Set sail for a stormy ocean - A review of Evergrey's The Atlantic

Swedish progressive metal quintet Evergrey might have released its greatest output yet with its eleventh studio album in twenty-four years of existence. The gorgeous cover artwork represents the adventurous soundscapes on The Atlantic perfectly as it offers lights and shades through stormy compositions.

The record starts impressively with the epic progressive metal masterpiece ''A Silent Arc'' with its strong melancholic undercurrents that carry it successfully through almost eight stormy minutes of atmospheric entertainment.

The band cleverly puts its most accessible song on the record next in form of the emotional ''Weightless'' that convinces with heartfelt lyrics and vocals. The song is a great introduction to the band, excellent representation of this album and should become a fan favourite during the upcoming concert series.

Evergrey calms things down with sorrowful ballad ''All I Have'' that impresses with haunting piano sounds and heavy bass vibes that give it a slightly bleak and menacing tone despite the reduced musicianship.

The band enters oppressive soundscapes with ''A Secret Atlantis'', a most creative track with sinister radio play passages, industrial metal riffs and a desperate guitar solo. Only the ever-soothing vocals offer some relief during this wild ride.

The band somehow keeps the brilliant momentum of the first part alive in an equally convincing second half. One particularly outstanding song is industrial metal monster ''Currents'' with its vibrant electronic sounds and melodic vocals in an otherwise sinister tune with powerful drumming, longing guitar sounds and scarcely used mysterious keyboard sounds that blend in perfectly.

If you appreciate bass guitar sounds as much as I do, give ''Departure'' a try because the instrument positively domineers this elegiac yet efficient songs where the simple musicianship serves as brooding background for most versatile and soulful vocals.

Even the conclusion of the record is excellent with bleak and sinister album closer ''This Ocean''. It features particularly cold riffs, powerful drums and again impressive bass sounds. Epic keyboard sounds become more and more important and lead to an uneasy finale that almost ends the release on an unexpectedly thought-provoking cliffhanger. Other bands would take ten minutes to build up such a dramatic atmosphere but Evergrey accomplishes the same thing in four and a half consistent minutes.

I usually don't describe as many songs from a single record, so you might have figured out that Evergrey's The Atlantic is a particularly strong album filled with gloomy emotions, astonishing musicianship and powerful vocals singing inspired lyrics. As soon as the epic voyage is over, you will feel like starting it all over again despite the fresh waves hitting your face. Fans of clever heavy, power and progressive metal should all give this record a spin. What we have here might already be album of the year material. It's too early to tell at this point but Evergrey's The Atlantic underlines that the metal scene is still impressively vibrant, profound and creative these days.

Final rating: 96%