EVERON

This brilliant album is somewhere between prog metal and neo-prog. The vocals, sung in English but with a German accent, are very good but not great, and sound a bit like a lot of other neo-prog vocals. The music changes between light prog metal, neo-prog, and sometimes AOR-style, with a bit of a dark--but not necessarily depressing--sound. The mix of soft and hard here is fantastic--Everon is expert at both.

The heartfelt lyrics deal with relationships and heartbreak--but on a deeper, darker level than most love songs. Oliver Philipps and his band have put together a stellar album on every level. I'm a fairly new fan to Everon, and there's every possibility that at some time in the future I'll regard this as a 5-star album. Highly recommended, especially for those who like both prog metal and neo-prog. 4.5 stars.

Hard, catchy neo prog reminiscent of '80s Rush. Front man and songwriter Oliver Philipps delivers great German- accent vocals (in English). The music isn't overly complex--somewhere between traditional prog and AOR. The focus is on hard-driven melodies and not technical prowess, although the band members are certainly talented musicians.

With the exception of the last track, "Flood," most of the songs do sound pretty similar to one another. The last song is both haunting and softer, and brings in a saxophone. Had the rest of the album been a bit more varied, this could have been an essential album. Make no mistake, though--the prevalent sound here is excellent. Recommended to neo-prog fans. 4 stars.

Pompous heavy prog, almost on the metal and/or 1980s "classic rock"vein. Nice clean sound production and enough space to hear everything--which is nice.

1. "Men Of Rust" (6:20) opening with a Iona-like near-Celtic Prog rocker, there is a great reverb effect on the prominent grand piano. The sound is so clear and clean! Great use of frequent changes of temp and motif with very smooth and comfortable/believable shifts--a feat which can only come with mature songwriting and highly proficient musicianship. I'm not quite as impressed with the vocal or vocal melody choices. (8.75/10)

2. "Perfect Remedy" (5:19) straightforward ballad with great melodic hook and catchy, pleasing music. Oliver's vocals work very well in this style and medium. (8.75/10)

3. "Fine With Me" (3:33) opens heavy and abrasive like a great BLUE ÖYSTER CULT or URIAH HEEP song. Oliver's voice here sounds quite different--nearer to Geddy Lee and Ozzie Osbourne than previously. Everything on this song is working. Great prog song. My first top three song. (9.25/10)

4. "A Day By The Sea" (5:47) some fine anthemic music with awesome textural and mood change in the mid-section and three different tempo shifts. My favorite Oliver Philipps vocal performance on the album and a top three song for me. (9.25/10)

Fantasma Suite: (55.5/65) 5. "Right Now..." (2:04) a sound that seems to combine RUSH and late-1970/early 1980s YES. (4.5/5) 6. "... Til The End Of Time" (5:16) ?turns more AC/DC w/Brian Ferry singing, though a little more sophisticated on all levels. (8.25/10) 7. "Fantasma-Theme" (0:38) computer-piano solo. 8. "The Real Escape" (4:24) cello, classical guitar, and synth strings provide the foundation for three quarters of this vocal ballad. (8.25/10) 9. "Whatever It Takes" (2:10) repeat of Fantasma piano theme, this time with band support and vocals. Sounds more like a finale. (4/5) 10. "Battle Of Words" (3:42) solo computer-piano opens this one before YES-like rhythm section joins in. At 0:49 the music shifts slightly before the addition of STEVE HOWE-like lead guitar--which really picks up and shines over the course of this pleasant instrumental. (8.75/10) 11. "May You" (4:33) Oliver and piano open this delicate song, singing softly in a JOHN WETTON-like voice. (How chameleonic is this man?) Ballads on heavy prog/prog metal albums always feel a little out of place to me--and this one is very much like a Disney anthem. (8.5/10) 12. "Ghosts-Intro" (1:52) could be a Paul Speer or Chris Spheeris New Age piece. (4/5) 13. "Ghosts" (5:55) another RUSH- and THOMAS THELEN-like anthemic ballad. Great guitar solo featured in the sweet spot of the song. Nice. Great last impression to leave the listener with. My final top three song. (9.25/10)

Total Time: 51:45

While I love the sound production on this album--this despite the use of some of those dated 1990s keyboards that I never liked--the musical style choices and vocals don't always hit the mark for me--and the "Fantasma Suite" is just one big splat--totally lacks meaning, cohesive flow, or redeeming features to me.

B/four stars; an excellent addition to any prog lover's music collection and something even more attractive to someone that loves the sounds and styles of those 1980s power rockers.

