VOICES

I am pretty sure that even Thomas Thielen himself did not expect the positive reviews his debut would earn.''Naive'' was warmly received by the music press, making Thielen start working on a follow-up album.He had just moved to Hannover after the release of his debut and worked for four years on what was to become the ''Voices'' album.Galileo Records supported his talent be releasing again this sophomore effort in 2006.

His composing skills and very irritating vocals will again suprise the listener.With elements from contemporary Neo Prog and nods to modern Psychedelic/Heavy Prog as well as recent music technologies, ''Voices'' is another beautiful trip into the music world of Thomas Thielen.With one eye glancing the spacey side of PINK FLOYD and the atmospheric moments of PORCUPINE TREE and the other one being on par with the sensitive, melodious but also demanding style of, let's say, LIKE WENDY, Hogarth-era MARILLION or COSMOGRAF, ''Voices'' kicks off through minimalistic and lyrical soundscapes with good use of Electronics and samplers and ends up in furious, proggy journeys with rich instrumental passages, led by strong guitar moves and excellent keyboard parts.The clever use of organs and Mellotron through more contemporary sounding forms make this album even more charming.An excellent work has been done in the drum and bass programming, without obvious vibes of their digital nature, while the rest of the instruments are played by Thielen.Plenty of the vocal material reminds of works such as ''Brave'' or ''Marbles'' by MARILLION, having an emphasis towards atmospheric textures with very warm singing and distorted sounds.The dedicated Prog fan should not be dissapointed either.Nice instrumental moves with heavy guitar runs, bombastic grooves and a fair amount of breaks follow the aforementioned calmer movements, containing some great piano interludes, symphonic and orchestral arrangements and Neo Prog aesthetics with a few lovely melodies.The combination works really good in a long album, that flows easily due to its well-crafted compositions.

Once more, Scythe seem to have forced Thielen's music abilities in limited values.His unique talent finally is revealed with every release and ''Voices'' will leave every fan of contemporary Progressive Rock really satisfied.Strongly recommended...3.5 stars.