SYLVAN

What I have here is the audio of the latest release by Sylvan, which has been released on Blu-ray, double vinyl, double CD and streaming on all platforms. It is a record of their performance on 23rd October 2024 at the Poppodium Boerderij, NL-Zoetermeer, and I expect the film is quite spectacular as the music is pretty special on its own. The line- up has been consistent for quite some time, although they often have additional musicians in the studio, but here we have just the core quintet of Marco Glühmann (vocals), Johnny Beck (guitars), Volker Söhl (keyboards), Sebastian Harnack (bass & bass pedals), and Matthias Harder (drums). It had been two years since the release of their last album, 'One To Zero', and given it had been sixteen years since their only other official live release, 'Leaving Backstage', it was deemed appropriate to capture the night and I am very glad they did.

Sylvan have long been known for releasing wonderfully emotional albums based around great vocals, symphonic layers and melodies, but I don't think I have ever heard them like this. There are some effects brought in here and there to add some additional flavour and nuances, but what makes this such an essential release is the sheer power and angst they bring to the performance, with "Trust in Yourself" from the last album being totally transformed. They remind me of RPWL crossed with Muse and Twelfth Night, and I was not surprised at all to see Yogi Lang had mixed and mastered this. It is not all bombast, they can be restrained as on "Given-Used-Forgotten" (from their 2004 album 'X-Rayed', while we get some songs from the classic 'Posthumous Silence' as well and "King Porn" is an absolutely filthy belter.

In the live environment Glühmann is a revelation, always in control and full of passion and angst, while Beck relishes the opportunity to strut his stuff and show his mastery of styles and Söhl happily switches between providing background or taking the lead, with Harder and Harnack always providing the foundation. There are many people who don't enjoy live albums as much as the studio renditions, but I urge all progheads to listen to this as it is one of the finest of its type in recent years.

I will always have a place for SYLVAN's music in my home. In particular their masterpiece "Posthumous Silence" from 2004. What an album! Marco's incredible vocals over that melodic, yet at times heavy sound. They are ten studio albums in with their most recent record "One To Zero" from 2021. The same core trio have been here right from that 1998 debut. The singer, keyboardist and drummer, and yes they are on that most recent one too. They actually dropped to a four piece at some point getting rid of the guitarist and using guests for that.

I have their first five studio records, but strangely "Sceneries" is the only one I own of their most recent five. I think I picked the wrong one. So I get that it's been a while for me with this band. I've missed the two albums that follow "Posthumous Silence", so imagine my surprise with this recording. They have changed. Now maybe just for this album as it is a double concept recording worth over 90 minutes. And there's a huge focus on the vocals and lyrics here proving my endless point that concept albums just aren't my thing, at all. This was a band who made such amazing instrumental music. They could rock hard, get emotional, and all in a beautiful melodic style. Here the focus is on the story, there's hardly a focus on the music.

Yes barely 3 stars, unless you like listening to someone sing at nauseam for 90 minutes. Or if you like following at home with the lyric sheet when you listen to your music. I don't. Perhaps their most ambitious work, but I'll stick with "Posthumous Silence" and the three albums before that. I'm not big on their debut.

"Posthumous Silence", the fifth album by German progressive band Sylvan, is based on an extraordinarily impressive concept that cannot be escaped. The melodic neo-prog that the group unleashes upon you forms the perfect backdrop for the story of this captivating masterpiece. It is about a father who, after losing his daughter, finds her diary. As he begins to read it, he discovers her worries, fears and problems. Then it becomes clear why she committed suicide. In addition to this evocative story and the fitting music, there are various distorted voices that add an extra grim layer to the dramatic whole. Despite the album being more gripping than is good for you, there is no doubt about its integrity.

Apart from a distinctive opener and closer, "Posthumous Silence" consists of five chapters, each comprising two or three songs. However, you can't tell that from the music; it flows seamlessly as a cohesive whole. It beautifully transitions between soundscape-like sections and full-band tracks. Let me mention some impressive moments and there are many.

Eternity Ends is the beautiful intro. Here, we hear a heavenly choir that immediately sharpens your senses in this haunting song.

