CHARCOAL GRACE

"The World Breathes with Me" worked, contrasting intro; a deluge of djent guitars opens the piece, louder and faster than a melting DREAM THEATER; an air to free oneself from the pandemic, from its annoyances; raw power on modern prog metal, the one where you don't get bored, emotion with Jim's Hakenian voice and Sam's solo-rhythmic riffs; a bit of LINKIN PARK, KARNIVOOL for an orgasmic musical flight, going from a light flow to a riot of limpid and incandescent sounds. "Golem" and its deluge of riffs to signify the pain, the torment of the pandemic; a machine-gun riff, heavy vocals, everything to show the simmering alienation; closer to a PERIPHERY shooting everything that moves.

"Charcoal Grace I: Prey" and the title in 4 parts: cinematic intro as we say today; orchestral eyeing VAI, DREAM THEATER, technically perfect; Jim singing airy, soft while the bass vibrates; sinister air, varied with a softness fusing metal and dreamlike progression; the finale increases, making me think of the sweet madness of PAIN OF SALVATION; a crystalline arpeggio follows with "Charcoal Grace II: A World Without" on a latent musical derivation, a strong progressive moment after this introduction; consensual verse on an atmospheric Devin, on a fruity TESSERACT; immersive, spatial break, we left in this ship far from the earth, from the pandemic, the softness of the guitar amplifying "Charcoal Grace III: Vigil" with the raw arpeggio launching Jim on a minimalist phrasing, laying down this quadrap- tyque looks fluffy, I hear the snow falling; acoustic and melancholic ballad leering on LEPROUS then "Charcoal Grace IV: Give Me Hell" continues, basic metronomic riff on an imposing rhythmic base; PAIN OF SALVATION in the background, yes it's CALIGULA'S HORSE which ends with the violins in the distance; the sound becomes black, it makes you want to headbang, to pout, like this lost and abandoned child, the ravages of divorces spoken; the gentleness of the start has let the heaviness settle in; take a break reminding me of SAXON, the phrasing then the maelstromic metallic djent explosion takes you to the guts, the air becomes animal, wild, brutal, yes your head can no longer control itself; a final guitar solo pulls you together before the obvious grandiloquent flight, immense over these 24 minutes.

"Sails introductory guitar arpeggio; the ballad, the nursery rhyme to rest from this flood, it seems done on purpose; the Rotheryen solo yes I didn't see it before but now the feeling is close; a slow melody with a feeling of keyboards from Banks too, ah the prog is good sometimes. "The Stormchaser" takes up a sustained air for this piece which leans towards the fabulous PAIN OF SALVATION, as much for the voice as for the complex tune, as much for the captivated choirs as for the energetic chorus; there is the beauty of the guitar break with a dose of spleen, there is the easy melody which unfolds and bewitches; clear, effective. "Mute" with Jim who tries his hand at a capella, like Einar from LEPROUS; the explosion of grapeshot, return to the spleen ballad, hold a shivering flute; the return of heavy grapeshot suddenly, sheltered but not Jim soothes us with his high-pitched voice, a siren who distills his words to hypnotize us; break with the divine flute, not a Scandinavian one that recalls ancient times, a current one that amplifies the progressive movement; the sound becomes post-rock, extremely emotional before leaving metal-melodic with Sam who now bewitches us.

CALIGULA'S HORSE OMNI as I like to write it.(5 in the genre)