DISTANCE

In their second album, STRUCTURAL DISORDER clearly takes the big step away from obscurity, as these talented Swedes are now ready to enter Premier League!

This time round, the band have fully developed their sound, showcasing their musical skills and further expanding on their obvious Scandinavian Prog influences.

Main advantage is the much better production than their debut. I must confess that the computerised drums on their first album 'The Edge of Sanity' made the whole attempt sound unconvincing. Here, however, every detail is crystal clear. Drummer Karl Björk has done extraordinary work, as he accompanies all parts with progressive rhythms and elaborate fillings.

The progress in the vocals is also astonishing! All members apart from Karl participate in the singing and have really worked hard on the CD. The band excels at their moments with multiple vocals and reminds me of PAIN OF SALVATION in their flexibility of singing parts. Also, seasoned proglisteners will appreciate the fact that there is minimal growling, all on the otherwise excellent first track 'Desert Rain'. I would like to see the band eliminate these parts completely in the future.

Special mention goes to Vocalist - Accordionist Jóhannes West. There is no standalone point crying out loud 'Look ma! We've got an accordion!' Instead, there are more restrained, sublime shades of it throughout the songs, which provide a unique sound that differentiates the band from anything else. Rock bands must understand that we aren't here for the lengthy bagpipe blast or the violin classical solos - we're here for the progmetal - and luckily STRUCTURAL DISORDER respect that!

Each one of the seven tracks on 'Distance' has something to offer - no fillers here. Longest tracks 'Silence' and 'Pyrene' are my favourites, growing from mellower parts to more progressive sections through acoustic interludes. 'Someone to Save' has an interesting middle instrumental section, influenced, it seems, by Balkan folk. 'The Herculean Tree' (what a title!) is another up-tempo moment with some major-scale soloing. Finally, album ender 'Drifting' is a beautiful short track that provides the album with the ideal epilogue.

Well guys... These days, PAIN OF SALVATION are swimming in completely different waters, while there are no news from SEVENTH WONDER, ANDROMEDA and DARKTOWER. It's a great chance for STRUCTURAL DISORDER to seize the day and take the throne of Swedish Prog Metal! If you are interested in melodic Progressive music, check this band out!

Rating: Four stars plus - next one is going to be the Masterpiece!

This review was originally written for www.justincaseradio.com

Founded in 2011; debut EP and live shows in 2012; debut concept album (The Edge of Sanity) in 2014; more live gigs supporting the likes of Leprous and Seventh Wonder and then a record deal with Lion Music.

This, the second album from this young Swedish band has been built on solid foundations and it shows in the seven longs tracks on offer. I didn't really get on too well with this band's debut but here the song writing and production is much improved.

In addition to the usual Swedish prog metal ingredients, three things give Structural Disorder a distinct difference. The vocals of Markus Tälth have an usually soft, clean tone. This tone is enhanced by the keyboards and synths being used chiefly for atmosphere. And thirdly Structural Disorder is the band that features an accordian ? not too often, but often enough to make a difference.

An album for those who like their prog metal to be understated.

For the latter half of this year I have had the pleasure of finally reaching the point in my prog explorations where I can buy a good number of new releases. Since becoming a member on ProgArchives a few years ago, I have spent most of my time and money on becoming acquainted with progressive rock of the last 45 years. I hardly ever bought anything the year it was released, and of the top albums of year, I usually scooped a few the following year. But this year has been different, and I have not only ordered albums on their release date or soon after, but also pre-ordered some and, as in the case of Structural Disorder's new album, "Distance", I backed a couple of albums with KickStarter and PledgeMusic.

Backing bands like this was a new concept for me. I hesitated to spend money on supporting a band who were trying to fund their own album, wondering what would happen if they didn't meet their goal. But after hearing a song by Structural Disorder featuring their lead accordion played like a synthesizer(!), I decided to give my support. And I even got my name mentioned in the CD credits!

So what of this band and their second album release? At first, I simply enjoyed listening to the album once through. But by the second time, I was starting to make comparisons: Haken, Dream Theater, White Willow. These are interesting comparisons to make because they draw attention to the band's prog metal style, which resembles Dream Theater in some of the complex instrumental passages, but also Haken for the vocal harmonies and some of the more quirky parts. Structural Disorder do slow and beautiful really well too, and because of this acoustic guitar and piano inclusion in their sound, White Willow came to mind, especially in the track "Silence". The band's PA profile also mentions Pain of Salvation, Porcupine Tree, Beardfish and others. Basically, the music does a good job of heavy, covers good prog territory, isn't afraid of going slow, and makes good use of synthesizers in a heavy neo- prog kind of way. Or is it that electric accordion?

Though four members are credited with vocals, I understand that Markus Talth is the lead vocalist. His voice is clean and has a sound that contributes emotion to the songs. He sings rather well, and it's my personal observation that generally prog metal bands have better results with vocalists than other types of prog rock, namely because metal requires more power from the lead vocalist's voice.

The accordion is used very sensibly here. As another reviewer mentioned, it could be tempting to give the accordion lots of limelight and go nutso on the solos; however, the band have employed the accordion more for subtle atmosphere, as in "Silence", or for a well-placed solo with an exotic sound, as in "Someone to Save". In other places, we hear what sounds like a usual synthesizer to my ears. Keyboards are mentioned in the instrument line- up, but I wonder how much of the synthesizer sounds are actually the electric accordion. I wondered if the nature of the instrument would allow for some different synth effects but I'm afraid I cannot detect them. No matter because the solos sound great whether played on a traditional synthesizer keyboard or electric accordion.

Without going into further detail about the individual songs, I can say that I really enjoy this album throughout. There is skill and variety, it sounds terrific, and there's not a track on here that makes me flinch. Each of the seven tracks are diverse enough to be unpredictable and yet maintain the atmosphere and continuity of the album. I love the cover as well; the contrast of the warm and cool tones attracting my eye. I conclude my review by saying that Structural Disorder have produced a very fine album and it was totally worth backing the band for this production!