Tuesday, September 20, 2016

EVERGREY: “The Storm Within”

Rating: RRRRR
Label: Inside Out Music
Review by Martien Koolen

Evergrey’s previous album Hymns For The Broken was one of my favorite albums of 2014 and maybe my favorite Evergrey album so far…. Now, two years later the best Swedish prog metal band release the strongest album of their 20 year career called The Storm Within. The album contains 11 brand new tracks and it is their most progressive record so far, filled with dark, melancholic and progressive elements that make this album a must for lovers of melodic prog metal.

The Storm Within opens with one of my favorite tracks of the album, namely Distance, also the first single and video of the album. The intro of Distance is an awesome keys melody, followed by massive guitar riffs and a really addictive and very melodic chorus; in the middle we are treated to an unbelievable guitar solo and the song ends with a children’s choir singing the catchy chorus. Follow up Passing Through is the next highlight, an up tempo heavy song with a ferocious guitar solo and excellent lyrics. If you like the heavy side of Evergrey you should check out My Allied Ocean, as it is one of the most aggressive songs from Englund and Co. Another highlight is without any doubt the almost power ballad called In Orbit, which features a wonderful duet between Tom Englund and  “our” Floor Jansen.

The Storm Within ends with the title track, which is a perfect closer for this amazing album, as that track is really complex, innovative, diverse and kind of reminds me of my favorite band of all time Rush…. The Storm Within is Evergrey’s masterpiece, a massive album filled with excellent tracks (absolutely NO fillers), which should be listened to at maximum volume, over and over again….. Cannot wait to hear some of the new songs on stage, especially Distance, Disconnect and The Storm Within; magical!!

No comments:

Post a Comment