmare just before waking-up. It doesn't explode into ringings like Pink Floyd's Time. It's heavy rock instead. Again an odd signature carried on by the bass on which the guitar plays few long notes in a jazzy riff. It's "Reality Dream". There's a bit of neo-prog inside, too. A very good track. "Loose Heart" may be Marillion, also the guitar cries like Steve Rothery's. The sounds are just a little heavier but this is a melodic song with a background keyboard's violins, harping guitar and a melancholic feeling. Riverside probably realised that the song was too commercial so the last minute turns into metal-screamo.

"Reality Dream II" opens in reality. There's initially a no-line tone then the guitar starts screaming. Between Pink Floyd and Dream Theater. With some passages which remind to Vangelis "Blade runner End Titles" of course a hard rock version.

The 12-strings guitar and the whispered voice who open "In Two Minds" have a strong Porcupine Tree flavor, but when the whisper becomes a clean voice the changes to falsetto and back remind more to Steve Hogarth. A very nice song anyway.

Harmonics start "The Curtain Falls". The sound of the guitar (looks like an ovation) is very particular. The song is initially again between PT and Marillion, but I hear a bit of Genesis in the guitar riffs, too. After 3 minutes the bass introduces a different section of the song that I suppose was intended as a short suite instead of a long song. Apart some backing vocals it's an excellent instrumental. It grows heavy then apparently calms down, but the bass maintains the same rhythm. I think it should be fantastic performed live.

The closer, "OK", is slow and atmpspheric. Vocals in Porcupine Tree style on Floydian chords. It's another excellent song with a nice acoustic guitar part and some jazzy flavor. Its only defect is that it could have been exploited more. There was room for making it a suite.

After some seconds of silence there's a sort of ghost track, just 3 seconds of a choir. I can't stand with this kind of things. I don't like ghost tracks or ghost anything. They don't add a bit to an album and make just the total time increase on the album cover.

Apart of that, that's unfortunately quite common since the CD era, this is an excellent and surprising debut. Basing on this album only I don't see why they are considered Progressive Metal instead of heavy-prog, but they are on PA and this is enough, so I don't care too much of it, only don't expect to hear anything very heavy.

Good listen to everybody

Riverside's extremely capable debut album sees the exploring a fairly spacey style of progressive metal which puts me in mind of Porcupine Tree's In Absentia, but there are a few more flashy, show-offy flourishes here and there which are a bit more reminiscent of the sort of thing Dream Theater might toss in - though much more tastefully done than Dream Theater usually manage. Although its Floydian soundscapes do drag at points - the album rather peters out during the closing track OK - on the whole it's a decent debut which marks the band out for greater things in the future. One for fans of the spacier, Pink Floyd-touched end of prog metal.

Riverside's "Out of Myself" is the debut for one of the most dynamic prog metal band over recent years. This album is heavier with more distorted metal riffs than the material they would settle into on their fourth and fifth masterpieces. Piotr Grudzinski indulges in a lot of intricate riffing and some thrashy blasts of guitar, Mariusz Duda is more aggressive on vocals on the debut, even screaming on songs like 'Loose Heart', but still maintains an overall clear melancholy texture. He is also a great bass and guitar player. The rhythms of Piotr Kozieradzki on drums is always a solid foundation for the layered musicianship, and Jacek Melnicki's keyboards generate an ambient quality, though he would be replaced later by Michael Lapaj.

The album starts with a Pink Floyd resonance on 'The Same River', a 12 minute musicscape that meanders along patiently and builds into some heavier passages. 'Out Of Myself' soon blazes with some upbeat cadence and then is followed with the contemplative vocals of Duda on 'I Believe'.

The stand out of the album is 'Reality Dream', a powerhouse song that would be played live many times over the years as a regular favourite. The band are able to display their virtuoso skill with the interplay of guitar and keys over shifting time signatures. 'Loose Heart' has an energetic riff and some fractured structures embellished by guitar and keyboard crescendos.

'Reality II' is a fast tricky instrumental with Grudzinski's excellent lead guitar work outs and some sledgehammer syncopated percussion. 'In Two Minds' is a Riverside ballad, something that they would include on every album, a reflective atmosphere with ethereal keyboards and soaring guitars. 'The Curtain Falls' is an 8 minute haunting song with a soft chime, acoustic picking and ambient keyboard textures. It locks into a Pink Floyd 'Run Like Hell' riff that shows where the band have been inspired and that is not a bad thing. The lead break by Grudzinski is wonderful, with sustain and emotional string bends. 'OK' ends this on a rather gentle song with melancholy passages of beauty.

Overall this is a great debut, which is really a beginning for the band who were daring and adventurous but became even moreso on subsequent albums. It is a worthwhile listen with some of their best compositions and a darker feel with some aggression and powerful metal riffs.

8/10

I do not think it is very normal in the world of music albums premieres are so good and so well-produced. In some cases we have progressive rock, as In the Court of King Crimson, Storia di un Minute and others, and it would be unfair to say that Riverside is not in that pantheon as well.

