Unknown Soldier

Fine by me, I'm out of town for several days for work and so should listen to it over the weekend.

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Metal Wars

Power Metal

Pounding Decibels- A Hard and Heavy History

Trollheart

Damian Wilson? Sold! I love Threshold!!

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Paul Smeenus

Where is the review template?

Trollheart

Here you go: http://www.musicbanter.com/prog-psyc...ml#post1247058

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Big Ears

1. What were your VERY FIRST impressions on listening to the album, say from the first five minutes in?

Stalled Armageddon fades in with a water/chirping birds intro, like Close to the Edge, but there are not many other Yes references. It becomes a modern 'heavy metal' guitar track, which following an increase in pace is joined by Adam Wakeman's acoustic piano. Soaring melodic rock guitar follows, joined by more acoustic piano, before Damian Wilson's stylish vocals. Wilson took the role of in Les Miserables and musical theatre informs his delivery throughout. The overall effect is quite heavy, and while guitarist Pete Rinaldi has as undoubted dextrous technique, you get the feeling that he has done all the work in the first track and every other track just just repeats this.

2. What did you think of the opening tracks?

Fall of America is even heavier with Adam Wakeman sounding more like lead instrumentalist Keith Emerson than his more symphonic dad. The scratchy riffing and acoutic piano is becoming monotonous. There is a big chorus and an offbeat instrumental passage with a complex jazzrock feel.

3. What did you think of the later tracks?

The third track, Soldier, a slow ballad, begins with tubular bells which are more like Pink Floyd's Division Bell than Mike Oldfield's tubular variety. This is not to say that there are no Oldfield influences, as Die With a Bullet bears the hallmark of his vocal arrangements.

4. Did you like the vocalist? Hate him/her? Any impressions?

Damian Wilson, from Threshold, is a class act and no mistake. He is faultless on everything and almost operatic on occasions.

5. Did the music (only) generally appeal to you, or not?

Not applicable.

6. Did the album get better or worse as you listened to it (first time)?

Unfortunately, for me, the 'prgressive metal' or 'heavy' metal elements, ie. the guitar and rhythm section, became wearisome and repetitive. Wakeman and Wilson work well together, but the rest of the band seem to be ploughing their own furrow. As with many modern albums, I Am Anonymous is too long and in need of editting.

7. What did you think of the lyrical content?

Strong, especially Soldier, with, 'Who can belong inside an army town
when we're all fighting to get out of here?'

8. Did you like the instrumental parts?

Definitely Wakeman's Emerson-style work. He must be tired of the comparisons with his dad, nevermind Emerson, but I mean it as a compliment. The rest of the band are definitely capable, but I just do not care for the style.

9. What did you think of the production?

Clean, although I would have pushed Wakeman and Wilson higher in the mix. Wakeman said that the album unintentionally became a guitar-dominated work, because they were so impressed with Renaldi. But it seems to me, he needed an experienced old-style producer, like Kevin Shirley, to channel his talent.

10. How well do you already know the band/artist?

Headspace not at all, although I am familiar with Snakecharmer and Threshold.

11. What sub-genre, if any, would you assign this music to?

Progressive metal.

12. On repeated listens, did you find you liked the album more, or less?

Unusually, I liked it on the first few hearings, but less so after a while.

13. What would you class as your favourite track, if you have one?

After several listens, no individual track stood out, although Damian Wilson gives a full-blooded performance on everything.

14. And the one you liked least?

I do not care for the last three tracks or so.

15. Did the fact that this album is a debut/sophomore/middle period or later period allow it, in your mind, any leeway, and if so, was that decision justified or vindicated?

An intersting point as this is their first full-length album, following an EP four years previously. However, the band's key members are experienced and I Am Anonymous has a definite style. If it is commercially successful, they will not see any reason to change on my account!

16. Are you now looking forward to hearing other albums by the band/artist?

No, although I am already looking forward to another Snakecharmer album and it inspired me to listen again to Threshold.

17. Did you get, thematically, the idea behind the album if there was one?

The theme is based around the feelings and experiences of western troops involved in the wars in the middle-east.

18. Did the album end well?

The end of The Big Day closes on some Dave Gilmour-style slide guitar and ambiguous special effects. If you have the player on repeat, it merges with the start of the opening track.

19. Do you see any way the album could have been improved?

The guitars need downplaying and a bit more variety in style, while the vocals and keyboards require more emphasis.

