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A
debut album of a French band on a new label Replica (ex NTS). But in
this band we meet with some known and experienced musicians. Patrice
Guers also plays bass in Rhapsody and guitar player Dominique
Lourquin has also a past in that Italian film score metal band. But
the music of Inner Visions has little in common with the Rhapsody
sound.
After
an intro (music box and keys) ‘Big Brother’ opens with firm staccato
rhythms. It is an up-tempo progressive metal track, where drums are
in front of the mix and keyboards all over. These keys are
constantly present all album long. Vocalist Julien Jacquemond has a
quiet way of singing, high pitched vocals like the failure in ‘When
We’ll Be Kings’ he better avoids. A surplus value is the marvellous
guitar work of Lourquin all album long.
One sentence is regularly followed by another one with backing
vocals/choirs. ‘Eliminate’ has a pretty start with tinkling on a
piano and debouches into fast power metal. Not bad at all, but yet I
feel a kind of bloodlessness. When I listen to Inner Visions, I got
the feeling of having it heard so many times before and the band
just misses that magical touch to add that extra to the compositions
in order to make them an endless challenge. The skilfulness of the
musicians is beyond dispute. The instrumental ‘Maze Of Nowhere’
shows us what the band is able to. Brilliant guitar soloing and
charming bass runs. Here we have got more space for the musicians to
reveal themselves as trained artists. Maybe Jacquemond sings a bit
too nonchalant and shallow and that is what’s bothering me in the
end. Stays the fact that ‘Control The Past’ learns us that a number
of fine musicians are not a guarantee for an album full of ravishing
songs. |
