progressive / post metal

black metal / doom

electronic / coldwave

heavy metal versions of eighties hits

progressive / psychedelic rock

noise rock / industrial

noise rock / sludge

stoner rock / psychedelic rock

death metal

alternative rock

alternative rock / dream pop

indie rock / alternative

death metal

death metal

death metal / black metal

ambient

alternative rock / grunge / stoner rock

heavy metal

facebook

doom / drone / black metal

post rock / progressive rock

progressive metal / alternative / avant-garde

Interesting and intriguing, Finestatico, released by In Tormentata Quiete, an impressively creative avant-garde metal act from Italy, has seven tracks: Zero, Sole, R136a1, Eta Carinae, Sirio, RR Lyrae and Demiurgo. Displaying wisely a dense, but functional and harmoniously abrasive, vast and dispersive diagram of symphonic and folk elements, In Tormentata Quiete is deeply entrenched – and to a certain degree, indebted – to the traditional groundwork of another Italian bands of the genre, being Lacuna Coil probably the most notorious of them all; so to a certain degree, the reference – and possible comparisons, favorable or unfavorable – is inevitable. Nevertheless, their songs are, to a modest degree, beautiful, the harmonies are cohesive, and they know how to carry on firmly the musical tradition upon which their music is profoundly engraved.  

Despite the lack of originality and major attractive features, Finestatico is an album that inadvertently has its beauty. Unfortunately, in a general sonorous layer, the group isn’t able to avoid the usual generic elements that also normally victimize other acts in the genre, which are mainly too exacerbated sentimental melodies, in a sequence sometimes exceedingly predictable, and way too demagogic symphonic common ground ordeals. But neither of these negative aspects – that are not that afflictive, some would qualify as smaller infractions at best – are enough to compromise the structural integrity and the genuinely stylish poetic serenity of In Tormentata Quiete’s music, which are quite beautiful and abundantly captivating, at certain specific passages. 

The fourth track – Eta Carinae – is one of the most effective and brilliant in the whole album. A beautiful and poetic song, it reflects the musical principles upon which the visceral and energized musicality of the band seems to rely on: a rudimentary, but at the same time increasingly sophisticated rhythmic axis of sentimental intonation, that revolves around the precious possibilities that vehemently reinvents their capacities, to a strikingly original point of artistic rupture.    

Although I cannot qualify this album as a masterpiece, Finestatico has its share of great moments, and can be considered an expressively satisfying musical experiment. Unfortunately, they rely too consistently and too repeatedly on specific and generic structural formulas, that were already exhaustively used by other acts of the genre. So, Finestatico would hardly be a surprise to someone who is profoundly familiar with the genre.    


Wagner

ambient / experimental

ambient / electronic / downtempo

doom / sludge metal

ambient / classical

punk / antifolk

progressive metal

death metal / industrial

black metal

shoegaze / alternative rock / dark rock

facebook

ambient / downtempo

electronic / techno / experimental

Hypermedium

black metal

drone / ambient / minimal

noise

techno

post hardcore

progressive rock

Hidden Dimensions is the most recent album by Polish instrumental progressive rock artist Widek, released on August 19. Forty eight minutes long, the record has fourteen tracks: Deep & Shallow, Blue Moon, Comet, Gravity, Solstice, Phases, Satellite, Fourth Dimension, Halo, Light-Year, Double Star, Meridian, Euclidean and Sphere. With the formidable participation of guest artists – like Sithu Aye and Stephen Taranto –, Hidden Dimensions is a fantastic, hallucinating and vigorously energized album, where all the highly imperative skills and creative continuous expansions of the artist’s horizontal musical proposal converge to a platform of sensible beauty, amplified by the virtuous magnificence of marvelously written guitar lines, wonderfully crafted at the poetic alignments of an imperiously designed universe yet to be deciphered. At the vortex of an audacious apex of magnificently exposed sonorous rapture, Hidden Dimensions captivates the listener instantly, as the artist clearly challenges himself at the paradigm of a monumental harmonious confluence predisposed to collide to the planetary veracity of a precociously intense and vivacious musical cosmogony.

With the predominance of rapid harmonies, colorful melodies are wonderfully exposed in a majestic layer of sonorous omnipotence, where seemingly perfect guitar lines design an immaculate universe of powerful and organic completeness, at the height of gracefully rearranged, but unlimited creative boundaries. Despite the impeccably genuine and versatile technique of the artist, it’s the beauty of songs that clearly qualifies this album as a masterpiece. 

With melodies eviscerating an undeniable stream of strength that comprehends the source of all materially creative and honest equivalences, each and every track on Hidden Dimensions is a treasure to be discovered. Having a beauty and a precious significance of their own, they all complement one another in a greatly sincere and profound perspective, marvelously validating the energy of its original and creatively compelling artistry in a magnificent whole of absolute completeness. While highly energized and concentrated, each and every song easily disperse glorifying horizons of serene veracity, astutely submerged in an imponderable galaxy of introspective harmonies that salutes life as the greatest legacy of existence. I think that this is the exact feeling this amazing masterpiece sincerely transmits to its audience.

