DISCORDIA

Discordia provides a well-made specimen of modern day challenging progressive rock with their second album "Season Changes". Their choice of band name does indeed indicate something about the music they create, and while rather far removed from the most challenging bands out there, this is music made to be appreciated by those who enjoy a band with an eclectic and unconventional approach to the art of making progressive rock. And a band that merits a check by those who find such a description to be alluring.

At the first listening I felt slightly disappointed and thought that the album emphasizes too much on that guitar-dominated rock power and lacks of more sensitive nuances. (I guess I was at that precise moment in need of something more emotional instead of intellectual prog, which this band indeed is.) But the more you listen, the better it gets, and eventually the 46-minute album's rich and ambitious progressivity with all the finely crafted details is revealed loud and clear. There's no hint of clumsiness in the way each song is built up, like there perhaps was in the debut. The production - by the band - is excellent. So in the end this definitely is the better album of the two.

The opening title track is tight and melodic and occasionally it flirts closely with straight-forward, hard- boiled rock, but the rhythmic complexity and multi-layered vocals make it sound prog. On 'Ideology' the roaring rock guitar is very dominant but the latter half includes some interesting twists. 'Ignalina' (8:24) brings really delicious art music flavour in details such as a harpsichord sound, and especially the dialogue-like, majestic vocals, starting in French, give me fond associations to the classic GENTLE GIANT.

'Green Light' is one step closer to emotional softness (without quite being that) and is a welcome change, as well as the closing track 'Random Hearts', which is a relatively accessible male/female duet with a fair dose of pop sensibility. The longest track 'Grip!' is fully loaded with prog charasteristics, and it carries the 12½ minutes succesfully without losing the clue. I'm almost certain this album will be on Top Three of the Finnish prog albums this year. If not, it will be a great prog year.

We start off with a track that isn't really straightforward overall, but it does give you an idea of what to expect in the album. But as good as it is for a starting track, it give very little insight into the vocal harmonies that pop up several times through the album. Save that for the next track, "Ideology". These beautiful harmonies take you by surprise after that first track. There is a slight feeling of the airiness of the harmonies reminiscent of the UK band "Pure Reason Revolution", but where PRR has a slight weakness to their harmonies, Discordia makes up for that in this track by a feeling of confidence in their sound. However, that strength in the vocal harmonics suffers a bit in the next track, the 8 minute "Ignalina". The difference here is that the band ventures into dissonance which gives a great variance in the sound of the previous track, which I love, but because of the lack of confidence in presenting the dissonance here tends to make it sound unintentional. I believe the fault lies not in the performance in this track, but in the production. There are times you feel the confidence of the 2nd track, and other times when the harmonies get lost in the mix that it sounds hesitant. I feel like I'm spending a lot of time on this which is not a major problem considering that the track itself is made up of a lot more than vocal harmonics because there is still a lot of solo singing and a lot of amazing instrumentation also. I love the fact that they use these harmonics, the sound is amazing and I think if it the problem was fixed, this would have easily been a 5 star album. That's how good it is.

Next comes the track "Taken" which starts out sounding like it could be radio friendly song, but soon ventures off into territory that separates this band from the run-of-the-mill band. They quickly establish themselves apart from the typical band by adding some prog-folk flavor mixed with the complexity of Coheed & Cambria, but with better vocals. The next track "Green Light" is a personal favorite because it is so original and even though the music is quite accessible, it is deliciously different. The band continues to stay out of the trap of formulaic structure and they prove that they are talented by making believable music.

The next track is a 12-minute epic that continues to establish the band as a Eclectic prog force to be reckoned with. The vocal harmonies are there and are much better in this track, and the vocal solos are somewhat reminiscent of the vocals in "The Mars Volta", but much more accessible. That is until harmonics breaks into a classical-chorus style of singing (not operatic, but chorale style). Surprises continue to be around every corner on this track as it is throughout the album. Unfortunately, the closing track "Random Hearts" is the weakest track on the album. It sounds relatively straightforward and may be intended to be a radio song. It's an okay track, but it doesn't live up to the expectations that the other tracks have already established.