A truly amazing album from what can only be described as one of Europe's finest progressive rock acts of all time. This album is one of the band's darkest. Both music and lyrics are truly haunting, while still retaining their Everon trademarks that is melodic, symphonic and powerful progressive rock. No one can question the musical genous of the band's singer/keyboardist/lead guitarist Oliver Phillips.

It is hard to pick a favorite track on this album. But some of the tracks that really stand out on this album - and can hold their own to the prog classics of Gabriel era Genesis and Wakeman powered Yes - are "May you", "Ghosts" and the "Fantasma suite" (the last actually being five songs in one).

A certain level of musical maturity separates this album from it's predecessor "Venus". Not that Venus is any less of a masterpiece (I rate them equally). But you can definitely tell that something happened to the musicianship between Venus and Fantasma. A change that would stick and be a constant factor in the albums to follow. Less raw, less youthful, less wild. More deep, emotional and dare I say bitter?

North is their seventh studio album from 2008. Everon needed 6 years to release this album and to tell the truth is not better then the predecesors, but not weak either. Something worth mentioning is that Everon release albums with a constant quality, I mean every single album is good and has something to offer, one of those bands that realy knows to make the listner stays with ears opened all the time. This band don't have highs and lows, Everon has only highs from the beggining, well of course their albums never reaches the masterpiece status in my opinion, but for sure all are good and worth investigated by everybody intrested in good music. North is again well made with tipycal Everon sound, nice vocal parts made by Oliver Philipps , I think the cherry on the cake in this band, great vocalist, nice passages close to neo prog in places not far from Galleon , but aswell with some heavier sections like Enchant for ex. They are more up tempo and full of energy band then many of their field. Not a weak piece here, but not one is outstanding, only pleasent. So, I don't think North is their best album, to me the best and the most pleasent of all is Venus from 1997, I don't know realy why but to me is thier top of their career, anyway each album I've rated so far from Everon catalogue is 3 stars, nothing more nothing less. Great band that for sure needs a wider recognition by prog listners, neo or hevy prog alike. 3 stars, a good album but totaly non essential.

Unbelievabe and insanely surprising catchy music and hooks that sneak up on you with a few listens.....and then it hits you....the emotion, the detail, the layers, and the production of this music is utterly fantastic! I think many who come upon Everon in general will never have heard of them before, let alone listened. So, if you are like myself and stumbled across this band, let me give you a few words about this body of work.

How Everon is not a top internationally recognized Band, up there with Rush and Saga, is beyond me. Trust me....you have just found an treasure trove of amazing music! If you are a Rush fan, then you have just found heaven!

Everon truly surprised me......I listened to a few tracks from a few albums and was absolutely not sure about it at first. But there was enough interesting elements of the production and the music to make me keep listening here and there for a few days, even though I was not sure and it was not clicking for me. It didn't at first seem to have the edge, or the technical chops that I usually crave. But, here and there it was interesting enough. Actually, Reviews on this site led me to listen to Fantasma first and foremost, which in the end is not my favorite album, though it contains some excellent songs. But anyways, it was a few days later that all of a sudden one morning it hit me. I was singing these songs in my head! And not just one or two....but there are a couple dozen unbelievably catchy hooks and choruses and elements that just stick themselves in your head. And then it started to get good to me...and l listened more intently, and realized the emotion and detail in these tracks. And then I knew......I had found a top band and a body of work that is for the ages~!!!

One of the things about Everon is that each track is a very well constructed self contained song. And most of these songs build up with an emotional intensity that just grabs you by the end and won't let you go. So if you just quickly listen to the tracks, you are likely to hear some simple, slower, piano based ballad type material, especially up front, that does not seem to be at all prog or even rock, but more Pop, and certainly not what is likely to excite you at first. But what you need to do is TRUST that this music is so well constructed, and that these intros and interludes are all part of a emotional package that will build and lead you exactly where you want to go, and that these slower, simpler sections actually balance and compliment the overall song in a beautiful and perfectly wonderful way.

My advice: Keep Listening, give it several spins, and TRUST. This is very complex, detailed, and well constructed music, and this is an example of songs you can listen to over and over and over again and continue to realize new elements and hooks and details that are deeply buried into these tracks. Much in the way that I have enjoyed Rush over the years....there are endless hooks and layers to discover.

If you are just starting with Everon, and or if you are a Rush fan or Saga fan, then I suggest you listen to Venus first and foremost. This is a complete album that flows perfectly in every sense of the word, and is most like a Rush album (circa Presto, maybe Hold Your Fire). This is not necessarily Everons best album, but for a Rush or Saga music fan, Venus will give you comfort and grab your interest the easiest. But if you want to jump in and trust me to the best of Everon, I suggest Bridge and North. These two albums will ultimately rock your world, and have Everons most emotional and intense and catchy pieces.