While this is a record superior to its successor, (the lightly overestimated Second Life Syndrome), is not up to their last two albums, taken for me as masterpieces and that part of my collection of favorites (maybe I will have the idea that his trilogy "Reality Dream" is not as good as they say, but this is an idea that I have yet to mature). Nevertheless, I can see the quality of this band. For a debut, they are fully mature, skilled at what they do, and still have the benefit of a great production that highlights all the instruments. If the best benefit is low, and so I can see that Mariusz Duda is a brilliant bassist, one of today's best in my opinion, just as Justin Chancellor (the best) and John Myung.

Duda is also a great vocalist. Imagine if Mikael Akerfeldt decided to only use clean vocals and you have a good idea of the voice of this guy (he occasionally offers some screams and growls, but it is too little to bother me), but this comparison does not limit the vocal quality of it, I I think it deserves to be better known. If pleasant tone of voice, gentle combines with atmospheric and melodic cliam proposed by banda here and on their albums. Influences óbivas here are Dream Theater, Porcupine Tree, Pink Floyd, but the band emerges to make their own musicality.

The first song is The Same River, and hear it gave me an impression highly elevated from the rest of the album. This is one of the best songs of introduction to an album I've ever heard in my life (and still on a debut album!). An epic 12 minutes, with a Floyd-esque vibe. Opening with the sound of a radio being tuned and voices, epdaços music (can there be anything more Floyd-esque?), Before the atmospheric keyboards of Jacek Melnicki enter, followed by Gilmour-esque guitar Piotr Grudzinski and low poignant Duda. About two minutes, Piotr Kozieradzki begins to rumble on drums and the music starts to grow slowly. It's a slow process, but brilliant. I love to break 4:15, with the guitar and mastering new time signatures coming into play. The vocals come at 6 minutes, and I love the effects used by Grudzinski, are so cool. The last part of the song is very melancholic and beautiful, with a powerful guitar solo. Hear that sound atmospheric / melodic in his Riverside debut reminds me of neo-prog bands, especially Pendragon and Arena.

Unfortunately the rest of the album does not equate to this wonderful song. I mean, there extamente bad songs here, just good or medians. I would quote I Dream Reality, In Two Minds and Ok as other highlights, although the other five songs each have their value. It is precisely because of this that I give this album four stars.

Still, it is a powerful debut. Even with a bumpy beginning, Riverside has improved more and more over these ten years of career and established himself as one of the strongest names in metal and progressive rock of recent times.

Now a real powerhouse of modern prog, Riverside debuted in 2003 and instantly turned heads with "Out of Myself". There's a maturity of sound and surety of songwriting that is normally the domain of bands with more experience, bands who have made early mistakes and learned from them as their skills developed. Not Riverside. They arrived with a stunning album where everything works.

The album begins with "The Same River", which, in the early stages at least, is a largely instrumental track that features a nice layering of instruments. With this, we are eased gently into the album via dream-like guitar and a brooding bass accompaniment. This builds for a number of minutes as the guitar becomes more frenetic and as percussion kicks in.

The song gradually moves to a more subdued mood and we hear the first substantial vocal input from Mariusz Duda. Finally, the song ebbs away with a beautiful mournful guitar and vocal duet that builds into one last crescendo.

"I Believe" begins with the sounds of a cocktail party that gradually drifts away as Duda delivers a couple of lines of spoken word. What follows is a beautiful and sorrowful acoustic track that is one of the best on the album.

"Reality Dream" is the first of two instrumentals that have a real Dream Theater-esque quality about them. Sandwiched in between is "Loose Heart", a song that performed quite well for the band as a single and justifiably so. It's a gorgeous track with some amazing melodic lead guitar from Piotr Grudzinski.

The album closes with some mellow tracks, with "In Two Minds" and "The Curtain Falls" particularly noteworthy. Riverside display their versatility here in creating moods we haven't yet experienced on the album.

In fact, it's safe to say that no two tracks are alike across the duration of this release. There's a great sense of diversity while still retaining a consistent sound and style. As noted earlier, it's a trait that many bands take years to perfect, but which Riverside managed to pull off on their first foray.

(10/10)

This really is one of my all-time favourites. In fact, according to my computer it's my most played album, and I can't foresee ever getting tired of it. In 2003, Riverside released the first part of an ambitious trilogy of albums, the 'Reality Dream Trilogy', drawing inspiration from classic bands like Marillion and Pink Floyd, as well as more modern ones like Tool, Porcupine Tree, and Anathema. Hailing from the now hotbed of modern progressive music that is Poland, Riverside crafted a sound that expertly combined all these influences (and more), along with many innovations of their own. In time, I believe that Riverside will take an important place in the history of progressive music, and deservedly so.

Even though the band evolves with every passing release, most of Riverside's strengths are already on full display in "Out Of Myself". Though vocalist/bassist Mariusz Duda is the mastermind, every member contributes something important to the whole package. We have, for example, the complex and hypnotising rhythms courtesy of Piotr Kozieradzki's drumming and Mariusz Duda's Bass, along with the spacey and atmospheric keyboards.