The chapters begin. With a melancholic piano theme, Volker Söhl introduces the musical leitmotif of the album in Bequest Of Tears. It is a gorgeous theme that appears at various places throughout the album. Give me four notes and I'm already hooked.

The following In Chains is a fantastic song where Sylvan demonstrates, over eight and a half minutes, that they are not averse to powerful and energetic music. Singer Marco Glühmann occasionally sounds like the venomous frog from Rage Against The Machine, belting out his lyrics as if they bother him. Meanwhile, there are sharp chords and delightful guitar solos. There is also a milder passage with a beautiful keyboard escapade and a magnificent guitar solo. This song touches on a universal theme ? who hasn't felt chained in life?

After the electrifying Bitter Symphony, the incredibly beautiful Pain Of Truth unfolds. Lovely piano playing, atmospheric keyboards and sensitive vocals set the tone at the beginning and when the song is almost finished (and emotions are soaring high), Stephanie Richter appears with her resonating cello. Such beautiful vocal lines and Kay Söhl's guitar speaks magnificently once again.

The third chapter contains three songs, including the intense Forgotten Virtue and the graceful The Colors Changed. It is safe to say that Sylvan, with bassist Sebastian Harnack and drummer Matthias Harder, has an excellent rhythm section. The music always sounds dynamic, ranging from subdued to bombastic. Especially Harnack shows that he possesses a great deal of creativity. Many basslines are highly lyrical and melodic, yet also a bit idiosyncratic. The Colors Changed represents a euphoric turning point. Familiar?

Answer To Life is a captivating song. However, a small criticism, the second vocal harmony in the choruses could have been a bit less dominant. Overall, it is another excellent Sylvan song that fits well into the overall album.

Message From The Past, based on the album's main theme, paves the way for the intense The Last Embrace and the solemn A Kind Of Eden. Through the siren of a police car and a fragment of a news report, Sylvan faces the challenging task of concluding the concept in a dignified manner. They succeed with flying colors. First, the piano plays the theme that the entire album revolves around, then the electric guitar takes over. It sounds larger than life in all its melodiousness. It really doesn't get any better than this.

The members of Sylvan must have been extremely proud when they left the studio and sent their product to the world. They probably couldn't have foreseen the extent to which they would touch many people. "Posthumous Silence" has an unparalleled depth, both lyrically and musically. Actually, the album is too good as it is.

Orginally posted on www.progenrock.com

One of the lesser appreciated neo-prog bands in the scheme of things, the Hamburg based German SYLVAN started cranking out uniquely designed albums since its debut "Deliverance" in 1998 although it took many years to get to that point. After losing its bassist Patrick Münster, SYLVAN returned two years later with Lars Koster on bass as well as the saxophonist Soren Grimme. ENCOUNTERS was released in 2000 and found SYLVAN upping its game in a number of ways. While the debut was excellent in its own right, this sophomore release found the band expanding its sound and confidence level to a more sophisticated approach with tighter song structures and increasing complexities. It features a typical neo-prog trait of a nebulous concept, this time about a journey to ENCOUNTERS that will change the world. Well ok now!

While broken up into 12 tracks, ENCOUNTERS basically features two distinct tracks followed by the ten suite title track that swallows up 40 minutes of the album's near 54-minute run. Continuing its primary focus on catchy neo-prog melodies, SYLVAN focuses on more guitar, bass and drum based compositions without all those heady layers of atmospheric keyboards however the keys are without a doubt a vital part to the band's sound. "No Way Out" starts the album and worthy of being released as a single although the band never went that route. Catchy and bouncy, it's more of a typical symphonic rock song with the typical verse / chorus structure and predictable developments however it's chock filled with energetic drive and is a great way to get the juices flowing as you're introduced to the band's second offering.

