Vanden Plas - Christ 0
Progressive
Inside Out
1. Christ 0
2. Postcard to god
3. Wish you were here
4. Silently
5. Shadow I am
6. Fireroses dance
7. Somewhere alone in the dark
8. January sun
9. Lost in silence
Vanden Plas have come to be tagged as the 'german Dream Theater' which doesn't suggest that I'd probably like them. In actuality though I find them infinitely more enjoyable as their songs tend to be more coherently structured and less prone to musical excess in my opinion.
The new album Christ 0 is a concept album, which is no stranger to the prog genre, and is based around The Count of Monte Cristo. Vocally this band does remind me a bit of LaBrie in tone but I would say he is a more powerful singer with more range and also reminds me a bit of Ian Parry, vocalist of Elegy. Musically there are reminders of Elegy as well as the music tends to have a power metal crunch in the guitars while incorporating rather spacey sounding keys fairly high in the mix. Other musical reminders include Royal Hunt and Angel Dust, though the guitar is not as aggressive as Angel Dust. Basically what we have here is a fairly typical progressive metal album with power leanings that help keep things heavy and not overly experimental or showy. There are some keyboard and guitar solo moments but I find them to generally be tasteful and suiting to the songs. I don't hear anything revolutionary here but there's enough variation as the band gos from power crunch to piano driven melodic moments to keep the listener interested. Some of the songs seem a little overlong for the sake of it, but it's a minor gripe. Any fans of Elegy, Royal Hunt, Dream Theater, etc can probably find something to like here.
Highlights: Postcard To God, Shadow I Am
Rating - 3.0/5
Progressive
Inside Out
1. Christ 0
2. Postcard to god
3. Wish you were here
4. Silently
5. Shadow I am
6. Fireroses dance
7. Somewhere alone in the dark
8. January sun
9. Lost in silence
Vanden Plas have come to be tagged as the 'german Dream Theater' which doesn't suggest that I'd probably like them. In actuality though I find them infinitely more enjoyable as their songs tend to be more coherently structured and less prone to musical excess in my opinion.
The new album Christ 0 is a concept album, which is no stranger to the prog genre, and is based around The Count of Monte Cristo. Vocally this band does remind me a bit of LaBrie in tone but I would say he is a more powerful singer with more range and also reminds me a bit of Ian Parry, vocalist of Elegy. Musically there are reminders of Elegy as well as the music tends to have a power metal crunch in the guitars while incorporating rather spacey sounding keys fairly high in the mix. Other musical reminders include Royal Hunt and Angel Dust, though the guitar is not as aggressive as Angel Dust. Basically what we have here is a fairly typical progressive metal album with power leanings that help keep things heavy and not overly experimental or showy. There are some keyboard and guitar solo moments but I find them to generally be tasteful and suiting to the songs. I don't hear anything revolutionary here but there's enough variation as the band gos from power crunch to piano driven melodic moments to keep the listener interested. Some of the songs seem a little overlong for the sake of it, but it's a minor gripe. Any fans of Elegy, Royal Hunt, Dream Theater, etc can probably find something to like here.
Highlights: Postcard To God, Shadow I Am
Rating - 3.0/5
