 |
: : Review : :
Coming right out of the concept of the Evolutionist Theory, explaining the whole
cycle of life from the origins all the way to the cycle’s demise, Chain has created
a record that stands out among many concept albums, but that is not where the albums
creativity ends, the music is what I see as the center of this record.
Mixing elements of conceptual opuses, improvisational jamming, symphonic overtones,
heavy metal riff structure, as well as sub ambient atmospheric timbre structure
providing the tone for “Reconstruct,” Chain brings forth an aggressive album filled
with diversity that lacks redundancy that plagues many acts today, making every cut
on this record stand out alone.
For openers, “Reconstruct” has it’s
moments for discrete production where the mix of heavy guitars, Hammond organs,
keyboard strings (done very well, almost sounding real) sounding as if there was
really an orchestra in a symphony hall, busy Zonder/Portnoy style drumming, as well
as analog synths used among the radio noises and vocoders to compliments the records
atmosphere.
“Reconstruct” starts out with two instrumental cuts “Earthscape” and the jam session
“Before There Was,” pre-cursing the elaborate musicianship showcased on this record.
The “Earthscape” cuts are more or less interludes (some are completely avant-garde),
creating transition between the songs, but “Before There Was,” is more of an
overture to the record, which seems to be written the same way many overtures to
movies/musicals are. For the points when the record has it’s moments in the normal
song vein; cuts like the Kansas-esque “First Life,” mixing the Hammond organ with
the strings being brought forward with the thick guitars pulled back to compliment
the rhythmic stance of this cut; “Impact” sounding like a more symphonic version of
an early Queensryche cut (guitars brought up front in the mix), the Rhapsody style
jam session of “What There Will Be,” and “Conspiracy” which sounds like a modern
Marillion cut, keep the record on the upbeat pace.
There are slower paced cuts like “The Planet is Fine,” which starts out as a piano
ballad that eventually leads to an emotional Dream Theater related cut, not to
mention the dark “Signs” which sounds like a “Misplaced Childhood-era” Marillion cut
with a little more guitars.
“Earthscape” in general showcases production, musicianship, as well as putting
together the whole concept that Chain has put together. The record is generally
bright sounding in mood and tone, the sound effects of the “Earthscape” cuts are
executed to enhance the record sonic quality, not to mention that the overall sound
is not dense, which is surprising due to the fact that so many layers of instruments
were used here, making the engineering skills notable on this record. Since I am on
the subject of the instrumentation, I will add that the arrangements cause the
instruments to compliment each other without creating a muddy-layered mess, being
discrete among the guitar and keyboard solos. Very well done overall, highly
enjoyable for Marillion, Dream Theater, Rhapsody, and Threshold fans, and well worth
checking out if you have not already heard this on the Progressive Rock For You
(Volume One) compilation.
Rating: 8 keyboards out of 10
Reviewer: Tommy Hash
: :
Visit the artist website : :
http://www.jinglegroup.com/chain.html
Email the band -
theHenning@jinglegroup.com
: : Record Label : :
Progrock Records
You can also purchase this CD from:
ProgRock Records
: : DISCOGRAPHY : :
Reconstruct - 2002 |
 |