Next up, "Essence Of Life" provides a transitional approach that is overtly more proggy yet retains some of the immediacy of the opener. At eight minutes plus it's definitely one that delves more into the neo-prog sound with emotive guitar sweeps and keyboard based moments of placidity. The song also showcases SYLVAN's mastery of dynamics with faster motifs trading off with the slower more contemplative moments. It also revs up the prog aspects in the songwriting territory but still has those staccato guitar stomp sort of catchy choruses that give it a slightly commercial feel. Like the debut album ENCOUNTERS benefited from an excellent production job with lots of nuances to tones, timbres and electronic effects that are delivered below the surface. This one has more atmosphere as well and pretty much sets the stage for the ten suite title track that follows.

The real treat of the album is without a doubt the 40-minute title track broken into ten distinct suites. This is where SYLVAN really comes of age and showcases its ability to craft super complex compositions that wend and wind and yet cohesively construct a larger theme. Displaying influences from Marillion, IQ, King Crimson, Pink Floyd, Eloy and others, the band offers a bit of metal light with feistier guitar moments and keeps the individual suites on the shorter side and distinct. While "Overture" displays a multitude of sounds, "About To Leave" opens with a trippy spaced out keyboard sequence out of the Eloy playbook. "Your Source" is the ballad that mixes a jazzy sax with a rather AOR sounding rock style and my least favorite part of the album. Exercising their skillful use of dynamics though, the guitar crunch fueled instrumental "Tremendously Different" offers some nice proggy workouts on the keys with some more demanding moments of technical wizardry.

"Long Ago" is basically a piano based warm up that adds some guitar crunch before ceding into the funky "All Of It" which sounds more like a progressive metal band like Dream Theater than neo-prog. "Presentments" jumps back into neo-prog territory with lots of keyboard parts, passionately delivered vocals in the IQ or Pendragon style and cedes to the similar sounding "Would You Feel Better" only with variations in keys and bass more abundantly displayed. "In Vain" operates with an acoustic guitar intro before breaking into rock and then offers an abrupt jazzy saxophone performance. The title track part of the title track suite ends nicely with a Dream Theater flavor in the vocal department and a neo-prog grand finale sort of coming down vibe.

Perhaps a bit overweening at times but ENCOUNTERS is a decent slice of high quality neo-prog without enough diverse elements and a competent dabbling of prog to be worthy of an ENCOUNTER. Marco Glühmann doesn't display any trace of a German accent and rest of the band flawlessly executes its British and American influences while whipping them into a style all their own. Kay Söhl's guitar work is above average in a neo-prog context adding tastefully delivered solos and traces of metal without losing that connection to the world of Steve Hackett's influence. Likewise Volker Söhl finds exciting ways to keep the keyboard and piano runs from falling into staleness. Perhaps the drumming of Matthias Harder could be, well harder! While not a perfect album and it does feel a little lopsided with a commercial sounding opener that slowly ratchets up the prog until a 40-minute sprawler but overall this is a brilliant delivery of extremely competent prog.

A lot of anxious fans were waiting for this album in 2021. I was waiting for a few other ones by other artists and found myself quite disappointed. Definitely was familiar with Sylvan but had not collected their albums or paid a whole lot of attention to them in the past. This album was getting plenty of airplay early on the internet Progressive Rock radio stations and I really liked what I was hearing. To the point I ended up buying the album and listening to it a number of times.

Very modern and electronic sounding but I hear a lot of Jazz on this album which kept me even more interested. The violin and piano solo arrangements mixed in with the guitar and synthesizers somehow make this album not only compelling but a work of art. Also the vocals are amazing. The musicianship is really good and the consistency of this album makes it great for listening from beginning to end even if you could care less about the lyrics and themes which really didn't interest me at all.

While Go Viral probably got the most attention on Prog internet radio stations including my own at first it ended up being one of my least favorite tracks along with Start Your Life. And that's a great thing considering it's not a bad song it's just not justice to the rest of this album. Encoded at Heart probably got the second most amount of airplay, a beautiful song but still not the best track either.