Mariusz Duda's singing is especially important; passionate, melodic, and most of all heartfelt. Lyrically a few phrases here or there may sound a bit odd, but seeing as this is a Polish band with English lyrics it's easy to forgive, and if anything there's a certain charm to it. The words and emotions are certainly delivered with genuine feeling. I even think that not being English could be quite freeing lyrically, as you have fewer preconceptions about what is and is not allowed, so you could be completely honest and unrestrained, and give a different turn of phrase than a native speaker that may give a fresh angle on an idea. At times Duda can be soft, at others powerful, even incredibly harsh in a few places, but it always fits the purpose of the music. For example, in "Loose Heart", the recurring line of "Raise me up, don't let me fall" starts as gliding and delicately melodious, which goes great with the calmer tone and warm guitar soloing. But as the song grows in intensity and the guitar gets heavier this transforms into desperate and heart-wrenching screams of "Raise me up//Raise me up don't let me fall" that make the hairs stand up on the back of my neck. Truly, Mariusz Duda would be good enough to be an asset to any band as either a singer or a bassist, and it's really impressive to see him pull of both at once (especially live, I should add).

Of course, one of the best things about this album is Piotr Grudzinski's omnipresent slicing guitar work. I'm astonished at how mature all of the band sound, given that this is their debut album, but especially Piotr Grudzinski. His guitar is glorious, and the album is drenched in its emotional tones just as much as Mariusz Duda's voice. For me, Grudzinski is right up there with Gilmour and Rothery, and I do not throw those names around lightly. He can lock into the more metallic riffing as well, or blend into the atmospheric soundscapes if required, so he's an excellent team player as well as a stand-out talent in his own right.

I had a track by track review written up, but in the end decided not to talk about individual tracks here because, to be honest, this album flows like one continuous immersive experience, and really needs to be treated as such. The dark but somehow ultimately uplifting presentation of the subject matter is married so well to the music, and draws you in from start to finish. After the first thirty or so listens I probably couldn't have told you the all song names (though I'd all but memorised the actual music)!

Riverside's influence was already being felt just a few years after the release of "Out Of Myself". It has steadily grown in the years following and I am sure will only continue to grow as their legacy unfolds. "Out Of Myself" is where it all started, and in some ways I even prefer it to their (rightly) universally acclaimed sophomore masterpiece "Second Life Syndrome". I cannot recommend this album enough, seek it out immediately.

A daunting album to review due to the high regard that members here have for the band and the album.

"The Same River" - In the music I hear the Mike Oldfield of "Tubular Bells" sound very clearly, done with a harder edge. This is very good. Spacey, moody and well performed. Excellent start to the album.

"Out of Myself" - Upbeat, spacey and hard edged. Some vocals of the harsher variety but they fit the mood of the track which is angry.

"I Believe" - Voices at a party or function followed by Duda saying that he is out of himself and only has tonight. Soft guitar and lyrics follow. The party chatter continues punctuating the music. I would guess that this is a guy at a party who feels kind of alone and apart from the crowd.

"Reality Dream" - Starts off spacey and quickly develops a hard edge. The stop start bass is interesting surrounded by the keyboards and lead guitar. A "Mike Oldfield" kind of lead guitar is followed by hard edged riffing and that section is repeated. The sound of an alarm clock ends the track.

"Loose Heart" - Some very emotive lead guitar in this one. Full of angst

"Reality II" - The sound of a phone trying to connect starts this and it is followed by the band and nice lead guitar.

"In Two Minds" - Spacey vocals with acoustic guitar followed by an almost ballad type main body of work. Interesting section close to the end with a spacey rhythm.

"The Curtain Falls" - Mellow start punctuated by sparkling lead guitar work, it hardens at around the halfway mark into a spacey section which remains until close.

"OK" - A smoky blues room opening that stays that way throughout.

Not an easy album to review. It is very good musically however it seems to retain the same mood the entire way through being one of angst and anguish - that kind of weighs heavily from around the quarter of the album right the way through. The instrument that features for me is the lead guitar almost throughout the album and it does start to sound a little samey to me after a while. There is not enough contrast here as far as I'm concerned. If you're feeling suicidal at the time of listening I think the end result will be tragic. The musicians are very good at what they do and that is a strong point of the album. The music is well conceived and written. It's just so damn depressing, without letup.

The music is hypnotic and it could be compared to a heavier version of Porcupine Tree - perhaps a cross between that and Pink Floyd when in spaced out mood. Mariusz Duda has a good voice. The bass guitar is a highlight and the drumming is good enough. Keyboards are strong. The tracks are all strong and well put together.

For doing something different in the prog-metal genre and for doing it very well there are kudos. For maintaining the same anguished mood throughout there are negatives. A 4 star rating from me as I feel that this is an important album although I could never listen to more than perhaps once a month and definitely never when I'm feeling down to start with.

