UNSPOKEN WORDS

High time for the review of this album but the long waiting has to do with problems with making up my mind for the rating. This only releasy by the Dutch prog metal band is another very hard doubtcase for a 3 or 4 starrating. In fact it's right in between so only thing you can do then is listen to it a few more times until you do know what to do. Well, right now I'm not entirely convinced but I will have to do the review one day so why not now ?

It's a bit of an unusual album because of the spoken interludes between some of the songs. The album starts with a short tune before my personal favourite track is next. The Betrayal is a great track, well composed and executed, pretty heavy but alternated with more quiet parts. The theme is catchy and really impressive. It's a pity it's a bit short but that's the only criticism I can think of. After a short spoken interlude it's time for a short acoustical track before another great song takes the turn (The Untold Prophecy). Also this one contains very nice guitar work and is a bit more progressive than The Betrayal. The Event Horizon is a longer track starting with great instrumental contribution and gets alternating heavy and more quiet several times. After this one of the mentioned spoken tracks but this time a long one of almost 6 minutes. I don't know what it's all about but it's SF for sure. Fans of this subject will certainly get curious with this one but I don't count myself in for that. The talking is only accompanied by keys. The Gathering is another long one with significant keyboard contribution. Sometimes they create a spacy atmosphere which comes in handy with a science fiction story. Good track this. Unspoken Words III is an instrumental track, not too heavy, a bit mysterious feeling about it, really nice. After another short interlude Nocturnal Lament continues the mysterious idea but is yet an accessible song. Last interlude sets up the grand finale called The Resurrection. Another very good track which means a pretty equable album in terms of quality. To me that's always a plus.

As stated above I'm still a bit unsure about the final rating so I will let my visit to their gig in a prog festival do the job here. They played a lot of the songs on this album live on Symforce 2007 (Tilburg) and I have to say they impressed me big time. They played on a very small stage, could hardly move but did an impeccable job there. So because of this they turn the scale to a 4 starrating. Recommended for fans of Porcupine Tree and Riverside who want to check out something else.

I have already reviewed the followup and given it 3.5 stars, and so I was pleasantly surprised at how much more I like this their debut. This is a concept album and really the only negatives for me are in relation to the concept where they have several short tracks that feature spoken words in an atmospheric background. I'm going to skip those tracks in the review here. What does appeal to me is that this is fairly atmospheric metal not enough to call it Experimental / Post Rock though.

"Unspoken Words" opens with atmosphere but kicks in quickly. Vocals after a minute. Great way to start the album. "Time Betrayal" kicks in hard right away before settling some when the vocals arrive. Contrasts continue. "Unspoken Words II" opens with acoustic guitar before violin joins in followed by fragile vocals. "The Untold Prophesy" features reserved vocals but a fairly heavy soundscape. It reminds me of ANATHEMA actually. Nice guitar solo after 3 minutes. "The Event Horizon" is kind of catchy with drums and guitar standing out. Synths then vocals follow as we get a fuller sound.

"The Gathering" opens with the sounds of a door slamming shut then the music comes in and builds. Vocals and a heavier sound before 1 1/2 minutes. "Unspoken Words III" is dark and atmospheric as the bass throbs and the tempo picks up. Guitar before 1 1/2 minutes. "Nocturnal Lament" has this good heavy sound and is mid-paced as reserved vocals come in. Great sounding track. "The Resurrection" opens with drums as riffs come in with the guitar playing over top. Vocals follow. It settles some but is still heavy. A nice relaxed guitar solo before 3 1/2 minutes. Heavier before 5 minutes with some excellent guitar to follow. "Prologue" is the spacey conclusion with lots of atmosphere. Vocals before 2 minutes followed by piano. Spoken words late.

I like this style of music alot but could live without the narration. Barely 4 stars.