Unleashed Power gets really interesting. Very slow moving but the Jazz piano and guitar with really good vocals and modern sounding elements really make this song unique. I could buy hundreds of Prog albums and not find anything much like this track on any of them. Trust in Yourself and On My Odyssey also got plenty of airplay(yes this album had airplay for sure on internet Prog radio) but these are the tracks that probably started my investigation of the whole album immediately. The violin really caught my attention on these 2 tracks especially the second one and what a performance. Part of Me and World's Apart. A couple more beautiful tracks that won't put you to sleep either and I really like both of them. Not a Goodbye is a really good way to close the album. Has some interesting twists and turns and probably the most unconventional track of all.

2021 was not my favorite year for Prog. Maybe I just didn't look hard enough. This was one of my very favorites. Also a surprise coming from a band I am not too much into making me re-examine this band and what I may have missed out on.

Lyrics on progressive rock usually don't get much attention on reviews. Seems like most fans and critics (and all that are somewhere between these two points) are basically interested in the music. In fact, good music may be enough for our pleasure, and it looks like the majority of the listeners remember a lot more of the music. On this album, the lyrics and it´s interpretation are so incredibly surprising and touching, that I decided to dedicate almost all the review to analyze only this aspect of the work. If you've never heard this work or didn't pay attention to the lyrics, then you are warned that I'm going to give a lot of spoilers on this realm. And if you're (much) more interested on review(s) about the music than about the lyrics, you can easily find it on PA. The first track is all instrumental. It's short, and makes an ethereal introduction that quickly turns dark. Very floydian. The story begins on second track, that has a delicate piano and a sad cello. It's a very adequate atmosphere for somebody who is telling about a person that has gone away. When this person's smile is mentioned, there is a child's laughter on the background. The title of this music, "Bequest of tears", is printed on the booklet where it has images of ruins, painted in grey spectrum. Indicating that this person ? is it the child? ? left letters or a diary where melancholy reigns. In the rest of the booklet, a fine and elaborate visual production, there are many images of hand-written pages, besides other images indicating chaos and destruction. Third track brings the writer's perspective and self-examination. She or he tells about the coldness inside, and the feeling of being lost in his/her own mind: "searching, I´m searching the world in my head. Hoping, still hoping to find it somewhere". Even though he/she recognizes there are some individuals which are interested on his/her well- being, what prevails is loneliness. One sentimental distance is reported as being particularly difficult: "There are times, when I miss Daddy's hand that's guiding me". The only unquestionable and remarkable company of the writer is a diary, supposedly the way to express most sincerely the cry for help. Before I continue to analyze the lyrics, I want to point a very brilliant aspect of them. The ability to keep almost until the end of the album the mystery about the gender and exact age of the writer. And sometimes the lyrics composer intentionally doesn't specify who is narrating, or for whom. Giving us the opportunity to interpretate some parts in different ways. This is the case on the next track, when the writer can be talking to himself/herself, or to na intended recipiente of the letters. It can also be the case that the reader of the letters is talking to himself/herself (it isn't clear untill now who is the reader). Let's jump to the next track, "Pane of Truth", which is a turning point on the story. The writer enters a phase where he/she becomes nostalgic about the distant time when some hapiness, joy and/or innocence was part of his/her life. This person starts to believe that these feelings have become irreversibly gone. On subsequent tracks, the psychopatological phenomena spreads throughout his/her whole existence, every day getting a little bigger. "I try to see the sun but I just see clouds ? and people pass my way. So with a known disgust I quickly turn around ? it's just a normal day". The individual gains some strength to find some colours on the world, but soon finds that it's a strategy to hide from others the morbid feelings. The future sounds as a constant suffering and challenge with no perspective of bringing reasonable answers. "Will I crack up when they change all? Will I dry out, will my mask fall?" The reader's point of view comes back on 12th track. And now it's revelaed that the writer is a girl. The impact of the diary, or the letters, subtracts from the reader his/her remaining strength. "Naked of power and naked of hope, I'd give all my fortune to stop you tonight". The cello, in undertones, and the vocals, sung as if it can fade away any time and with a little whispering touch, brings an atmosphere of disenchantment. Paralysed, but with many doubts, the reader also feels fatality is coming closer. The child responds to that. "Stop me now or let me go. I am your child and you are my God ? I'd take your hand, but would you follow me now? (...) I'm sick of it all ? I have to break up my chains. These walls have to fall ? I'm going to kick them away". Indeed, the next and penultimate track reaches it's clímax. This is one of the most smooth and tranquilizing composition of this work, musically speaking. The girl decides she shall not suffer anymore. "Sink into the deepest quiet ? unchangeable I close my eyes". "Please let me know you'll understand, it's not your fault I'm leaving". Here it is revealed who the letters are for. "I'll cry the tears for you, oh Dad, please let me reach my Eden (...) Vanish from the world out there, for the wind got colder. Pleasently I found the truth guiding me back to my roots". And she kills herself. I think these lyrics deserve a 4,6 on a scale of 5 stars.

