STILL LIFE

It took me a while to get into Still Life, a long while actually. Still life is the first release after the magnificent Godbluff, and though there are some similarities between the two, Still Life is very different from Godbluff. Godbluff was full of raw power, while the strength of Still Life is not the band's fierce and angst laden sound, but the sensitive and melancholic sound.

The first time I listened to Still Life, I didn't like it at all. It was the marvelous VDGG, but it was not even close to some of their other albums. For example, "Pilgrims" sounded a bit too euphoric, and songs like "La Rossa" seemed like songs not worthy enough to be on Godbluff. After a long while, my opinion has totally changed. I think Still Life is an exceptional piece of music, as it is one of the most emotional and haunting albums I've ever heard.

Still Life does not have any bad song on it, though some are really better than others. The albums opener is the mysterious "Pilgrims". The song starts kind of euphoric, but in a mysterious way. The song soon takes some turns and really becomes a diverse and brilliant piece. So is the soothing "My Room (Waiting For Wonderland)". Both these song give me some feeling of relievement, very good. The title track is a very lyric driven song, as half of it is Peter singing over some very low volume instruments. The song might take a while to understand, but it's a great piece.

The two big highlights of the album are the epic "Childlike Faith In Childhoods End", a twelve minute VDGG classic, full of different riffs, moods and styles and the powerful "La Rossa". My ideas about about "La Rossa" sounding like a song not worthy enough to be on Godbluff have completely changed. In fact, "La Rossa" is one of the best pieces VDGG ever made. It's one of those songs that makes me constantly shiver and at some moments make tears appear in my eyes. This really is one of the most powerful songs I've ever heard.

Still Life is one disc full of brilliance, I have rarely heard an album as haunting and sensitive as this one. I ca't give it another rating than five stars, because it fully deserves those. This really is a masterpiece of prog, and though it might be tough to fully understand and appreciate, I would recommend it to anyone liking or wanting to like VDGG.