20. Do you think the album hung together well, ie was a fully cohesive unit, or was it a bit hit-and-miss?

It was cohesive and consistent in its intended approach.

Overall Album Rating: 7 out of 10.

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My Journal: Rabbiting On

Unknown Soldier

We all need to get this review done, so I'll be doing mine tomorrow.

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Metal Wars

Power Metal

Pounding Decibels- A Hard and Heavy History

Unknown Soldier

1. What were your VERY FIRST impressions on listening to the album, say from the first five minutes in?

As BE said "Stalled Armageddon" has a kind of mini resemblence to Yes' Close to the Edge, but then the song does have an extremely modern feel and usually this kind of material gets lumped in a lot of the time with progressive metal. The tone of the song does have a crunchy heavy feel but the vocals are what really grabbed me here. The first thing that struck me having never heard of the vocalist was just how accomplished he is.

2. What did you think of the opening tracks?

The opening tracks gave us the full scope of the band, who seemed to have an emphasis overall on keeping things modern, rather than harking back to the glory days of prog.

3. What did you think of the later tracks?

I liked "Invasion" and it actually reminded me of Tool, in fact when I heard this song, Tool flashed into my mind as an influence on the band.

4. Did you like the vocalist? Hate him/her? Any impressions?

The highlight of the album, I've always been a sucker for a great vocalist.

5. Did the music (only) generally appeal to you, or not?

Yes and I will certainly play it again.

6. Did the album get better or worse as you listened to it (first time)?

I'm uncovering more stuff each time I listen to the songs.

7. What did you think of the lyrical content?

There seemed to be a strong emphasis on the lyrics and they did seem strong throughout.

8. Did you like the instrumental parts?

Another one of the highlights, the keyboard work was special but what would you expect from someone called Wakeman? At times the guitar was overbearing, but it was still accompolished playing.

9. What did you think of the production?

It was a crisp sounding production and couldn't fault it in any way.

10. How well do you already know the band/artist?

Had never heard of them, even though I did know Adam Wakeman.

11. What sub-genre, if any, would you assign this music to?

Progressive metal at its lighter end, but now I just remembered "Daddy ****ing Loves You" and the heaviness on there at times, is like a fully fledged metal band!

12. On repeated listens, did you find you liked the album more, or less?

I liked it straight away and on repeated listening things never changed that much.

13. What would you class as your favourite track, if you have one?

Probably "Daddy ****ing Loves You" for its sheer ambition.

14. And the one you liked least?

No one weak track stood out.

15. Did the fact that this album is a debut/sophomore/middle period or later period allow it, in your mind, any leeway, and if so, was that decision justified or vindicated?

N/A

16. Are you now looking forward to hearing other albums by the band/artist?

Yes I am, as I liked what was on offer here.

17. Did you get, thematically, the idea behind the album if there was one?

I'm not sure if I got the theme right but I seemed to think it was about human relationships?

18. Did the album end well?

As said earlier "Invasion" is a good song and I also liked "Big Day"

19. Do you see any way the album could have been improved?

Less emphasis on the guitars.

20. Do you think the album hung together well, ie was a fully cohesive unit, or was it a bit hit-and-miss?

It was compact and well executed throughout.

Overall Album Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

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Metal Wars

Power Metal

Pounding Decibels- A Hard and Heavy History

Anteater

1. What were your VERY FIRST impressions on listening to the album, say from the first five minutes in?

BOOMBOOMBOOOOOOM....oh hai Damian! It's been awhile!

2. What did you think of the opening tracks?

Punchy stuff, albeit nothing that special despite the folks involved. 'Fall Of America' is the strongest number of the opening trimvirate though: Richard Brook and his magnificent drumming gets raised a bit higher in the mix than the other cuts, and some of the keyboard motifs courtesy of the junior Wakeman aren't too shabby either.

3. What did you think of the later tracks?

I like them, but I feel 'Daddy Effing Loves You' soaked up all the really good riffs for Side B.

4. Did you like the vocalist? Hate him/her? Any impressions?

Like or hate Headspace, Damian Wilson is a magnificent singer. Unlike a lot of other frontmen who got started in the late 80's, he just seems to get stronger as a vocalist as the years go on instead of diminishing (something I noted on the latest Threshold record as well!).

5. Did the music (only) generally appeal to you, or not?

I always dig me some progressive metal, even if it was pretty much what I expected considering the cast of players involved.