Out of Myself is the debut album from the progressive metal band Riverside, and also represents the birth of one of the most original, complex, and musically interesting groups of the 2000's. The band seems to have found a niche in Progressive Metal, yet their sound transcends even the genre, as is exemplified by their flawless integration of their influences from bands in both progressive rock and metal. The band takes the more atmospheric and ambient sound of Pink Floyd, the complex and upbeat nature of Dream Theater, and the heaviness and darker mood of Opeth to form an unusual, but interesting sound. Out Of Myself, in this instance, seems to carry the most Pink Floyd sound, something which slowly deteriorates across future albums for a heavier sound.

Besides the influences, a few things I noticed about the album are the deep ambient atmosphere on almost every track, in addition to great attention to bass and guitar, the latter of which has plenty of moments to shine throughout the album in the form of soulful solos. These are in part due to the pristine mixing and production of the album.

Song-wise, the album is quite varied. The opening 'The Same River,' is arguably the best. It opens with a deep, atmospheric crescendo that slowly develops into some great instrumental parts with vocals superimposed, and ends in a softer, more soulful nature. A beautifully structured song this is, for sure.

'Reality Dream,' 'Reality Dream II,' and the title track are probably the more metal tracks on the album, the first also showcasing a great melodic touch near the end. While 'I Believe,' 'Loose Heart,' 'In Two Minds,' carry a softer, almost ballad like touch in parts, with acoustic guitar playing a prominent role.

'The Curtain Falls' and 'Ok' are probably the deepest songs in terms of atmosphere. Consequently, the Pink Floyd influence is massively obvious on both, with keyboard playing a more supporting role, in addition to brief interspersed guitar solos not unlike David Gilmour, along with some rhythmic guitar parts similar to 'Run Like Hell' in the former.

Out Of Myself is truly the perfect melting pot of its influences, and has the compositional prowess to make perfect use of this sound. Perhaps original would be the wrong term after all, but this album is too great to pass up based on that alone.

8/10

Let me tell you about the first time i heard this album. I was coming back from a concert of Dream Theater and I was asleep in the car, while my friend was driving the car in he happened to put this album in his car stereo. I remember I started to enjoy in my dreams the music in my head, then I woke up exactly in 'The Curtain Falls' and 'OK' and I say: Gosh, what a beautiful album I'm listening to! Months later I bought the album and I was right, one of the best albums i've heard in my life. With a lot of musical landscapes as a background, good keyboards accompanying the music, the guitars of Grudzinski, wonderful, very similar to Pink floyd but aggressive in other parts, Kozieradzki with very good drumming all around, and of course, the master Duda with a wonderful voice which rises high and full of energy in some parts, such as in my favorite song ever of Riverside, 'Loose Heart'. This album is definitely a must, and they set their own high standard for the future albums, and believe me, they have achieved to maintain the excellent level.

Guess a good song is constructed with the right amount of ambience, a good drum section, audible bass sequences and electric guitars being played with the right amount of dexterity to draw and captivate the audience.

If you don't know Riverside, then this is the right and best place to start. This, the bands' debut, speaks volumes of Progressiveness and just pure Rockiness! The opening "The Same River" has quite a lengthy instrumental intro before you hear the voice of Mariusz Duda. He has a strong and distinct voice which is a key part of Riverside and their compositions.

The 2 part Reality Dream forms an instrumental piece of note and all the other songs on offer here are very listenable and enjoyable. A fine debut in my opinion. Solid 4 Stars.

Riverside is a band that I've known for quite a while now, and listened to first several years ago, starting with this album.

The Same River, the opening track, is certainly the highlight of this album, flaunting its Pink Floyd-influence while still being entirely original. The track is one of my favorite more space-rock moments of recent history. However, I find the rest of the album to fare much less favorably than the first track, which gave me such high expectations. Songs such as Reality Dream and the title track just don't do much at all for me.

As much as I tried to love this album, and even this band, I just couldn't. I recognize their talent, and I do believe that they've earned whatever recognition that they have attained, but it's not quite my kind of music, although The Same River is quite an outstanding track.

Out of Myself is like the practice or warmup for that which is to come in the next two years. One can hear the potential, the evolution of sound, but the quartet--in its sum and parts--need further growth. There are compositional and engineering tricks that they have not yet learned, but which will appear with 2005's Second Live Syndrome--one of the 21st Century's crowning achievements in progressive rock music. Best song (and closest to what is to come): "The Curtain Falls" (14.5/15)

Also good: "The Same River" (22/25); and the acoustic guitar-based, "I Believe" (8.75/10) (can you hear LUNATIC SOUL here?), "Loose Heart" (8.75/10), the dreamy Steven Wilson-like, "OK" (8.75/10), and; "In Two Minds" (8.5/10).

B/four stars.