With the beautiful and cohesive commitment to an irrevocably strong and virtuous sense of artistry, Widek has overcome the axis of his own abilities, releasing a sensational guitar-based masterpiece that will open new horizons in the underground music scene. One of the best albums to be released this year, Hidden Dimensions cannot be hailed as anything, but a state of the art work. And I think the artist will have a great problem being better than himself, to surpass this wonderful degree of excellence in future albums. Or maybe not! Certainly – and effectively – we are all dying of anxiety to hear and check it out what would be his next release.              

      
Wagner

art rock/ progressive rock/ alternative pop 

To The Bone is the most recent album by famous English musician, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Steven Wilson – of Porcupine Tree notoriety, as well as a great profusion of another bands and musical projects – released on August 18 by Caroline Records. One hour long, the record has eleven tracks: To the Bone, Nowhere Now, Pariah, The Same Asylum as Before, Refuge, Permanating, Blank Tapes, People Who Eat Darkness, Song of I, Detonation and Song of Unborn. Despite its mainstream, radio-friendly nature, the album is relatively good. Not exceptional, nor wonderful, but, to a wider degree, pretty good, actually. To The Bone is a very eclectic, charming, versatile, cohesive and well-arranged album, with a categorical, but diffuse pop texture, wisely introduced to the subtle flavor of a discreet and occasional country rock ordeal. The melodies, albeit secure, are intelligently designed, and, although the record extensively stands in a very consistent and predictable comfort zone, the final result compensates. You will hardly be impressed. Nevertheless, for a more conventional piece, the record certainly outstands itself for its amazingly technical musical merits.   

Possibly, the greatest quality of the album is the versatility. With one track very different from one another – although they retain a consistent sonorous identity throughout the record – a melancholic, profoundly poetic and sentimental serenade like “Refugee”, with its sidelined and acerbic wild rock overtones, is vastly different from the more romantic and inspiring, albeit arid, title track “To The Bone”, which, by its turn, severely contrasts with the more ballad ridden, happily sophisti-pop “Permanating”. With each song undoubtedly showing a strong and solid sonorous identity, certainly the eclecticism of the album can be considered its strongest virtue. 

The entire album, in general, can be generously and rightly evaluated as amazingly beautiful. In any way Steven Wilson challenges himself in a more practical, technical or avant-garde direction. He evidently sought more traditional and conventional musical patterns on this album. Despite the formulaic structure, the final result can certainly be classified as satisfying. If you like the artist, or by any chance appreciates the genres he plays with, it’s definitely worthwhile checking it out.       

Of course, being a conventional mainstream album, you can’t expect anything extraordinary. If you maintain your expectations in a salutary level, though, To The Bone can be ostensibly appreciated. But of course, this is my evaluation, directed to a more sophisticated and underground audience, according to my own personal musical tastes. Among the inveterate fans and enthusiasts of Steven Wilson, there is a great chance that this album will be a tremendous success. Or maybe not. We will have to wait a little to see. 
      

Wagner

grunge / alternative rock

black metal / death metal

doom / black metal

psychedelic rock

psychedelic rock

grindcore

black metal 

ambient / electronic

progressive metal

alternative rock / blues

black metal

hard rock

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Serge

post rock / progressive rock

Beings of Light is a superb and splendorous album, by Russian instrumental progressive rock group City of the Lost, released on July 17. With eleven tracks – For What Are We Fighting For?, Красные Звёзды, Красные Гимны, The Reason Why I'm Here, Justice, Стальное Сердце (Диалог), A Fire Inside, Stream of Life, The Last Words, Reflection, Ballad of the Key Keeper and Fragile Peace Revives – Beings of Light is a terrific, sensational, singular, fabulous and magnificent record, that revives the purest and most fundamentally effective sonorous textures and principles of progressive rock, in a vigorously consistent harmonious path of poetic intensity, precise devotion and sincere beauty.   

With vivid and exponentially lucid harmonies, that wonderfully and ostensibly flirts with power metal, City of the Lost has done an amazing and gracefully elemental work on this album. With perfectly aligned guitars, a monumental collision of preciously designed melodies converges efficiently in a torrential universe of captivatingly intense sentiments, that extrapolate at the voracious circumference of its resurgent symphonies the everlasting life of a sound that is destined to never dissipate. In an eternity fulfilled by the entanglements of a soul that fears the spontaneity of an elevated serenity, Beings of Light is a supreme anthem to the graceful healing of an imperially expansive infinite universe, perpetually comprehensive to the possibilities of the human thought. 