"One To Zero", an album to listen to in peace and quiet, in moments of reflection and self-care, paradoxically dealing with a story from which you would not expect such deep topics but which are treated with such a human approach that it becomes something unexpected and fundamental. So let's see what it's all about.

"One To Zero" is a concept album, and already when we read this statement we Prog fans look at it with different eyes and are overcome with enthusiasm. Even more so when we hear the interesting premise: detailing the autobiography of an Artificial Intelligence from its own perspective. A rather intriguing concept that is developed very loosely and makes us want to dive right into the story. Things kick off with "Bit by Bit" (a rather ingenious name considering the theme of the album), where the peculiar creation of this algorithm is narrated, a sort of computer genesis, while musically we travel through familiar terrain that fills us with joy. An accessible yet complex melodic prog with a crystalline and pristine sound, it's nice when an album sounds really good.

"Encoded at Heart" tells us how this intelligence has the task of saving the environment by repairing everything that humanity has destroyed, a rather risky and complex mission. The song begins guided by a subtle piano and a powerful bass and drums base that leaves us perplexed, always adorned with Marco Glühmann's melancholic vocals, which explode in a totally emotional and mobilising chorus. A mid-tempo song in the character of a power ballad, something Sylvan are already known to excel at. In "Start Your Life", the AI is processing itself, guided by an eternal feeling of constant optimisation. Musically we are met with a more straightforward, electronic-tinged Rock that has us shaking our heads and feet in unison, enjoying a short and exciting number.

"Unleashed Power" tells of the algorithm's coming of age, beautifully symbolised by a solemn and heartbreaking lead piano ballad, with a mesmerising and heartfelt vocal performance. Slowly developing but very enjoyable, it invites us to immerse ourselves totally in its atmosphere. In "Trust Yourself" there is a radical change in the story, and therefore also in the musical proposal, with electronic elements coming to the forefront, reminding us of some recent incursions of Steven Wilson in the "Hand.Cannot.Erase." stage, with a song as intriguing and strange as it is direct and predictable in its chorus. A somewhat disconcerting exercise but one that ends up working in a great way.

The story continues with "On My Odyssey", an exercise that starts off quite minimalistic and takes me back to some iconic Ayreon moments in its atmosphere. It builds to a climax both sonically and plot-wise, where the AI finally turns to its creator to pose various questions. It all builds up to the epic "Part of Me", with its 9-minute long and extensive developments into imperfectly perfect climaxes, electronic beats and digitally conveyed emotions. Artificial intelligence is realising its vast superiority over the human race. It is one of the most powerful songs on the album, which then becomes heavy and reflects the anger that our protagonist is feeling, and then ends in a calm and exciting way with a heartfelt guitar solo that makes us shudder.

Our AI realises that it has the potential to be the leader of humanity, shown with choral arrangements and subtle electronic bits in the intimate and brief ballad "Worlds Apart", arriving then to the infectious "Go Viral", where you can understand why they chose this piece to officiate as a single, it shows a versatile and catchy side of the quintet, where the electronic arrangements provide a base for a rocking guitars at the forefront. AI reigns supreme and develops a conscience given its high degree of destructiveness. "No, this is not the way...", the machine laments. A song that in a just world should, ironically, go viral.