Incredible debut album and performance. You can count on the fingers on one hands such a devastating debut. After listening to this tens of times I could say that is one of the landmarks of the new wave of progressive rock. Aggressive parts, slow parts, beautifully crafted interludes, inspired guitar and keyboards solos all over the place. The album from the right beginning creates a dreamy atmosphere. The radio tuning from the first song makes me think of somebody waking up in the morning and continue to have lucid dreaming through music. I will not go through a song by song review because I would like to think about this as a whole and there isn't any weak part.

If we are going to talk about influences one can feel a large spectrum of styles and bands but don't think about any kind of bad copy or something. They managed to take all the good from various areas of progressive music and add an important amount of originality. I could say that Riverside managed to have their own distinguishable sound from the very start. And that's something not easy to accomplish.

When I'm writing this review this album has 10 years already. I believe they managed to pass the test of time also and their next release is at least at the same level if not even greater. I'm glad I've discovered this band and to enjoy their accomplishments in the last years. Highly recommended.

3.5/5

Out of Myself is the album that introduced Riverside to the world...and for a first album, this is as grand an entrance as can be imagined. Imbued with an astonishing sophistication of sound and vision, it is confident and forward-looking; call it what you will---prog rock, prog metal---this album married the various band-member influences (and inevitable comparisons to Certain Other Bands) into one glorious progressive bundle. Influences aside, Riverside marched into progressive consciousness as an entity unto themselves, and have managed to maintain their unique sound throughout their subsequent stylistic incarnations.

As it turns out, an early version of their music, raw and unrefined, exists on a 7-track "demo". A couple of the tracks from this made it onto Out of Myself more or less intact (just cleaned up), but others are very differently conceived (such as "The Curtain Falls"), one has completely disappeared into oblivion (never rerecorded as anything that I have found), and one reappeared much later as a track on the "Conceiving You" single. This bit of history provides a fascinating glimpse of the wobbly first steps of what would eventually become one of the most polished and professional musical outfits around.

Out of Myself pulls no punches: it kicks off with "The Same River", a 12-minute prog opus, and from there manages to encompass an impressive range of styles: delicate acoustic ballads, pure face-stomping instrumental metal, screams and growls, the willingness to wander off in different musical directions and back again. We discover Mariusz Duda's intimate, introspective lyric style, and his lovely distinctive voice. And behind it all what would become Riverside's hallmark sound: Piotr Grudziński's great winding guitar themes and melodies and Duda's intricate bass playing, anchored by solid drumming and the vast soundscape wash of the keyboards. It would take another album and a new keyboard player for all these elements to coalesce, but this first album is remarkable for how thoroughly it introduces us to the essence of Riverside.

And yet, for all its unquestioned quality, this is not an album I want to listen to very often. It does not draw me in. It is unquestionably a grand debut, and it clearly indicates the future trajectory for the band, but I think the album shows more potential than it does achievement--it is clear that there is much more to come. The sound is still somewhat raw and lacks nuance, and while the songs are ambitious and confident, none of them are truly great, with one exception.

"The Curtain Falls" is the first of Riverside's truly inspired signature tracks, a song that exemplifies the band at their transportive best. Lush, complex, magnificently melodic, this is a song that can hold its own against anything the band has come up with since. However, Out of Myself is unusual in that in has only one truly exceptional track (although I'm willing to argue that "In Two Minds" flirts with greatness). At the end of the day, I have two issues with the album: First, "The Same River" and "The Curtain Falls" bracket a series of tracks that foreshadow the future greatness of the band, but there is a certain lack of polish, and while the songs are strong, they are not compelling.

Secondly: you may have noticed I mention "The Curtain Falls" as if it is the last track on the album, and for all intents and purposes, it is--when that song ends the album really does feel complete. It is an eye-blinking WtF?? moment to realize that there is in fact one more song.

"OK" is not a track that sees much light of day on best-of-Riverside lists or as a youtube video in Facebook groups; if it there is a live version I have never heard of it. That song is like the band's crazy relative, kept hidden in the attic bedroom but best not discussed in public. It is very much an oddball in the Riverside canon, a slow jazz/blues fusion experiment complete with trombone...and it feels like a complete afterthought. Why on earth is it even there?

I have an idea about that. Along with Mariusz Duda's songwriting chops, Out of Myself introduced us to a certain expansiveness of his musical vision. This was the first album in what became the Reality Dream Trilogy, a triumvirate linked by a broad thematic lyrical arc. This habit of mind is patently obvious now, what with a sixth Riverside album on the way completing a second trilogy, and the three linked lyric albums of the solo project Lunatic Soul. Duda doesn't envisage material a mere album at a time, but in great conceptual swathes.

At any rate, the number three, and its multiples clearly had some importance: Out of Myself and the other two albums in the Trilogy---Second Life Syndrome, and Rapid Eye Movement--have three word titles. What's more, they all have nine tracks each. And it seems that despite what the actual structure of the album demanded, the anomalous "ok" was shoehorned into Out of Myself to make up the number.

Well, that's my hypothesis. It may also be as simple as they just thought it was good idea to tack it on. (As an aside: the word-count of the titles of the next three albums follows a different pattern, but a pattern nonetheless).