6. Did the album get better or worse as you listened to it (first time)?

I Am Anonymous is certainly a grower, but it hasn't worsened or gotten particularly more amazing in the time I've been exposed to it since last year either.

7. What did you think of the lyrical content?

Typically political, yet politically untypical. A common trait in most progressive metal since the genre's heady inception, and not too far away from what you'll hear from modern Australian prog. metal or Damian's main band Threshold.

8. Did you like the instrumental parts?

Yep! As others have pointed out, the axework from Pete Rinaldi here is the most muscular sounding aspect present here, but the rest of the band gets plenty of opportunity to shine as well.

9. What did you think of the production?

Above average for the most part: the mix has that excessively clean quality that a lot of European progressive metal seems to have: no grit, but plenty of instrumental clarity.

10. How well do you already know the band/artist?

Decently.

11. What sub-genre, if any, would you assign this music to?

Progressive metal, plain and simple!

12. On repeated listens, did you find you liked the album more, or less?

Hard to say really. Still on the fence about it!

13. What would you class as your favourite track, if you have one?

'Fall Of America'.

14. And the one you liked least?

Probably 'Invasion', as it comes off as a tad too angular groove-wise.

15. Did the fact that this album is a debut/sophomore/middle period or later period allow it, in your mind, any leeway, and if so, was that decision justified or vindicated?

It's a debut, but everyone who participated in this album is a veteran in some respect. It certainly beats the living daylights out of that awful Snakecharmer album I heard not long ago!

16. Are you now looking forward to hearing other albums by the band/artist?

I certainly would, especially if they evolve their sound beyond typical progressive metal idioms.

17. Did you get, thematically, the idea behind the album if there was one?

Nah: the political subtext is somewhat apparent, but I'd need to read some linear notes or something to really dig into this aspect of the album.

18. Did the album end well?

Eh, decently enough.

19. Do you see any way the album could have been improved?

Hard to say....I would have liked a curveball somewhere in here I guess. Sometimes too much consistency is a bad thing, ya know?

20. Do you think the album hung together well, ie was a fully cohesive unit, or was it a bit hit-and-miss?

It hung together well in an auditory sense....but in this case, I think that sameness worked against the project.

I'll conclude this review by saying that I Am Anonymous has some gorgeous ideas scattered about, but it doesn't do enough to establish a strong sonic identity that would really distinguish itself amidst a million other progressive metal records that have been coming out for the last....two decades? It has that contemporary yet organic craftsmanship I like in bands such as Porcupine Tree or Riverside, yet it isn't as memorable as anything those two bands have done.

In short, this is a good companion record to Threshold's March Of Progress from last year (or if you are a fan of bands like Sieges Even or Subsignal), but that album is a cut above this one I'm afraid. Maybe next time fellas!

Overall Album Rating: 7.5 out of 10

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Anteater's 21 Fav Albums Of 2020

Anteater's Daily Tune Roulette

Trollheart

A few points before I begin, and I'm not meaning to get at anyone here, but there's a little confusion taking place, so I think I should clarify.

Question 5 refers to music, not instrumentals. What I'm saying here is, take out the vocals, listen to the music in each track, did you like it? I'm not talking about tracks with music only. You could relate it to musical passages in songs, but it's not meant to refer to instrumentals only. So if you liked the vocals but didn't like the music the vocalist was singing over, the answer to this woud be no (and then you could say why).

Question 8 on the other hand refers to ONLY instrumental TRACKS. So if an album has no fully instrumental tracks then this should be ignored. This does not cover long instrumental passages in a song which ends up having vocals; that's addressed in question 5.

Question 15. For some reason Unknown Soldier put n/a. This is one of the first albums we've had recently which is a debut, so the question is definitely /A! The other parts of the question should really be struck out, as this question was compiled originally to refer to debut and debut albums ONLY. If the album is NOT a debut, it's N/A, otherwise it can be answered.

Sorry to be so pedantic, but I'm just trying to clear up the confusion that these questions seem to have caused. And now, my thoughts.

One other thing before I begin: I was struck by how similar the album sleeve is to that of the one by Gandalf's Fist, from 2011. See?



Anyway, that aside, this album has nothing else in common with that very derivative and disappointing album. So on we go...

1. What were your VERY FIRST impressions on listening to the album, say from the first five minutes in?
Having been advised that Damian Wilson was the vocalist I was waiting to hear him, and my original thought was "pity they made the opener an instrumental". Of course, I soon found I was mistaken: it's not an instrumental, just a song with a long musical introduction, and once "Stalled armageddon" gets going it's a great start to an album that really doesn't flag once, though some tracks definitely stand out.