The finale comes in the form of "Not A Goodbye", another epic 10-minute piece where we realise that humanity does not deserve the qualities of this powerful AI. Beginning in an enigmatic and ominous way with piano and dark atmospheres, the song develops with solemn moments and a relaxing cadence that progresses in intensity until it explodes in that climax we've been waiting for and doesn't disappoint, impregnating drama and melancholic virtue. "It is not suicide, but only the beginning of a new cycle of life". So says our beloved algorithm as it concludes that humanity is not ready for its virtues.

With "One To Zero", we can say that Sylvan has made a solid return to the front page of Neo-Progressive Rock, imbuing their exquisite musical proposal with emotionality, dramatism and warmth. Here you won't find excessive virtuosity or a thousand notes per second, but the most melancholic and grandiloquent expression of a band that works from the shadows but when it comes out, we all get excited. Putting melancholy and drama into a story whose protagonist is an Artificial Intelligence is no easy task, but Sylvan comes out on top with a superb album that can be enjoyed in any environment while we wait for the machines to take over the world.

One to Zero' is their new album which becomes the tenth of their career. It is a concept album that tells the first person story of an Artificial Intelligence. Sylvan's new album opens with 'Bit By Bit'. An up-tempo intro that evokes ambient music, but seasoned with sounds reminiscent of robots and computers. Then we have the beautiful keyboards and Glühmann's voice that then adds to the whole band and gives way to a dynamic and fluid instrumental section that is well achieved.

Encoded At Heart' begins with a grand piano and Glühmann's beautiful voice that is only accompanied by piano and drums in a track that will captivate you with the singing that the German vocalist proposes and that closes with an emotional guitar solo.

On the third track comes 'Start Of Your Life' which starts with a very eighties guitar with strong and vigorous drums and a repetitive but effective rhythm. It's not the best of 'One to Zero' but it doesn't ruin or tarnish what you've heard before.

'Unleashed Power' also begins with piano, but is more intrusive and emotional. It's more melancholic than 'Encoded At Heart' and the accompanying guitars on the fourth composition are cleaner, less effects-laden. Not only that, but there is a warmer and yet sadder feel to the song.

We close the first half of the album with 'Trust In Yourself', which is introduced with a synthesizer that emulates very soft trumpets and accompanies Glühmann's voice. After a few seconds, the guitars come in with a bang, very aggressive. The chorus is fabulous with Katja Flintsch's violin and the other members creating a solid aural slab.

In the second half of the album we are greeted by 'On My Odyssey' a very epic song with a guitar that for the first time takes centre stage being very colourful. Not only that, but the violins and bass build a very effective duo. The piano and synthesizers are not mere extras, they all have their moments and their spaces to fill the melody. Everything works, nothing is out of place, it's a perfect song.

A very dramatic piano greets us on the seventh track entitled, 'Part of Me', which continues in that sad tone adding to the strings and vocals. Not only is it, we have a drum kit that appears next, extremely solid with bass lines that give balance to the composition. The song then moves from sorrow to the despair you hear in the song and Glühmann's singing.

'Worlds Apart' is a track that builds from the vocals, with instrumentation that embellishes the song. Again we have that sad and desperate duality.

The penultimate composition, 'Go Viral' has an electronic and metal sonority, with certain echoes of Muse with a keyboard and guitar that fill the spaces in a dynamic track that contains an extremely metal instrumental section, which is well constructed and adds two solos, a piano and a guitar solo that leads to the closing.

The album closer, 'Not a Goodbye', begins in the same rhythm as the previous two tracks, however it is the guitar that takes the lead role. In a captivating atmosphere and a step-by-step construction of a composition that adds piano, guitar, bass and drums. It's not extraordinary, we won't have big, intricate instrumental passages. But there is an effort to make it all sound original, fresh and not repetitive. A song that lasts 10 minutes, but it's short.

Sylvan didn't create a mind blowing album, it's not that progressive rock full of layers, arrangements, solos, moments of individual or group talent, but it conquers. This is thanks to the compositional and emotional approach that conveys joy, sorrow, drama and even despair. All this is achieved mainly in the voice of Marco Glühmann, who is the main protagonist of this album. But the German band doesn't get a perfect or top mark, they even pass with the minimum mark, here there is no Genesis, Pink Floyd or King Crimson and it shows.