Out of Myself is an exceptional debut album, demonstrating great assurance and remarkably few growing pains. I don't find it their best album by any means, it does not draw me to listen to it the way other Riverside albums do. I do know that it is a beloved part of the band's discography, and I can appreciate that even if I don't find it so myself.

Riverside really isn't all of that special. They're more or less a standard prog rock band that isn't doing anything very new for the genre, let alone are they progressive in the true sense of the word. Let's face it, they basically sound like Porcupine Tree, which raises the question of why they're even considered a metal band. I would agree with one of the previous reviewers in saying that about 20% of Out of Myself is actually metal.

In spite of this lack of metal-ness, or even all of that much advancement of progressive music, Riverside manages to craft a spectacularly beautiful debut, an album that despite following the general prog rock formula, has a few quirks and factors that set it apart and then set it above the heap of similar releases.

It's difficult to pinpoint exactly what elevates Out of Myself so, but it has a unique atmosphere, brought about by the flowing background soundscapes of the keyboards and aided by the reverb-drenched production. This isn't the type of atmosphere present in, say, Agalloch or classic Darkthrone, that'll make you want to go out to the forest, but it creates an entire second set of music, an ambient song that flows behind the main music. It makes Riverside's sound so much fuller, deeper, and transcendental, a definite point of differentiation and superiority.

The guitar leads are magical, gorgeous and also steeped in reverb. These are played clean and like most of the album, not in a metal style. Throughout Out of Myself, the solos are moments where the guitar seems to break loose into the forefront, not just as an obligatory solo section from another prog band but as something that in fact adds to the music. All of the leads are great without being overused, and a few specific instances come to mind ? the riff at four minutes into Reality Dream Part 1 is the prettiest moment of the album and maybe of any song I've heard. The beginning of The Curtain Falls, where the careful soloing of the guitar coupled with the dreamy ambience of the keyboards produces a strong image of a peaceful pool or stream dappled by sunlight. RIP Piotr Grudzinski.

Riverside doesn't stick to only one type of song, either, providing for a good amount of diversity that still does not deviate from their established sound. The Same River is the true highlight of the album, the opening epic that reaches twelve minutes. It gives a good sense of what Out of Myself is all about, and it builds and flows, well, like a river. Mariusz's vocals come in a long way into the track. He can get shriek and angry when he wants to or when the song demands it, but here he sings simple and beautiful lines. I Believe and In Two Minds are the two acoustic ballads of the album, exemplifying the same tender singing and lyricism, but the other ballad that ends the album, OK, takes a darker and jazzier turn. The Reality Dream sequence is more or less what one would expect of prog instrumentals, and the shorter rock songs also hold up, the title track catchy, Loose Heart sweeping and vast, and both desperate.

Out of Myself is a great prog rock album. Although it emulates the sound of many past greats and isn't really original or truly innovative, they make the formula their own and damn near perfect it. Keeping with a variety of song types and the elements of atmosphere, and some truly gorgeous guitar work, Riverside makes their music beautiful.

When I heard of Riverside initially, they were described as the next big prog metal band to me, so my mind instantly connected them to 'Dream Theater' before I had even heard any of them. What I got instead was something far more interesting, a more emotional, atmospheric, and especially dark sounding band. While I normally associate prog metal with extended solos and jams, Riverside provides a much more concise approach to songwriting, where even the 12 minute track 'The Same River' never feels like it goes off track at all, instead carefully progressing riffs and building up the song, slowly adding more layers to it, creating a truly beautiful song. I like the mixture of light ballads and heavier metal focused tracks, as the general sound, heavily influenced by 'Porcupine Tree' and 'Anathema' makes the ballads truly beautiful, and the heavy moments have a lot of weight behind them.

Despite my enjoyment of how they sound, I do find this album, despite being one of my choices for favourite album by them, to be quite flawed in certain ways. While I believe that the sound present here is very unified and cohesive, I find this to end up being a drawback when many of the ballads end up sounding very similar in the process, along with being unmemorable. Despite how much I enjoy listening through the album, I do find myself not being able to remember elements of most songs, with some that I do remember being fairly mediocre, such as the unimpressive chorus of 'Out of Myself'.

Even though there are a couple of issues like this, the album has enough highlights on it to warrant a fairly high score, along with the fact that other than the title track, which I find lackluster other than the great bassline, there is no major weak point on this album. Songs like 'OK' and 'In Two Minds' are highly emotional, and the 'Reality Dream' songs are both filled with great instrumental work. I was highly surprised by Riverside when I first listened to them, and while they aren't anything truly amazing to me, they definitely are a good band that provides something a bit different in the prog metal scene that I highly recommend, especially to those who enjoy that genre.

Best Songs: The Same River (seriously, even if you check out nothing else by them, I highly recommend this one), Curtain Falls, OK

Weakest Songs: Loose Heart, Out of Myself

Verdict: A great debut album that focuses more on atmosphere and emotion rather than technicality, the compositions are in general very good, and there isn't anything particularly difficult here, recommended for basically anyone interested prog.

