VISIONS FROM THE SPIRAL GENERATOR

Andreas Hedlund (a.k.a Vintersorg) is one of those guys who are just meant to be musicians. HIs love and talent for music is appreciated on every work. "Visions..." is definitely the pinnacle of Vintersorg's career. A beautiful blend of Black Metal/Prog/Folk and even Psychedelic sensibilities. Hedlund, along with Guitar man Mattias Marklund make a great team, and this time they count with two session musicians (and how great musicians!). Asgeir Mickelson (drums) of Borknagar and Spiral Architect, and Steve DiGiorgio (bass), of Death-ControlDenied-Testament-Spastic Ink fame. With collaborations by keyboardists Nils Johansson and Lars Nedland (Solefald, Borknagar, Age of Silence, Asmegin) also.

"Visions..." is a handful of tracks that, both lyrically and musically, showcase Vintersorg's greatest passion, to explain a relation between science, destiny and tradition. Lyrics talk about astrology, physics, mathematics, but also there are very nature-evoking lyrics. Even using some quotes by the great scientist, James Clerk Maxwell ("The only laws of matter are those which our mind must fabricate, and the only laws of mind are fabricated by matter").

This one is, by far, Vintersorg's best album, and a Must for every Prog-Metal fan.

HIghlights: Vem Styr Symmetrin, E.S.P Mirage, The Explorer.

Vintersorg is one of the premeire Progressive Metal bands with more Extreme Metal influences.

Vintersorg's Visions From the Spiral Generator is one of most Progressive releases in the Extreme Metal scene. The album is not a mix of moods or great in variation, but does show quite a bit of musicality.

Vintersorg is a project made up of Vintersorg (Andreas Hedlund) and Matthias Marklund. Steve DiGiorgio and Asgeir Mickelson round out the rhythymn section as the bassist and drummer.

The lyrical patterns are quite interesting as they alternate between English and Swedish. The English themes are the ones I understand and tell intriuging scientfic and philosophical contrast. The lyrics in this album are some of the more thoughtful in Progressive Metal.

For the musical side of the band, the guitar work by Hedlund and Marklund is class, the harmonies are irregular and the melodies are quick. Two traits that the Swedes seem to have a specialty in. The drums are powerful, but are not overly complex. Fans that prefer the laid back groove style of drumming rather than the fill crazy fans will enjoy Mickelson's work. Steve DiGiorgio puts in his greatest performance yet. His solos on the album are definately one of the more distinctive traits on the album. His ability to make effective use of a fretless bass in an Progressive Extreme Metal band is more than noteworthy.

The production of the album is nothing spectacular. The guitars are not my favorite style, as they sound a little over aggressive. The drums are standard sounds that don't spark much creativity. The bass is an accomplishment. The way the fretless bass projects on this studio album is rare for most genres. The bass prescene on this album is a landmark for the genre.

The album is good, and those who enjoy Extreme Metal influenced Progressive Metal will love this album. The musicality warrants a three rating, good, but not great.