A beautiful album from the beginning to the end, Beings of Light is the pure alignment of a consecrated and excellent technique, masterly combined with the essence of a poetic and marvelous creativity. With wonderful harmonies all the way through, accompanying the listener in a fabulous journey throughout a fantastic, dense and splendidly colorful universe of sensorial joy, rapture and transcendental completeness, this record is a formidable work of art, destined to be considered a reference in the genre.   

A splendid album that certainly has everything to be regarded as a milestone, Beings of Light is a crucial and imponderable work of art, that synthesizes the perfection of an incredibly dilapidated technique, combined and amplified with the groundbreaking serenity of an expansive creativity, that knows no boundaries in what concerns the scope of its immensurable possibilities.  
 

Wagner

progressive rock / alternative / grunge

After the heavy party hard rock from the previous review, it's now time for something a bit more progressive and complex. Although, this Norwegian band seems to know a thing or two about decent riffs and infectious grooves. That and songwriting, they know something about songwriting too.

Formed in 2016, Underwing quickly found their own sound, influenced by vintage rock music, grunge and the progressive approach of bands like Tool. Their debut ep is a promising collection of songs, well varied, well written and powerful enough to stand out in today's alternative rock scene.

All five songs on this album are well thought out rock anthems. They're not so much party hits, for that the progressive aspect might be a bit too present, but they show four talented and experienced musicians. Black Sabbath comes to mind, but also bands like Black Crowes, Toto, Alice In Chains, Reo Speedwagon, Pearl Jam and Boston. Come to think of it, personally I would simply place this in the "classic rock" section. I suggest you do the same, especially if you prefer music with a certain amount of complexity. In all, this is an excellent album, one that will certainly grow on you. These songs are going right into my day-to-day playlist and I'm sure I'll be listening to them for a long time from now on.


​Serge

post hardcore / post rock

It's strange how bands and fans from across the Belgian language barrier often have no idea about each other's existence. For years, Walloon bands have been relatively unknown in the Flemish region and vice versa. Luckily, in recent years that seems to change. One example is this noisy ensemble from Liege. A few years ago, they delivered a massive set in front of the mainstage at Dunk! Festival and this years they almost destroyed the forest with their intense blend of post hardcore, noise rock and post rock. They were there to present their new album, 'Veil', which is quite a destructive piece of work.

If I had to organise my music collection according to genres, I think Ilydaen would end up right between Russian Circles and AmenRa. The songs combine the atmospheric elements of post rock with the explosive bombast of hardcore, here and there enhanced by screams. Above that, you can find influences from mathcore, noise rock and progressive rock, all blended into seven typically Ilydaen tunes. That being said. I've seen them live and I've heard their previous work and I have to say, these guys are growing as a band. They are becoming better at what they do, something which they beautifully showcase on a masterpiece like 'Aura'. 

In all, 'Veil' is an excellent album, a worthy follow-up to their highly acclaimed 'Maze'. They no longer seem to care about genres and restrictions. Instead, they grab their instruments and do their very best to come up with something immersive and intense. And in that, Ilydaen have certainly succeeded. I can only recommend this album to all fans of progressive and intelligent rock music. So if you haven't checked out this album, be sure to do that and to get your hands on a copy. You'll be amazed by the sheer amount of talent this little country has to offer...


Serge

alternative rock / psychedelic

We'll end today's writing sessions with one of the strangest rock albums I have heard in the past few years. Once, way back in 1983, Italian rockers Viridanse threw themselves in their country's new wave scene. After a few years, the band split up, only to return with a more psychedelic inspired approach in 2014. Now, three years later, they still seem to evolve as a band. Other genres have been leaking into Viridanse's sound, genres like jazz, progressive rock, post metal and krautrock. The result is something varied and immersive, but also something weird and unusual. Then again, we like weird and unusual. We are weird and unusual.

Lorenzo Stecconi produced this album, someone who is known for collaborations and productions for Zu and Ufomammut. His presence might explain the heavy and in-your-face sound of the whole album. Play it loud enough and you might be able to compare this to the stuff Melvins often blast out of their speakers. There is a lot of energy and intensity to be found and the present day post-metal scene is never far away. 

So there is noise rock, post metal and plenty of other styles to be found, which obviously is not bad for a band that once was a new wave and post punk act. In a way you can still hear those eighties influences, mainly in the vocals (which by the way are all in Italian). Yet, the gloomy eighties sound is enhanced with heavy riffs, battering drums and plenty of headbanging passages. And with all that, those are still incredibly groovy rock songs.

So who to recommend this album to? Well, that might be tough. On the other hand, I can just recommend it to each and every fans of original and immersive rock music. There are some awesome songs to be found, with 'Scomunica' being a world class tune, driving on awesome guitar work. My advice: give it a shot and allow yourself to dwell in this strange and led heavy fairy tale that Viridanse have created.


Serge