REMEDY LANE

Pain Of Salvation continued to cement their place among the few elite greats of progressive rock with their "Remedy Lane," a dark, heartbreakingly weighty set centered around themes of sex, love, loss, and stark emptiness. Their instrumental performances are tight, creative, and beautifully dynamic; everything from metal guitar to jazzy, atmospheric percussion and sparse string textures is coherently, compactly arranged for emotional and artistic impact. The vocals are also outstanding, recalling the tone, power, and expressiveness of Queensryche's peak efforts.

Like their superb previous album, "The Perfect Element," Pain Of Salvation's "Remedy Lane" is more atmospheric than metallic; mood and texture are the dominant energy sources, not aggression. If anything, "Lane" may be even less metallic than its predecessor. In addition, as befits the crushingly weighty themes of "Lane," it is also slightly less accessible than "Element," with less consistently hooky songcraft, more edgy nuances, and more overall artistic energy.

On a shallow level, however, the album feels quite similar to its predecessor -- both have the distinctive black aura of the Pain Of Salvation sound. For that reason, despite the creativity and novel artsy edges that POS brought to "Remedy Lane," casual fans who already own "Perfect Element" may not find this an essential purchase. For serious fans of dark-hued progressive rock, however, "Remedy Lane" is an intensely emotional and profoundly moving success.