Artist: Epysode
Title: Obsessions
Genre: Progressive/ Melodic Metal
Release Date: 26th August 2011
Label: AFM Records
Album Review
Lately it seems that members of the progressive or power metal genre always have a need to go off and create a wildly in depth, but extremely entertaining concept album while bringing in an entire “cast” of fellow genre or band members to round out all the parts and bring the story to life on disc. In the past bands like XYSTUS and MAYAN - usually featuring members of EPIC or AFTER FOREVER - have been the highlights at creating this “metal plays” for fans to enjoy, but usually they’ve all ended up sounding the same or very similar to the original bands these members came from (such as either the same kind of clean female / male singing mixed with death growls and a huge symphonic backdrop). The only real difference that can be set up is the elaboration the artists go into making the story so engrossing it is more than just the basic metal experience with a few tracks and a theme going along the songs. This time, the brainchild behind the story of ‘Obsessions’ is Samuel Arkan, who most notable for his work in VIRUS IV. With the moniker EPYSODE, Arkan wrote all the lyrics and music to a whole new kind of metal opera that may seem more than just the “usual melodramatic junk”.
Overall the music on ‘Obsessions’ is strongly rooted in progressive and power metal, much in the way that EPICA or EVERGREY or even KAMELOT might be. Aside from playing the guitar, Arkan brought on a whole bunch of guest vocalists to play the parts from his story, and some are actually quite talented and famous. Most notable is Rick Altzi and Oddlief Stensland whose solid clean vocals from participation in bands like THUNDERSTONE and COMMUNIC give a crisp, AVANTASIA feel to the music. Their voices on tracks like ‘First Blood’ and ‘One Chance’ help give the music its power along with the heavy guitar parts performed by Arkan. The other standout feature of the music involves Kelly Sundown of DARKOLOGY, who brings that operatic female vocal touch to the music to appeal to those of bands from REVAMP to EPICA. She usually sings on the shorter interlude tracks that are more piano based such as ‘File 4108-1’, but when conjunction with the male vocalists on ‘March Of The Ghosts’ it sounds downright amazing and serves as an excellent final part of the act before the epilogue track. Other tracks like ‘Divine Whispers’ are dual vocal led such as by Magali Luyten of OVER US EDEN and Liselotte Hegt, formerly of CIRRHA NIVA, bring a full blown symphonic edge to the music that sounds more like XYSTUS.
The concept story of ‘Obsessions’ is split into five parts and follows a police investigation of a murder that eventually probes supernatural dimensions, which is expected in power/ progressive metal. The cool thing about having all these guest vocalists is that every single one takes on a certain role to make the album more cinematic. Rick Altzi is ‘The Ghost’, Kelly Sundown is ‘The Profiler’, and Liselotte Hegt is ‘The Medium’. Taking on these perspectives gives a whole new meaning to the experience of metal that not many people have to enjoy. The music sounds very similar to the more standard and generic bands like ELVENKING or KAMELOT, but the story is much bigger and will make fans want to real the lyrics and really listen to the story as opposed to listening to the music and if it bores them, skip around through tracks until they find something they like (if they’re lucky). It appears that maybe Samuel Arkan should be writing novels along with his music with all the creativity he has proven here with EPYSODE, as well as giving extra thanks to all the big named friends who helped him create this exciting album.
Tracklist
Genesis
01. File 4180-1 - 1:08
02. Silences of Dawn - 1:26
Phobia
03. First Blood - 4:39
04. Obsessions - 4:17
Insight
05. Invisible Nations - 5:05
06. Gemini Syndrome - 5:42
07. Fallen’s Portrait - 5:16
08. Season of redemption - 4:10
Redemption
09. The Other Side - 4:08
10. The Shadow Lord - 4:42
11. One Chance - 6:53
12. Divine Whispers - 5:32
Beginning
13. March of the Ghosts - 7:12
14. Last Sunset - 4:38
Line-up
Kristoffer Gildenlöw - Bass
Léo Margarit - Drums
Samuel Arkan - Guitars
Christophe Godin - Guitars
Julien Spreutels - Keyboards
Rick Altzi - Vocals
Kelly Sundown - Vocals
Oddleif Stensland - Vocals
Magali Luyten - Vocals
Liselotte "Lilo" Hegt - Vocals
Website
http://www.epysode.com/
Cover Picture
Rating
Music: 7
Sound: 8
Total: 7.5 / 10
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