POLAR HUMAN CIRCLE

This 5th progressive metal opus goes to ambient lands by mixing fleshy prog metal from the 90s with a modern sound on Riverside, the latest Marillion and the Floydian base. Gabriele's voice tries to bring reflection on the survival of our species, nothing less.

'Andenes' starts atmospheric, aerial latency, the suave vocal, the vibrant bass, impression of a piano bar at the end of a dark street. Cymbals and the drum roll for the intoxicating progressive rise, post-rock à la Riverside with the sensual guitar. 'When the Summer Collapses' into Fall' follows, vocal à la Bowie, keyboard on the sound of Simple Minds and guitar on Echo and U2 direction new-wave, singular. The melodic chorus is cheerful, fresh, astonishing. 'Coda: A Tiny Passage to Outer State' for the piano interlude, dark, majestic, aerial, symphonic. 'Point Nemo (Nautilus Last Voyage)' with this note taken from Gilmour's solo with Supertramp! The symphonic title looks to Millenium for this orchestration, the psychedelic latency accentuated by the voice-over and the languorous sax, worthy of another millennium. 'The Obsidian Mirror' changes direction, fruity, catchy and heady prog metal a little messy; it is the ambient jazzy finale that gives it its singular character. 'The Bringer of Light' leaves on the Hogarthian vocal framework and the Zeppelinian riff; viscous melodic prog metal reminiscences for a monolithic title interspersed with a bucolic flute break. The cover goes into heavy, fat heavy prog with a well-gratinated guitar solo.

'Polar Human Circle' with the epic title in 6 parts, crystalline reverberating air of the Passions, vibrant psyche before the orchestral variation; the serene vocal on a tragic text sends the 6 strings on Moongarden, Hogarth again. The piano and violin break sets the evolution before leaving a solo to the Rothery, yes Marillion is really not far. The sound gets carried away with the progressive moment, fat synth and explosive pad, vocal on the edge of the litany. The sound rises, reminds me of the Saviour Machine; another break goes on the psychedelic experiments of the 70s, Pink Floyd in the lead, the guitar roaring like the experimental one of Robert Fripp. A break yes again, jazzy this time which discredits the prog rock sound, but some will like this mix. More than 20 minutes and the end approaches with the phrasing vocal of Gabriele which will rise and give a tortured instrumental sequence, raw to soften the last unconverted listener.

Raven Sad makes solid and heavy neo-progressive music, a rather disparate opus that is especially worth it for its eponymous piece, an immense musical mishmash, a true imprint of the group, taking you from jazz to metal, from psychedelia to rock, pure and simple. Originelly on Progcensor.

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