North is a spectacular production, on which 80% of the songs are eventually hook grabbers. In other words, they will grab your imagination after several listens. I immediately was grabbed by Brief Encounter, even though I didn't fully get it until several listens and looking up the lyrics. Which is another thing, Everons lyrics are insanely good and smart! But it was the subtle elements in Brief Encounter, such as the tasty and judicious use of goth vocal elements, truly thick and tasty guitars, and a hook of a chorus that will sneak up on you and grab you in time.....this is a great song. Hands, the opener, is easily catchy and a great song. But songs like From Where I Stand and North at first was blah to me. So simple and pop-like that it didn't interest me. I didn't get it, until all of a sudden to my surprise, it grabbed me, and I listened a few more times and said to myself....how the hell did I miss this! This is a truly fantastic song, and I cannot get it out of my head! And then you go back and catch all of the detail and song structure, and wow....awesome. North, Wasn't it good, Running....all similar experiences for me.

But you cannot just look at Everon as one album or another. It is a body of work. Songs on Bridge, Flesh, Venus, and Fantasma, all fit a certain style and production quality to be heard as almost one big album. And taken together, it adds up to over 4 hours of utterly catchy and deep detailed music that will satisfy your brain for months and years to come.

Top things about Everon: The Lyrics are exellent and smart! The vocals are fantastic. One review on this site complains about a german accent. I don't hear it, even a little bit, and really do not agree at all. The vocals are fantastic, fraught with emotion and intensity, and sheer smooth excellence. Perfect for this music. And the occasional goth elements may at first be off-putting to the casual listener, until you listen more carefully and realize that they are simply creative elements which enhance the overall detail here. Then you love it! The Guitars...WOW....this is where Rush fans are likely to be in love. Very thick and detailed multi layers of guitars, with excellent and tasty leads and soundscapes. The drums and percussion are outstanding. I notice the Neil Peart is a friend on Everons MySpace page, and rightfully so. Clearly hear Peart influences on the percussion of Everons music abound. And finally, it is the overall production details, layers, and song structure. I love music that must be absorbed as peeling layers from an onion, and this may be the best example of this I have experienced since Rush or Saga. It stands on its own, in its own style, without being a clone of anything. But has the same depth and creativity and production quality of either of those artists.

I have now purchased all of Everons CD's. Venus through North are fantastic, and as I said, might have come from the same "album" at first listen. Wonderful to mix and match in a playlist. My playlist puts together my ultimate Everon tunes in a great order, and its 3 and a half hours of mind blowing catchy music! Paradoxes and Flood are different albums, more like early Rush albums, where the technical and musical elements are all there (great production quality too), but the music is not as well constructed or mature. Still....the Rush fan will LOVE these two CD's, but they will not grab you by the gut in the same way. I think this has more to do with the vocal performance being more crowded, and not as maturely delivered. But the musical chops are still excellent, so I still love them greatly.

I guess you can tell I am a great Everon Fan now. Cannot wait for more releases from this pitifully underrated band.

Top Everon songs in my playlist: Brief Encounter, From where I stand, Hands, North, Juliet, Not this time, Wasn't it Good, Driven, If you were still mine, Running, Back in sight, until the day breaks, perfect remedy, Bridge Theme and across the land, black river, reply, What do we know, harbour, ten years later, carousel, and the rest of the Venus album (there's not a bad song on Venus. In fact that album is best taken as a whole end to end listen).

Enjoy!

This album was my introduction to German band Everon. I had read reviews of their albums before listening. The overwhelming consensus was that everyone has a hard time labeling their style of progressive music...Were they neo prog? Were they heavy prog? Were they symphonic? Metal? No one seemed to know. After getting familiar with most of their albums now, I can see how labeling this band into a specific genre is impossible. When listening to North, my first thought was Enchant but that wasn't entirely accurate...then I thought of Rush...then Sylvan...and on the 8th instrumental track, my first thought was Neal Morse with the piano sections. So it's evident that Everon has created their own brand of progressive rock that lands all across the board. This is one of the main reasons why their music does not grow stale. Then there is the actual music itself...

Oliver Philipps is the mastermind behind Everon. He is the vocals, keys, guitar and composition of the music. Some reviewers have given less than favorable reviews based on his German accent. I completely disagree. From first listen I felt his German accent only adds to the emotion in his voice and seems to fit his style of music perfectly. He is able to tone his voice down when needed but can also belt it out with power too. He has amazing range and the vocals were the first that stuck out.