RIVERSIDE or the revival of the prog of the new millennium.

1. 'The Same River' radio, EAGLES, a bit of pop with ah it goes fast, the bass, yes it's Mariusz, ah that intro that I no longer imagined, that solo by Piotr, that wave noise against the rowboat, PINK FLOYD in the distance what; it's going up and it gives a taste of the prog revival of the new millennium; just perfect; Mariusz arrives very late on this phenomenon title, his voice sticks to the sound; a sound that looks like RIVERSIDE, reminiscences yes but it's them, the PINK FLOYD, MARILLION or COLLAGE for the atmosphere otherwise it's dreamlike a bit of vocoder à la 'Animals' and this vintage keyboard of Jacek yes the first keyboardist who melts; the most is Piotr's spleen guitar, hi Piotr you remember at the bastille scene when I greeted you in the room and you turned around he's talking to me in Polish him, short RIP; fundamental title for curmudgeons who are weary 2. 'Out of Myself' eponymous title which keeps the sound, the atmosphere; dark prog metal before its time with this metronomic bass and this abortive metal riff which only asks to roar a little more; ah Marius has understood, his voice rises, surfs on the metal profile, on the verge of belching, a moment of sharing the musical waters where metal shows its adherence to the progressive movement, phew! 3. 'I Believe' I can't believe it, we are transposed into the open bar, after the concert; the intro, the spatial moment when you no longer know where you are; depressive primary acoustic-vocal to keep a good mood in itself; the crescendic ballad that rocks you; I find there the melancholy madness of the ANATHEMA, the ballad of the happy days of the fans sad forever to see where the world is going 4. 'Reality Dream' with this title in declination, yes you are thinking of ARENA and its I, II, III; you think of SAGA and its chapters, in short, prog there in front of you; the intro I come back to the intro straight out of a S-F game soundtrack; the instrumental piece with the anthology of instruments that speak to each other, Mariusz remaining in voiceover halfway through, more on a siren sound; souvenir piece of my first listening, wow they do an orchestral in addition, the catchy melody of the guitar, the keyboard which helps it behind, the riff which is loose, the foot; quickly answer it sounds. 5. 'Loose Heart' follows on another beautiful depressive melody, where the musical oxymoron invites itself to the table; the more this vibration of Piotr which hooks the most reluctant and brings them before their contradictions... ah it was better before.... ah but we don't ask you to choose, to compare, just to listen.... the melody that I will call syrupy to rinse the ears a little where Jacek signed the melancholic bases; prog digression on the last minute with the nascent, striking, almost surreal, enjoyable growl. 6. 'Reality II' ... and the second interlude, a declination, an aside, a dreamlike journey of catching up for the nostalgic who would have the laziness to get up ... hop on we go back to the instrument to move a little because yes that's it RIVERSIDE it's captivating and catchy, Piotr that you play so easily; it cascades, echoes... prog, stereo, dreamlike. 7.'In Two Minds' second acoustic-voice with the piece church, I'm kidding but good YES made it vibrate well on flights worthy of a cathedral; ANATHEMA and TANGERINE DREAM played well in it and it was not a sacrilege, not an abuse of power, not a publicity effect to make the buzz... I won't say more about it; well the zik is the least addictive for me, yes I concede it but those who like what is melodic, ethereal are likely to like this passage. 8. 'The Curtain Falls' for the second title master; the soft title, one that blends in with the crowd, with a solo by Piotr that tears you off anyway; yes but since it's stamped prog pure juice, you are entitled to the declination at mid-term, like a wave that gets stronger after the slack; it rises, it increases, we wait to see the musical tidal bore, we seethe; ah that's the riff.. you see the wave rising, growing, sweeping everything in its path; the vibratory spleen of Piotr's guitar notes dries up our tears of joy; final planing like a TANGERINE DREAM precisely. 9. 'OK' I remembered more, I check it was indeed on my CD; like what to listen, to listen such is my motto becomes a necessity; well surely this one hasn't passed, too bad, it will serve me to finish my column slowly... oh yes the outro I had really forgotten the hidden end.

Out of Myself, Riverside's first album is a remarkable demonstration of the tremendous musical quality the recently- formed group was able to reach. Its excellence seemed to belong to a consolidated band and not to a rather new one.

The poles finely blend the progressive metal with the symphonic and neo-progressive currents. This brew results in an authentic atmosphere of melancholy and darkness: Piotr Grudziński's guitar, always immaculate even in the most complex of moments, admirably combines whit Jacek Melnicki's keyboard and the intense voice of the leader and bass player of the band, Mariusz Duda.

Out of Myself is a spotless piece of work. The following pieces are, at least for me, the best of the album: The same River, the opening song, a 12-minute legitimate progressive rock composition with an excellent final guitar-solo; both Reality Dream I and II (but primarily the latter), which are fine instrumental symphonies; finally, I Believe and In Two Minds, two outstanding and beautiful ballads.

