RED BENDING NIGHTS

It's a pity I'm seemingly the only one here to review the releases of this Finnish two-man act. While I certainly realize the notable musical talent of Rami Turtiainen and Petteri Kurki, I can't help feeling that PRP's direction isn't very much up to my personal taste (whereas their earlier three-man group Grus Paridae was easier for me to enjoy). That said, I nevertheless consider this second PRP album to be an improvement over the debut some three years ago. At least this album doesn't feel disjointed. Instead it appears to be quite a coherent artistic entity. Sadly though I find it hard to really "get into", ie. to understand what it tries to say in the end. Cryptic track titles like 'Revelation of the Dark Agitbra' or 'Amortization of the Blazing Vitriol' do not help.

Turtiainen is credited responsible for composing and Kurki for arrangements. These multi-instrumentalists indeed do seamless cooperation. Even their vocals are tightly joined together in harmony. The sonic landscape in general is exciting and rich. It's like a peculiar mix of Porcupine Tree reminding hard and modern intensity and more acoustic nuances one can hear e.g. in Nursery Cryme era Genesis (12-strings?). But it must be said that the heavy-ish and at times hostile-sounding intensity with rather fast tempos is the dominant side of the mix.

Without a dedicated concentration from the listener the album is bound to feel rather restless and samey most of the time. My fave is without a question the final track 'Gallery' (which is also the longest piece) as it offers some kind of emotional relief and conclusion after the troubled waters, even though it doesn't entirely remain in calmness.

Despite not wholeheartedly warming to this album personally, I give a good rating for a high degree of originality and technical competence.