TboneFrank

I never heard of this band. I got impatient about 5 minutes in because you mentioned Kansas. Ended up listening to Monolith instead...sorry.

But I do agree...I heard the Peter Gabriel influence right off the bat....and weirdly Brian Ferry.

Unknown Soldier

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

Starts off with the familar now Peter Gabriel era-Genesis vocal style before the opening song breaks into more mixed and often muddled sounding Pain of Salvation territory. Anybody listening will surely note how unique this band are. And as Big Ears states there is a Faith No More influence which I never noticed before, kind of obvious really.

2. What did you think of the opening tracks?

I actually think the opening tracks, act as a guide and enable us to understand the stronger tracks that come later. They're kind of like a blind man leading us into his world of darkness!

3. What did you think of the later tracks?

I think the album maintains its quality throughout the 70 minutes of album length and the best tracks pop up all over the place.

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

Daniel Gildenlow often goes unnoticed as a singer, but he has a diverse range and style. He has a style that ranges from Peter Gabriel, Fish to Geoff Tate. He might not be as accomplished as any of those singers, but none of those could probably cover the ground as he does.

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

Most of what Pain of Salvation always appeals to me, that's not to say that it's all good, but the interest factor that I have for this band is always high.

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

Like with most of the band's discography, repeated listens are essential. The exception to this trait may well be the first two albums, which I never found overly interesting.

7. What did you think of the lyrical content?

The lyrics as always are fairly downbeat.

8. Did you like the instrumental parts?

As with most Swedish progressive bands that I run across, the instrumental parts are consistently strong throughout and at times they're a delight to listen to.

9. What did you think of the production?

As has already been stated a bit more energy could've been put into the production, without losing the feel of the album.

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

Already know most of the discography.

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

Progressive metal without a doubt, in fact they are one of the few bands that actually deserve this much flaunted so called trendy "sub-genre label"

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

Pain of Salvation are never a warm band but they engross the listener, once you break through all the murk on their albums.

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

"Fandango" kind of captures the true essence of the band. The melodic pick-up vocal section of "A Trace of Blood" is quite magical and is probably what grabbed me to this album initially.

14. And the one you liked least?

"Waking Every God" a jaded sounding later album track.

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?

Pain of Salvation often toured with Dream Theater. People would turn up at the concerts mostly for Dream Theater and after listening to Pain of Salvation were usually left scratching their heads

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

Often get a craze to listen to their discography and so listen quite often.

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

All their albums have a theme and this one is to do with freedom, not that the listener could work this out.

18. Did the album end well?

I think it ended reasonably well, there was nothing spectacular and the best hadn't been saved till last, but the finals tracks were ok.

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

The most open-ended question here, how do you improve a Pain of Salvation album without actually detracting from what makes it unique? which of course is its great depth and often disjointed feel.

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

The album is one of those coherent messes and that's the beauty of it.

Overall Album Rating: 8.5 out of 10.

__________________
Metal Wars

Power Metal

Pounding Decibels- A Hard and Heavy History

Unknown Soldier

Hahaha that wasn't even the Kansas album that was selected but Monolith is still a very good album, their final great album from their golden period.

__________________
Metal Wars

Power Metal

Pounding Decibels- A Hard and Heavy History