WASTELAND

This is a complicated album to review, especially due to the loss of Grudzinski and how it impacted the band and its fanbase. Still, that emotion is definitely felt while listening to it, and how they've used it to craft beautiful songs. It sounds different from "Love, Fear And The Time Machine", but at the same time, there's a strong Riverside vibe, which makes me remember their first album (Out of Myself) and also some of the Lunatic Soul (which is expected).

The songs are very tight produced, sometimes even a bit too much (especially the drums). The melodies, riffs, and chorus are very remarkable and easy to get in your head, but at the same time, there is a fair amount of instrumental and progressive passages which produces very well crafted tracks. Some of them are heavy, and the album was advertised to be like it, but you might get disappointed a bit because it's not heavier than anything pre-ADHD.

1. The Day After: A short interesting intro track. I feel that it could've been developed a bit more before going into the next one, though.

2. Acid Rain: Starts with a very heavy guitar riff, before you realize it's not that heavy. The second half is a really beautiful instrumental passage.

3. Vale of Tears: I hadn't enjoyed that track when they released it as a single, but I think now it flows really well in the album. It has a mid-instrumental section that is a bit Riverside-vanilla.

4. Guardian Angel: Very emotional acoustic track, reminding me of their first albums and very beautiful guitar work.

5. Lament: Their second single, a slow and heavy track with a strong Riverside landmark

6. The Struggle for Survival: This feels like one of the "Reality Dream" sequences. It's a 9-minute instrumental ride with a slow intro that evolves into lots of grooves, riffs, and solos, ending in a melancholic way.

7. River Down Below: Another of the single releases, probably one of their most emotional tracks. Really beautiful and sad.

8. Wasteland: It starts with a Jethro Tull-ish acoustic section before evolving into a major Floydian instrumental passage.

9. The Night Before: A really beautiful piano-based piece, which closes the album.

4.75/5

Share this RIVERSIDE review

Social review comments () BETA

---

---

Review related links

• Send comments to Deadwing
• Report this review (#2039507)
• Buy RIVERSIDE music online with PA partners
• Show all RIVERSIDE MP3/Stream
• Go to RIVERSIDE page for videos, full discography with ratings, reviews and much more
• Go to Wasteland page for more details, where to buy and ratings/reviews
• Search the Forum for RIVERSIDE related discussions