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Steven Wilson - The Harmony Codex CD (album) cover

THE HARMONY CODEX

Steven Wilson

 

Crossover Prog

3.63 | 238 ratings

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alainPP
4 stars An objective chronicle.

1. Inclination and the Arabic intro, a little wind, that's all it's prog for; good, a deafening bass that can cast doubt, a trance-like air of déjà vu on layers of sampled wind instruments, the obvious break that leaves on an airplane runway; 3 minutes and Steve arrives, his voice, a piano, crystal clear the atmosphere, the electro synths return and give in the open air box, very/too monolithic, a latent repetitive air, choirs swelling the effect, some tinkering like mixed trumpets 2. What Life Brings follows, melody with piano, Steve who raises his voice on an arpeggio ballad from the 60's, yes from the time of the BEATLES and Anglican gangster films well dressed in mod outfits; a beautiful little guitar solo driving home the lascivious connotation and Ninet which appears in the background 3. Economies of Scale with a return to ultra-used samples; only his voice becomes progressive, the rest is just a basic drum machine, which everyone can reproduce; Yes, but; a still latent air while today's sound goes straight to the chorus to try to hit the potential listener; a gentle, gripping climb, I will push a little and I will say melancholy spleen 4. Impossible Tightrope worked intro, strings and nervous rock riff, it changes from its many previous tendencies, a high riff leaves on psychedelic PINK FLOYD, from afar yes but still; footsteps, a snarling sax then an ethereal break, we are indeed on a tightrope; 5'22'' and angelic choirs come to throw even more discord; go for a bit of THE ENID, hold in the distance a solo from BANKS from GENESIS, the tune suddenly becomes simple, the moment for Adam to launch into a crazy jazzy vein; the break sound on the spleen before the contemplative finale and the return of the strings at the start; the slap. 5. Rock Bottom with Ninet as guest and a gravelly voice on a lament tune; haunting rise, slow from another heavy time, guitar in the style of ANATHEMA before their end; Ninet raises the tone launching a Gilmourian solo which confirms the talent of this artist. Ninet reminds me of the voice of the singer of RUBY DAWN.

6. Beautiful Scarecrow return to the sampled, electro sound, a sign of ultimate ease for all progues; air darkening for a time before using these sounds as evil bass; throbbing violin break, spleen, yes this musical atmosphere is not as cheerful as one might think; tribal break with horn, a bit like Peter GABRIEL but better, I confirm; a deafening trance with few vocals in fact; Steve comes back, puts us in the right direction, his hair gone in all directions 7. The Harmony Codex eponymous title, intro reminding me of VANGELIS of course and an outro sound that slips in; a minimalist melody where words from Ninet like those of Marta from AMAROK slip in; a long and slow atmospheric dreamlike crescendo which aims to be soaring, outside the ambient system 8. Time Is Running Out electro ballad for a while, yes it moves and the catchy tune of the 80's-90's shows that these decades were not as deserted as advertised; warm guitar solo flirting with MAY's guitar 9. Actual Brutal Facts with acoustic guitar and dark bass, note this dichotomy of instruments used to surprise a little more; phrasing voice, dub atmo air like his personal works from the beginning; a slow musical wave, heady and hypnotic with its share of sound effects like this ANGEL-style ha-ha in 'Fou'; the bass becomes ultra; it explodes on a modern sound, tampered with, distorted, miring our perception in a musical disarray intended without a doubt, brutal 10. Staircase a staircase, yes to go up, to fall? A staircase for the 4th big piece and the use of these 'musik elektronische' sounds excessively? Or how to make music evolve on a progressive slope, take this Floydian solo as proof of a move that flows naturally and makes us forget electro; meditative verse where the sound leads the listener to listen to the sound, its message, its melody; spatial synth trace on 'Blade Runner'; it goes up but it moves, proof on a piano break and its divine violin, there it's 'Interstellar' in the distance, it's simply beautiful; Ninet comes to speak for a while, explaining where to take the stairs? The synth tricks of Adam and Jack add to the cinematic atmosphere for a varied and well-constructed album.

alainPP | 4/5 |

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