The rest of the music is also outstanding. The keyboards are very present but the heavy guitar parts are the most noticeable. The songs are well constructed and have the staying power that only helps certain sections build on repeated listens. I have probably listened to this album 30 times and I am not tiring on it at all. North was my #1 pick for 2008 album of the year and have enjoyed their back catalog just as much. Not sure why Everon is not as well known in the progressive rock world, but I hope more proggers start taking notice because this is high quality music! 5 stars and one of my favorite albums in the last 10 years! Well done!

"Flood" is the second full-length studio album by German progressive rock act Everon. The album was released through SI Music in 1995. It´s the successor to "Paradoxes" from 1993.

Stylistically the the material on the album features elements from both the soft end of neo-progressive rock and progressive AOR/hard rock. The music sometimes reminds me of Rush on the "Hold Your Fire" (1987) album, but without reaching the same high quality of songwriting as the Canadians. Saga is also a valid reference as well as artists like Pallas and Marillion. There´s sometimes a sligthly more heavy rocking edge to the music, but again we´re in the softer end of that spectrum. The material is generally well composed (although a few more memorable hooks wouldn´t have hurt) and it´s certainly well performed by a unit of skilled musicians, but the strongly German accented English language vocals are hard to stomach and drags my rating down quite a bit. It´s not only the thick accent which makes the vocal part of the music hard to listen to though, as Oliver Philipps doesn´t have a particularly interesting voice either.

The album features a clear, detailed, and polished sounding production job, suiting the synth heavy/effect laden guitar dominated compositions well. As a second tier neo-progressive rock album this is a decent effort, but I just can´t see past the flaws of the vocals, and therefore a 3 star (60%) rating ends up being a 2.5 star (50%) rating.

Hard to believe it's been six years since their last album. I know it sounds cliche but this is a more mature effort this time around. For me that's not a good thing. Haha.This isn't as emotional or powerful as my two favourites from them "Fantasma" and "Bridge". The cover art though is A+ along with the pictures in the liner notes.

"Hands" is such a cool song lyrically and instrumentally. My favourite. Maybe not surprisingly it's the most powerful song on here as well. The best part of the album for me is when it kicks in with sheer force early before settling down quickly. Those emotional vocals come in and it all sounds so good. More heaviness before 3 1/2 minutes to end it. "A Brief Encounter" opens with drums and a relaxed guitar solo before vocals and piano take over. It does become fairly powerful as the drums return. Nice guitar solo 4 1/2 minutes in. "From Where I Stand" features piano and guest cello before vocals and drums take over. It does become more passionate as the contrast continues. A guitar solo after 4 minutes. "Test Of Time" opens with cello then the song kicks into gear before a minute. More powerful 2 minutes in as the contrast continues. The guitar lights it up 4 minutes in.

"North" opens with the sound of water as piano comes in. Vocals and drums join in. Again they contrast the heavier and lighter passages well. Water sounds to end it. "South Of London" is different, almost experimental with some processed vocals. Good tune. "Wasn't It Good" puts the focus squarely on the vocals and lyrics. Cello before 4 minutes. Lots of piano in this one. "Woodworks" is the only instrumental and one of my favourites on here.The sounds of a chainsaw can be heard in the intro and outro and inbetween. This is uptempo with prominant piano and some good guitar 2 minutes in. "Islanders" features a guest female vocalist (Judith) who does a fantastic job on this song. This is another highlight for me. I'm not a fan of the intro on "Running" but it changes to a better sound. The contrast continues though.

Good album but not one of my favourites from them.

Bridge is their sixth studio album and aswell their second from the same year 2002. Another good album but not over the top, is in the same vein with the predecesors. Something worth mentioning is that Everon release albums with a constant quality, I mean every single album is good and has something to offer, one of those bands that realy knows to make the listner stays with ears opened all the time. This band don't have highs and lows, Everon has only highs from the beggining, well of course their albums never reaches the masterpiece status in my opinion, but for sure all are good and worth listning by everybody intrested in good music. Now about Bridge from 2002, not very much , just is another well done Everon album, with again slower and mellower parts combined very well with harder ones. The voice of Oliver Philips is a real pleasure to listen, he can make an album shine in every sens , even the instrumental passage are usual many times. The best pieces are all, not one in front, all has sae level. Intristing is that I never considered this band as heavy prog, maybe something between neo prog and here and there some eclectic passages, they remind me in places with Enchant. Anyway this Bridge album is again a good one , no doubt, but again I'm not realy pushed to give more than 3 stars.