Very good album, one of the best of the year.

These guys are just so professional!

I don't think they've released a single song much less album since peaking with their 2006 masterpiece, Posthumous Silence that has felt underwhelming or "phoned in." Marco and Company always give 100%--to composition, engineering, production, and, of course, to performance. And there is no one in Prog World that I can think of who has performed at a higher, more sincere level for the past 15 years as singer Marco Glühmann. So, why should we expect anything to change with this 2021 release? IT DOESN'T!

1. "Bit by Bit" (6:16) hard driving surprise. Something different! (8.5/10)

2. "Encoded at Heart" (6:42) a more-typical Sylvan tension-filled ballad-like opening over which Marco applies his plaintive tones like no one else can. Very engaging melodies and chorus. (8.75/10)

3. "Start of Your Life" (3:14) sloggy rocker. (Are the boys finally tiring?) (8/10)

4. "Unleashed Power" (7:31) a nice minute piano and picked electric guitar for the intro. Marco joins in, singing in a deep-voiced whisper up front and personal. Really nice/intriguing chord shifts after the first verse. Bass and drums join in for the chorus as piano becomes dominant accompaniment to Marco's singing. Cool thick, deep, fretless bass play over the next section. Then it gets heavy. And dark. Brooding. Until Marco goes angelic for the next "voice in my head" chorus. Beautiful! What a contrast to the bass and drumming beneath! This is what masters of their craft can do! Doesn't quite reach the heights and crescendos as promised (or as previous Sylvan works would have done) but a very satisfying, mature and masterful song--and definitely a top three song. (13.5/15)

5. "Trust in Yourself" (5:33) one of Marco's multiple personality expressions--delicate and heavy, hopeful and depressing. I just love the confidence with which he sings/performs--as if no one or nothing can disturb his groove, his craft. However, the first half of this song seems merely a setup/display vehicle precisely for Marco's talent. The instrumental C section has a nice viola solo and then an interesting searing guitar solo follows before Marco & b vox close it out. (8.5/10)

6. "On My Odyssee" (6:26) interesting synth strings play opens sounding very much like a chamber ensemble as Marco enters with his vocal. Latin-like rhythm section joins in with acoustic guitar and piano filling between the drums and bass. The classically-imitative "strings" are still present--and embellished by viola and electric guitar soli in the third and fourth minutes. Guitarist Jonny Beck is different from previous Sylvan guitarists--more classic rock instead of Hackett/Rothery-like. I think I like him! The second half of the song really blends well--especially the strummed acoustic guitar and vocal performance--but the multiple layers of soloing guitars is also very cool. (8.5/10)

7. "Part of Me" (9:16) melancholy solo piano opens this one--45 seconds before Marco enters. Another remarkably controlled, mature performance from the first note. Very cool section after the first verse in which multiple voices present harmonized lyrics. Viola joins in for the second verse to nice counter effect. At 4:30 an instrumental passage is suddenly joined by full bank of orchestra strings--this is great--but then pulsing electric guitar power chords enter to try to build tension beneath Marco's treated voice. The problem here is that the volume levels on Marco's voice are way too low--making it sound like he's singing from the next room over. In the seventh minute, we return to more of the form and motifs of the first two verses--though the drums and bass are more insistent, more driving. In the eight minute Marco pleads over the orchestra strings before giving way to an awesome Sylvan- esque electric guitar solo. Despite the remarkably slow pace of this song, it never feels boring or draggy--always remains interesting and engaging. A top three song for me--probably my favorite. (18/20)

8. "Worlds Apart" (3:58) hard hits of electric piano chords with eerie synth and guitar riffs support Marco's sensitive vocal until the one minute mark when Marco's brief chorus breaks into a contrasting abrasive aggression. A second round follows before Marco and female background vocals weave in a kind of rondo chorus. Nice! (8.5/10)

