03 A TRILOGY PART 2

If there was an award for greatest difference between two consecutive albums by a band, Dominici would definitely be strong contenders. Certainly I can't think of any trilogy with such a sudden jump in style. Whereas "O3 A Trilogy Part 1" was nothing more than an admittedly pleasant acoustic album, "O3 A Trilogy Part 2" brings the Prog-Metal. This is probably what people were wanting (and expecting) when they heard that legendary ex-Dream Theater vocalist Charlie Dominici had decided to return to the musical world.

By far the most dominating influence is (suprise, suprise) Dream Theater. Instrumentally speaking, Charlie Dominici has gathered around him most of the band Solid Vision, so this should come as no suprise to anyone who has heard their work, or the work of any of the Maillard brothers. Brian Maillard in particular impressed me with his skill on guitar, though everyone involved brings a high level of musicianship.

The music is a bit different though. For one, Dominici's voice is nothing like how James Labrie sings in DT, how Dominici sung on "When Dream And Day Unite", and indeed nothing like his singing on the first album of the trilogy (for the most part). The compositions also eschew some of the more wildly proggy moments of Dream Theater in favour of a heavier more metallic assault. Essentially though, this is a pretty classic style melodic progressive metal record.

The story aspect is continued on brilliantly. I wont say much about what happens, but following on from the last album the policeman trying to capture the terrorist is explored in several songs, and the terrorist himself reflects on his own morality, and the state of the world. There are a lot of voices and sound samples to help bring the story to life that work well. The greater sonic diversity, and especially the different voices that Charlie Dominici use also give this album a lot more depth than its predecessor. Americo Rigoldi also uses his keyboard intelligently to guide the various moods of the album, whether subtle or dramatic, as well as to do musical battle with the guitar solos of Brian Maillard.

The songs are generally of a good standard, nothing that will redefine progressive metal to be sure, but the band sounds energetic and enthusiastic, and it's difficult not to find this an appealing quality. If I had to pick out some highlights I would say that "The Monster" and "A New Hope" are the obvious candidates, though there are good moments in every song. "The Monster" opens the album as a powerful metal instrumental moving through a good variety of sounds, letting us know straight away how much of a band effort this album is going to be. It's good to see that despite the name of the band being "Dominici", Charlie is not afraid to let his talented band flex their instrumental muscles whilst he takes a back seat. The final track "A New Hope" is a real powerhouse of a song. It builds really well in intensity, to a grand finale that reprises a theme set out in the first song "The Monster". Brian Maillard's guitar really soars over the dramatic sounds of the rest of the band in the finale, before a quieter version of the theme plays us out, leaving us on a musical as well as a lyrical cliffhanger, ready for the final part of the trilogy.

It is the effort that has been put into the lyrics and vocal performance that really helps tie this album together. It feels like the people making this album actually cared about making something cool. For all the fun in the musical side (and that is done well), I think this is one of the things that best sets apart Dominici's trilogy from the hundreds of other modern progressive metal bands out there today.

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