Great (four stars out of five)
It's hard to argue with the fact that Arjen Lucassen is one of the biggest names in progressive rock right now thanks to a long string of Ayreon projects, Star One albums, and his penchant for assembling the biggest names in the prog world. So, what happens when Lucassen is left with a smaller group of musicians, forming something that's slightly closer to what people would consider a normal "band?" With Lucassen still doing all of the songwriting, you have something very similar in sound to the rest of his work. Still, what sets this album apart are the seemingly minor things that it does differently that, in the end, allow it to stand as a very strong effort that separates itself from what some consider the established Lucassen tradition.
At least instrumentally, there's very little here to separate Guilt Machine from Ayreon. Lucassen uses the same sort of instrumental tricks that he uses on his other projects, and while the influence of Lori Linstruth's guitar solos and Chris Maitland's drumming are both noticed and appreciated, they don't carry enough weight to truly change the overall sound of the album. The listener is still left with the same acoustic-tinged progressive metal with tons of symphonic elements and a lot of atmosphere. This is, of course, not a complaint. Just don't go in expecting a complete reversal of direction.
The main change to be seen here is the use of one singer for nearly all of the vocal duties. Lucassen himself does appear on vocals at many points throughout the album, but it's accurate to say that new vocalist Jasper Steverlinck is the lead vocalist. Having a voice that will be fresh to the vast majority of listeners is a definite advantage, as is the fact that, simply put, Jasper's vocals are fantastic. He has a voice that is difficult to compare to other singers, but he falls more closely into the Steven Wilson camp than, say, the Jorn Lande camp. Unless you're turned off by vocals that aren't aggressive, I don't think you'll be disappointed by the vocal performances here. Jasper manages an impressive range and plenty of different moods and vocal styles.
As for the songs themselves, they're all very strong. The album starts off with "Twisted Coil," which is perhaps the most prototypical Lucassen song on the album in terms of progression and even the vocals, as there's a lot more vocalist swapping going on here than on the other songs. The real highlights of the album come later, including "Leland Street," which begins on a far darker and more atmospheric tone. It's here that Jasper's vocals can be fully appreciated, as there are plenty of vocalists who just wouldn't fit into a song like this. Even as the song's midsection grows faster and more intense, Jasper's vocals continue to impress. "Green and Cream" has a fantastic second half with some quick acoustic guitar work and a very different vocal approach from Jasper.
Another special mention should be give to the lyrics penned by Lori Linstruth, who manages to offer something completely different from what we've come to expect from an Arjen Lucassen project. The songs are far more poetic and thematically dark, and for my money, more enjoyable. There are tons of memorable lines that I won't bog this review down with, but this is certainly the sort of album that you'll want to listen to with the liner notes in front of you.
Unless you absolutely loathe Lucassen's approach to songwriting and instrumentation, I can't see any reason that this album wouldn't appeal to anyone who loves progressive rock. The songs are extremely well-written and I've said plenty about the superb vocals. This is an impressive set of songs from what I would consider one of the most exciting new groups this year. We should all hope that these musicians continue to play together.
Andrew Kauz
www.progressivemelodies.com
At least instrumentally, there's very little here to separate Guilt Machine from Ayreon. Lucassen uses the same sort of instrumental tricks that he uses on his other projects, and while the influence of Lori Linstruth's guitar solos and Chris Maitland's drumming are both noticed and appreciated, they don't carry enough weight to truly change the overall sound of the album. The listener is still left with the same acoustic-tinged progressive metal with tons of symphonic elements and a lot of atmosphere. This is, of course, not a complaint. Just don't go in expecting a complete reversal of direction.
The main change to be seen here is the use of one singer for nearly all of the vocal duties. Lucassen himself does appear on vocals at many points throughout the album, but it's accurate to say that new vocalist Jasper Steverlinck is the lead vocalist. Having a voice that will be fresh to the vast majority of listeners is a definite advantage, as is the fact that, simply put, Jasper's vocals are fantastic. He has a voice that is difficult to compare to other singers, but he falls more closely into the Steven Wilson camp than, say, the Jorn Lande camp. Unless you're turned off by vocals that aren't aggressive, I don't think you'll be disappointed by the vocal performances here. Jasper manages an impressive range and plenty of different moods and vocal styles.
As for the songs themselves, they're all very strong. The album starts off with "Twisted Coil," which is perhaps the most prototypical Lucassen song on the album in terms of progression and even the vocals, as there's a lot more vocalist swapping going on here than on the other songs. The real highlights of the album come later, including "Leland Street," which begins on a far darker and more atmospheric tone. It's here that Jasper's vocals can be fully appreciated, as there are plenty of vocalists who just wouldn't fit into a song like this. Even as the song's midsection grows faster and more intense, Jasper's vocals continue to impress. "Green and Cream" has a fantastic second half with some quick acoustic guitar work and a very different vocal approach from Jasper.
Another special mention should be give to the lyrics penned by Lori Linstruth, who manages to offer something completely different from what we've come to expect from an Arjen Lucassen project. The songs are far more poetic and thematically dark, and for my money, more enjoyable. There are tons of memorable lines that I won't bog this review down with, but this is certainly the sort of album that you'll want to listen to with the liner notes in front of you.
Unless you absolutely loathe Lucassen's approach to songwriting and instrumentation, I can't see any reason that this album wouldn't appeal to anyone who loves progressive rock. The songs are extremely well-written and I've said plenty about the superb vocals. This is an impressive set of songs from what I would consider one of the most exciting new groups this year. We should all hope that these musicians continue to play together.
Andrew Kauz
www.progressivemelodies.com
Posts