I know I talk a lot about the vocals in this album because I love the harmonics. They are not overbearing, they are on the album just enough that they are not overpowering, but they are there enough to be satisfying. It is the right balance of vocal solos and ensemble style singing. But, on top of this, the instrumentals are spot on. The guitar solos stand out the most and they are excellent. The guitar passages are an original sound and hard to compare with anyone else. There are several keyboard embellishments that are balanced well through the album and are mostly what you would expect from an eclectic band. Meters are constantly changing, but not in a haphazard way, everything seems to flow together so well.

This band from Finland really needs to get some notoriety in prog circles. They are surprising great musicians and with a little work, could be 5 star material. They are so close to it now. I would give them a 4.5 rating if it were possible, but I can't quite give them a 5 star rating because of a few flaws. I can tell you though, that if the trend that was set in the first 2 tracks continued into the longer 3rd track and consistently beyond that, this would have been 5 stars and at first I thought that I would have no choice but give them 5 stars because I could find nothing wrong at that point. But the difference in the 3rd track is too evident, even though it is not enough to distance yourself from the band. On the contrary, I highly recommend this album and hope that they continue in this same style of sound with a little more attention given to production and/or working on being constantly confident of where they want to take this sound. Excellent album. 4 stars, but that 5th star is a lot closer than a lot of established bands ever get to. It is so close to being 5 stars. Highly recommended.

The union of the past and contemporary Prog sounds are displayed in this album, which mixes the power of heavy, electric guitars and the clean, modern productions with the old-school organ showering and the unique complexity of GENTLE GIANT and RUSH.Their sound seems to rely much on long and dynamic rhythmic patterns and the constant presence of male/female voices with the organ and the electric guitar explosions being the dominant instruments.Their approach is similar to Swedish group A.C.T., although there are no particular Queen or Dream Theater influences in here, but there are plenty of close crossroads: The theatrical mono- and multi-vocal parts, the tendency towards energetic, guitar-led runs, the discreet use of strings and the evident influences from 70's Prog.On the other hand Discordia lack the superb breaks and twists of their Swedish neighbours plus there are no Neo-Classical or symphonic themes to be found.Discordia run more towards Heavy Rock with lots of theatrical and some operatic elements thrown in and occasional blinks to complicated themes and the Retro Prog stylings.No standouts, the tracks are all nice, passionate and well-executed with the female voices being the absolute highlight and the tapping grooves leading the way.

Prog/Art Rock with a heavier edge and some Pop sensibilities.Played with energy and offered in11 short tracks with a bombastic sound.A cool and definitely recommended album.

In the Finnish prog history, I would see the 90's hard-rocking group FIVE FIFTEEN - not in the Archives - as an encouraging influence perhaps, as well as several, mainly American modern prog bands that have continued in the eclectic path that GENTLE GIANT once started. Although the vocal harmonies are very effective at their best and there's a lot of playful wittiness, there isn't really a direct GG influence, I guess; no extraordinary stylistic width from old music to jazz etc. In fact, during the album, especially on the latter half, I get a bit tired of the almost hyperactive art rock energy.

The first half is quite impressive. Very eclectic 'Foreseen' opens the album powerfully - with a nice fantasy element in the lyrics: "And none but the fairies and unicorns will last / faunes and dryads, / hippogryohs and gryphons, / wandering free". 'Mystery Man' rocks harder and offers great guitar sounds. I don't know what is the kantele-reminding isntrument in 'Speak Directly', but it sounds good. 'As Above So Below' is also a highlight in its more emotional atmosphere.

If the whole album felt as fresh and charming as the highlights, instead of getting tiresome at some point, Utopia Perfection would surely be among the most interesting Finnish prog albums of this Millennium. I'd be happy to see a new album by them, but I have no idea if the group even exists anymore.