2. What did you think of the opening tracks?
As I mentioned, I was a little nonplussed with the intro to the opener but once it got going I really liked it, and this only got better with the wonderful "Fall of America" and then followed by the tender, heartbreaking "Soldier."

3. What did you think of the later tracks?
Don't think there was one I didn't like, though there is a lot of noodling in some of them. Not that there's anything wrong with that --- Wilson does describe Headspace as progressive metal after all --- but some of them do meander a little,. Still, there's still nothing I would skip.

4. Did you like the vocalist? Hate him/her? Any impressions?
I absolutely love Damian Wilson, in the least gay way possible. Ever since I first heard him singing on the very first Threshold album I bought, "Subsurface", I've been a fan of his vocal style. It's very distinctive and very emotional, and he can whisper a ballad or roar a punchy rocker with ease, but everything he does commands your attention. I'm actually in awe of the guy: Threshold only released their latest album last year, and in that same year he's worked on and released Headspace's first album, with (according to the Wiki oracle) a new one due this year! How does the guy find time to sleep?

5. Did the music (only) generally appeal to you, or not?
The music was fantastic. Mind you, with a keyboard player from the Wakeman family, what do you expect? The rest of the band punch above their weight too. Top marks all round.

6. Did the album get better or worse as you listened to it (first time)?
Started well, got better as it went along.

7. What did you think of the lyrical content?
The lyrics are typically obscure for a prog band, but seem to focus on the idea of a world war that may destroy, or have destroyed the planet, and the aftermath of such.

8. Did you like the instrumental parts?
No instrumentals on this album.

9. What did you think of the production?
Very high quality, quite cinematic in places.

10. How well do you already know the band/artist?
Until Big Ears recommended them I knew nothing of this band, but with both Wakeman and Wilson involved I was instantly interested.

11. What sub-genre, if any, would you assign this music to?
Progressive metal. Damian says so, and you can't argue with the vocalist, can you?

12. On repeated listens, did you find you liked the album more, or less?
Much more. It's getting better every time I listen to it.

13. What would you class as your favourite track, if you have one?
Hard to say. If I had to pick, it would be between "Fall of America", "Soldier" and "The big day". The lines in "Soldier", When I return and it's all over, /I...I hope you'll carry me upon your shoulder/ and walk up the hill beneath the cannon,/and lay my body down with...with my companions together with Adam Wakeman's mournful piano and the tolling of church bells always makes me tear up like a schoolgirl...

14. And the one you liked least?
Not on this album, baby!

15. Did the fact that this album is a debut allow it, in your mind, any leeway, and if so, was that decision justified or vindicated?
Despite the musical pedigree involved, this is still a stunning debut, and I can't wait to hear what they come up with next.

16. Are you now looking forward to hearing other albums by the band/artist?
See above. Actually, having heard the album I was all ready to buy the rest of their material, until I found out there was only this one, so far. D'oh!

17. Did you get, thematically, the idea behind the album if there was one?
There are indications it's a concept album loosely based around the idea of a world-spanning war which may or may not have destroyed the planet. Within that, I think there's a lot of the idea of man's choices, faith, duty and responsibility, with the belief that every person must contribute to the world and make their mark, so that nobody can say the title represents them.

18. Did the album end well?
The album ended fantastically. I love "The big day", and am still working out if it is (as I think it is) about 9/11, but I love the acoustic ending and the just pure passion and power that's in the song. Brilliant closer. Love it.

19. Do you see any way the album could have been improved?
Not really. Pretty perfect as it is I feel. The only quibble I'd have is that some of the songs end too abruptly. I'm not a fan of abrupt endings to songs, as a general rule.

20. Do you think the album hung together well, ie was a fully cohesive unit, or was it a bit hit-and-miss?
Hung together very well, the concept works great and mostly you can follow the story.

Ratiing:9 out of 10

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Trollheart

Since we've now reviewed a respectable amount of albums I'm planning to chart them in a league table, so tomorrow I'll start working out placings, based on an average rating for each, and see which albums made it to the top, and who recommended them. My intention is then to make that an ongoing thing, so we can see how well, or badly, our choices are faring as time goes on.

Thanks to everyone for making this club work: initially it seemed doomed, but thanks to late interest it got a second chance and now we really seem to be flying. Great job guys!

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018