|
Review:
|
The second album from the Frenchman Hugues
Lefebvre and his band draws obvious comparisons to Ayreon,
but it is more guitar driven, technical, and song based.
There is also a strong Dream Theatre and Pendraggon influence.
The story is very deep and thought provoking, about two
souls, portrayed by Hugues and Nathalie Olmi, who love each
other deeply. However, they are constantly incarnated in
new human bodies by God and therefore deprived of being
together. That is until they meet in their human forms,
their union creating the chain reaction of the album’s title.
After the suitably eerie and portentous prologue, first
song ‘A New Self’ combines powerful riffage with melodic
metal and lightning fast guitar solos. The next two songs
remind me of a heavier Pendragon, the melodic prog metal
of ‘Whipping Soul’, with a delightful piano solo by guest
Kevin Codfert, and the more laid back ‘The Torn Off Wings
of a Butterfly’, which has a truly beautiful mid section
before the guitar solo takes it into the stratosphere. ‘Take
Me Home’ is a jazzier, funkier, catchier song, the vocal
interplay between Hugues and Nathalie is incredible throughout
the album, they are like Mr. and Mrs. Mats Leven, they are
so well matched they are joined at the hip. After ‘The Night
at the Opera’s’ brief neo classical shredfest we move on
to the powerful melodic metal ’The Alter of Trust’, good
grief, these guys can play. After the gorgeous classical
guitar interlude, ‘These Days Are Always Rainy’, comes two
immense Dream Theatre type songs, ‘Trinity’ and ‘The Tree
of Life’. It closes with deeply moving epilogue ‘Breeze
in the Leaves’, if you have not got a tear in your eye,
you must be made of stone. This is classy, sophisticated,
superbly produced, highly professional, poignant and phenomenally
performed, if you like Ayreon and Dream Theatre this is
a must in you collection. Easily available on CD Baby and
many other stores, see their Myspace for more info,
http://www.myspace.com/anthropia
9 out of 10
|