Stylistically the material on the album is highly eclectic drawing influences from many different genres. I hear both elements from pop music, heavy metal, symphonic progressive rock, heavy progressive rock, rock, and jazz. The most dominant feature in Discordia´s music is the use of both a male- (Tero Väänänen) and a female vocalist (Riikka Hänninen). The two vocalists compliment each other very well and the music is relatively memorable and melodic. I know this sounds weird but I can´t help thinking about B-52s when I listen to Discordia. Maybe that´s just me, but there is an undeniable feel good vibe to Discordia´s music that is also very present on the music created by B-52s and Tero Väänänen has a similar voice to that of Fred Schneider. I´ll have to mention here that the female vocals from Riikka Hänninen does not remind me of Cindy Wilson and Kate Pierson. She is more in the vein of Kate Bush (not quite as unique, but who is?)

The music is enhanced by the use of keyboards, violin, and bass clarinet, in addtion to drums, guitar, and bass and the melodic approach to playing and writing generally makes for an enjoyable listen. The musicianship is strong on all posts and the album also features a clear and professional sounding production job.

Upon conclusion "Utopia Perfection" is a decent quality eclectic progressive rock album and if you enjoy great interplay between female and male vocals and music featuring elements from many different genres and music styles this could be a treat. A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.

"Foreseen" opens with sombre male and female vocals. As they keep repeating the word "foreseen" guitar then a full sound comes in. They both sing as organ and drums stand out. "Mystery Man" has this nice uptempo melody. This is fun as drums and organ again lead the way. Aggressive female vocals come in. Male vocals follow as they take turns. I like this one. "Speak Directly" is perhaps my favourite track. It sounds so good instrumentally. The male / female vocals on the chorus shine. "As Above So Below" opens with a guitar / violin melody. Reserved male vocals come in. It's a very nice sound.Female vocals take over as melody continues. Another great sounding tune.

"The Group" opens with male / female vocals as the piano plays. A catchy melody takes over. The female vocals are fantastic 1 1/2 minutes in and after 3 1/2 minutes. There is a bit of heaviness to this one at times. "Interlude" opens with drums that build as bass then heavy guitar join in. Organ then female vocal melodies. Clarinet after 3 minutes. "Slave Planet I" features those beautiful female vocals. Male vocals come and go. "Slave Planet II" opens with clarinet as reserved female vocals follow. The sound gets fuller when the drums arrive 2 minutes in. Great sound when it becomes more passionate 5 minutes in. "The Comment Of The Wise" is a dark and heavy instrumental. Nice. "Mighty Power Of Metal" reminds me of BLIND GUARDIAN at times when the drums lead the way with the aggressive male vocals. "Giant Dwarf" has a Celtic flavour to it. Again I love her vocals, I can't help but smile. Accordion before 2 minutes.

There is so much to like on this recording, and if your into a lot of variety you should check this out.

That was my first reaction when I saw the CD cover artwork. It's because the cover did not seem to be prog at all and it looked like child music album because the cover tells a mixture of everything with chicken-like cartoons. So confusing. So is the music when the first time I spun the CD - I was so confused about the music they play because I could not decide directly under what kind of box I should label this kind of music? For sure, it's not a progressive metal vein even though I find the heavy component of the music. But there is basically no guitar riffs at all - how can you say it's a metal music if there seems like no riff? So .. I dunno how to categorize the music of Discordia. One thing for sure, the music is unique and can be considered as original. Is it? Try it yourself!

First of all, before you try this at home, please make sure that you enjoy the disc alone - do not let anyone else with you in your listening room. Why and who am I that rule your life? No, I just want to be honest with you that the music is WEIRD and I don't want your opinion being out-ruled by your spouse or your friend due to the weirdness of the music the disc offers you. Believe me on this, please. Just let your own mind evaluate the stream of weird music this band from Finnish blows you with surprising music! Make sure also that you will turn your amplifier volume LOUD to get great subtleties of the music you are listening to. Are you ready? Let's go man.!

"Foreseen" (4:24) starts wonderfully with a-capella that (in a way) reminds me to Gentle Giant, but actually it's not at all. It's a great a capella, I tell you! At first you might say it's nothing special - but the more you repeat this song, you would agree with me. When the blast of music enters, you will find strange kind of music in upbeat tempo but the melody and arrangements are quite weird and probably you have never heard this kind of music. The music flows in varied styles with tight bass lines (you can hear clearly if you play it loudly). Oh ya .. I almost forget that the singing style is also weird, but I like it. Through the music, organ soars aggressively.

