TRACED IN AIR

Cynic has returned after fifteen years of absence to show us that they will continue what they have started with a new album called Traced in Air.

The fifteen years of their absence really pays off when you hear this new album. Not only is the basic overall sound of the record similar to their previous record, Focus, they have improved that sound using their fifteen years of experiences they have gained from working with different side projects like Portal and Aeon Spoke. Paul Masdival's guitar playing is superb as usual and the dreaded robotic vocals, (which I really didn't mind in the first place) are replaced with a less-robotic voice with more melodic range, delivering a cleaner, more crisper sound. Singing along with the cleaner robotic vocals, Tymon Kruidenier provides the opposite end of the clean voice with his growls. Malone also makes a come back to intertwine his warm bass playing with Paul's guitar playing along with Tymon's. Along with that, Reinhert also makes a return to deliver some of the best drum playing I have ever heard.

With these four musicians playing their respective instruments, the music comes to life and breathes giving the album a very organic feel; which was also similar to Focus but this time the band is tightened and more focused thanks to their fifteen years of experience. Not only is their music alive and unique, their music flows into each other so perfectly that you may mistake as the album as being one big composition of jazz-fusion death metal. The songs are intertwined with each other giving the album more energy.

Since each of the songs are so unified with each other, there is no weak spot in this record. Each of the songs are of perfect length and of perfect composition that there is no dull moment through out this record. (Though I do wish for some of the songs to be a bit longer because of how awesome they are.) As the band proceeds to go through dynamic changes time signature changes. It filled my ears ith such amazing aural pleasure its hard to describe.

If I could I would go on and on about how this album is a masterpiece but why tell you how awesome it is when you should go experience the music yourself? I highly recommend this album to those who love a very unique sound to their music. Its hard to categorize this record because it fuses jazz, death metal in a way no one would ever have expected. People may say this is a death metal record but I would like to say that this is more of a jazz-fusion progressive metal record with some highly philosophical lyrics and amazing instrumentation.

Truly the best album to have come out for 2008 in my honet opinion. Its good to have Cynic back making their music.