Riverside's debut, then, was an immense hit. The newly-formed group entered the musical world with an album that would become an all-time classic in the progressive metal sub-genre. It is worth noting that Out of Myself is just the first part of a trilogy: after it follows Second Life Syndrome and Rapid Eye Movement.

Here, I present to you one of the most generic prog metal bands I have ever heard in my life. I actually knew about this album from around eight years ago, and listened it twice. But I just didn't like it, and I decided to forget about this band. I discovered this site and after remembering this bands existence again, I decided to check their album "Second Life Syndrome". I also didn't like it. Here I found out that I probably was just not going to like this band, but I still wanted them to click on me.

So I thought I had a bad impression about this album, so I decided to check it again. I thought it was going to be great considering it's rated higher than Dream Theater's masterful Awake and Queensryche's iconic Operation Mindcrime, but on the other hand I had a bad feeling: There was probably a reason why I didn't like at all this album the first two times I listened it.

So is it better than Awake and Operation Mindcrime?

Anyways, it's not. By a landslide. There's something that I never really liked about Riverside and it's how they have such an unrecognizable sound. This album could've easily been made by Porcupine Tree in their Prog Metal era or by Opeth in their new Era. There's nothing unique about it.

The songs follow this typical "mellow melody with acoustic guitar then guitar riff kicks in with odd time signature" type of song structure. Either that or a ballad, but the ballads were truly boring and uninspired. I guess the standout would be the opener, mostly because it's a little more experimental instead of the formulaic prog metal seen in the rest of the album.

Unfortunately, The Same River gets overshadowed by the boring, generic tracks that overflow the album. One star.

- Review #10 -

So, some hours ago I listened to Riverside for the first time, with their second album Second Life Syndrome. I gave it a three star rating, I thought it was good, but not incredible by any means. The thing is that I think my final thought about this album is the exact same. So, yes this is a great album, but not incredible. That obviously makes sense considering it's a debut, and you usually don't find incredible debuts too often.

I can very quickly describe Riverside's sound as a mixture between Dream Theater, Opeth and Porcupine Tree. I must say that, while the tracks under ten minutes are pretty average, the opener is truly outstanding and by far my favorite Riverside song. One of my biggest problems with most Riverside epics is that they feel too cohesive! But The Same River manages to build up in emotion and heaviness and I truly love it. Five star track for sure!

The rest, however, is pretty average. It's highly enjoyable of course, and it's not boring in anyway, but after such opener don't expect anything that tops it off. Plus the ballads all sound very similar, mostly because of how cohesive they are. This makes some of the melodies you hear quite forgettable after doing a full listen.

So, this is a very good debut. Not excellent, but enjoyable and very listenable. Three Stars.

Over the last 30+ years it has been rare for me to review an album more than once, there must be something special for that to happen, yet here I am once again falling in love with an album which I originally wrote back in 2004. The rationale this time around is because Inside Out Music have now made it available for the first time on their label as a digipak as well as vinyl and has been re-mastered by Dan Swanö (Opeth, Katatonia, Nightingale). These days, Riverside are probably the largest progressive export from Poland, and right from the beginning this album looked like it was going to create a stir as after it had been released independently it was picked up by Sony, while the band then signed to Laser's Edge for a worldwide release. This was big news in the scene, as this was still in the dark days of Prog, when labels and mass media were trying at best to ignore the genre and at worse were trying to kill it, so to be picked up by Sony was huge.

What's it like returning to it after so many years? It's like falling in love all over again. Right from the beginning I knew this was special and was so thankful for being allowed to hear so much great music from Poland thanks to my friendship with Polish Prog DJ and writer Artur Chachlowski. Back then I described the album as being one of those prog albums that goes into the head and stays there: think Porcupine Tree, Radiohead, Pink Floyd and darker bands such as Anathema, and for once I think I got it right as I still feel that today all these years later. The quartet of Mariusz Duda (vocals, bass), Piotr Grudzinski (guitar (R.I.P.)), Piotr Kozieradzki (drums) and Jacek Melnicki (keyboards) created something very special indeed which still stands up to scrutiny all these years later.

It is not prog metal, but when the guitars come in they kick really hard. With the lyrics in English this is an album that is accessible yet at the same time is darkly complex: there is a passion and presence that is sadly missing from many prog bands. This is not music that has been created to be listened to in a sterile environment, this is prog designed to be taken out on the road and performed in front of a sweaty baying audience. It is prog that mixes and melds, never forgetting that rock is a key element of what they are doing. Yes, there is room for acoustic guitars, but there is also room for Marshalls turned up to twelve, but even when this is happening it is not about bludgeoning the audience into submission, but rather using it as part of another dramatic effect. The remastering allows the definition and separation of the instruments to really shine through.

In 2004 I said it was one of the finest progressive rock albums I had ever heard come out of Poland, and in 2021 I still feel exactly the same way.