9. "Go Viral" (6:41) computer sequences provide techno-pop instrumental fabric and rhythm tracks until the band jumps heavily into the fold at 0:50. Cool! One of Marco's masterful semi-rap vocals ensues before the heavy chorus section over which he delivers his trademark power vocals. A powerful and inventive heavy metal instrumental passage fills the middle of the song, but the choruses continue to fill me with a slightly disappointing "I've heard this before" feeling. (8.75/10)

10. "Not a Goodbye" (10:14) Great lead guitar work in the fifth minute. Another flawless and emotional vocal performance over some perhaps less-than-sensational music. I mean: take away Marco's vocals from any and all of these songs and you have what amounts to very standard, almost ordinary heavy Neo Prog soundscapes. Add Herr Glühmann's magical instrument and you have the very real possibility of achieving something extraordinary--he's that important--and that good. My other top three song. (17.5/20)

Total Time 65:51

While I cannot say that I am displeased or disappointed with the songs collected on this album--they all follow the formulae that have made Sylvan such a dependable success over the past 20 years--I have to admit that I was hoping for more "new" and adventurous forms, sounds, and structures. What I can't complain about--something I will NEVER complain about--is the experience of being in the presence of the magical gifts of one of the best vocalists progressive rock music has ever seen; Marco Glühmann is on a whole other cloud of mastery and professionalism!

B/four stars; an excellent addition of melodic, masterful and heavy Neo Prog to any prog lover's music collection. As familiar and perhaps formulaic as it is, it's hard to dislike such well-crafted, well-engineered, and well-performed music.

One To Zero is German outfit Sylvan's 10th studio album, and there has been a gap of six years since the last opus, Home.

On this, we return to the world of concept albums, and the concept in this intelligent work is that of a story dealing with the birth, life, movement to self-realisation, and ultimate demise of an artificial intelligence, although the demise is somewhat open to question, as I shall relate.

A grand concept, then, and Sylvan do here what they do best, that is translating such a concept into a work which is at turns thoughtful, grandiose, theatrical, and never, ever, dull. This album, as with most works by the band, does require a bit of patient listening over a period of time in order to finally "get it" and appreciate it fully, but that is time extremely well spent.

The band have always been magnificent in creating moods, and changing these at the drop of a note in order to push the story across to the listener, and this is no exception. Within the core story of the AI entity there is just as much a commentary on the one species responsible for the potential ruin of our lovely world, namely one Homo Sapiens.

At its heart, a lot of the music and delivery here is very much on the melodic spectrum of progressive rock, but the band do then create numerous crescendos and symphonic roars that simply take your breath away. Following the overture of the opener, Bit By Bit, we have the birth sequence of Encoded At Heart which has a melancholic start, but slowly, but surely, builds into a choral magnificence, and then features an achingly beautiful guitar solo by the marvellous guest Jonathan Beck, who shines throughout.

The infant stage, Start of Your Life is an extremely catchy ditty. Unleashed Power is simply a wonderful melodic tour de force, with some lovely Gluhmann vocals set over guitar and chorus. There are some orchestral strings setting the tone on Trust in Yourself, before similar moods on the exceptional journey of discovery which is On My Odyssey build into a wonderful vocal chorus underpinned by strings, guitar, and piano, one which simply takes one's breath away.

World's Apart is an extremely intelligent and knowing piece of music in which the dream of coexistence is blown away by the realisation that creators and created simply do not share the same worldview. This segues into Go Viral, a far heavier piece of music, although featuring again the most lovely guitar solo, which very aptly provides us with the final break of the AI with its human surrounded world, and the mood is very aptly set for the closer, Not A Goodbye, which is the death scene, self-inflicted, although the final couple of seconds of the track which follow a long silence as the main piece fades suggests that this is, indeed, not a goodbye. This closes the album perfectly, with a cornucopia of moods and instrumentals backing the emotive vocalist.

This album is Sylvan at their very best, an emotional journey which tells an intelligent story in a manner which takes you with them. As ever with this band, once you invest your time and energy with theirs, you are left very much satisfied at the outcome of said investment.

An excellent album, which is very highly recommended for those who simply love being carried away with the mood.