Sophomore album
from Ashent from Italy is a very solid piece of progressive metal with a
twist. The fresh blend of powerful and progressive metal with more modern and
aggressive metal puts the band in place where they can shine on their own.
Musically I
would describe them as a mixture between Dream Theater, Symphony X, In Flames
and Coheed and Cambria, and as weird as this combination it might sound they
have managed to pull it off, and find a very small niche within the progressive
metal genre. And everything works mostly due to the bands great writing
abilities as well as a high technical level.
The songs are
all created around some very strong vocal melodies, and even though the tempo's
vary a lot; the songs often go from soft to heavy in an instant they are always
focused and precise. The outcome is a very well written and played album, but
the growling and aggressive singing style in the songs might turn some off from
a great album, which is a real shame because I think they have found a perfect
balance between the extreme and innovative sounds they incorporate in their
style.
Good one!