"Mystery Man" (3:47) is probably not quite weird musically as this is basically like an upbeat music with fast tempo in "happy" mood. What so interesting is the organ work at the opening that reminds me to Mathew Fischer of Procol Harum but in totally different vein of music. Again, the singing style is very unique. "Speak Directly" (4:29) is my favorite. It starts with simple guitar fills followed by dynamic and tight bass guitar lines and then drum. The music is quite unique but the more you spin it you will enjoy it really much. I like the energy and drive of the music. In some segment I find a coincident similarity with Steve Hackett's music even though the total music is completely different. It's really an excellent and original music!

"As Above So Below" (4:51) starts mellow with nice violin / cello work followed with low register notes vocal work. It's a cool opening. The vocal follows in great choirs while guitar and violin accompany the music. I remember Swedish band ACT even though it's not the same at all. It's another favorite of mine. Speaking from my heart, this is a very nice and catchy track in a unique composition. I truly admire the band for creating such a nice music like this one. Please discount my statement due to the fact that I love violin being included in prog rock, so you can understand why I love this track. The female vocal line also sings differently than typical music melody. Combined with male vocal of Tero it becomes something close with Gentle Giant, although it's so far away different.

"The Group" (3:58) starts with melodic vocal line followed with upbeat music in unusual arrangement but it's good. "Interlude" (4:40) starts with repetitive drum followed by bass guitar and later by guitar riffs. Organ follows later and the song moves with female vocal in the vein that reminds me to the music of Cirque Du Soleil (uhm .. this band should be featured here in this site because the music of the circus from Canada is truly prog to the bone!). Even though this song is mostly repetitive in nature but it sounds something new and I have never heard this kind of music before. "Slave Planet" comprises two parts with the first one is an upbeat music with unique (you might call it "weird") arrangements and when it continues with part II it starts dark and mellow with tin whistle (or sax?) work followed with excellent choirs in acapella mode.

You might be wondering what "Mighty Power Of Metal" (3:39) as I do. And this is again .. it's a unique and brilliant kind of music and it's different than any kind of metal or rock music you have imagined before, I believe. I can only describe that the music is in a way has some pieces which is "riffs-based" but there are pieces with song orientated focus. The combined work of guitar and keyboard is quite interesting to observe. It sounds that the band is trying to perform this song in humorous way. The album concludes nicely with "Giant Dwarf" (4:00).

Conclusion

Overall, I bet you that if you spin the CD for the first time, you might tend to "reject" this CD and you might ask yourself "What is this?". But .. bear with me my friend .. please give some room for your patience to spin some more 5 or even 10 spins with medium volume first (do not play it loud because the music is weird - I tell you!). Once you get used to it, play it loud and try first with track 3 "Speak Directly". If it still does not blow your mind, forget it, just throw away the CD. But .. that's not the case with me. I love the music of this band, man! I salute the band for this. Thank you to Petri Sallinen who sent me this CD, I really appreciate it. My big apology for not to write the review right away because I need sometime to appreciate your music. This is too difficult for me to digest at first five spins. But after that, JRENG! I do enjoy it very much! It's an excellent addition to any prog music collection.

The music of Discordia is ORIGINAL!

Peace on earth and mercy mild - GW

Just like your high school cafeteria, Discordia is offering something for everyone...but don't ask for large portions.

What I mean is: that album has lots and lots of stuff in tiny quantities, so they're changing styles quite often in Utopia Perfection (sometimes in the same song!). And that's the spirit of progressive rock, right? If it's right, this album is some of most progressive material I've heard since...well...ever I think.

Take a song like Foreseen for example: a blend of Norweigan Folk, Anekdoten prog and Gentle Giant (Glass House period) that tooked me a lot of repeating to finally appreciate. I mean, the songs are very elaborated, sometimes vocally silly and the whole plot is often hard to grab. Overall, they kinda target the foggy side of Scandinavian music, but with a major headache due to severe efforts of concentration.

A record that will definitely test your degree of patience and that will answer THE question: 'Are you really open minded?'

Probably a winner for 'Blacksheep of 2007'.