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Cloudscape
Album: Global Drama
Release Date: August 19, 2008
Label: Nightmare Records
Track Listing
01. Mind Diary
02. Darkest Legacy
03. Cloak & Daggers
04. Paid in Blood
05. The Silence Within
06. One Silent Moment
07. Alagoas
08. Static
09. Fragile
10. Eyes of Jealousy
11. Ritual of the Blade
12. Justice
Reviewer: Doug
After two successful releases, the progressive power metal band from Sweden,
Cloudscape, are back with their heaviest and most progressive album to date.
Will Global Drama be the album that generates enough buzz to make them a
‘global’ phenomenon?
A majestic keyboard intro starts off the disc and leads into a hurricane of
speedy, whipping guitar rhythms where the guitars have been tuned down, while a
thick, brooding bass line leers over the melody and pummeling double bass drums
assault your ears. While this theme isn’t staggeringly new territory for the
band, it is heard on a lot more of the songs this time.
Another noticeable change is the backseat role the keyboards have taken on the
album. They play a bigger part in the atmosphere of the songs now and are rarely
fleshed out. For someone who enjoys having the keys play a larger role in the
music (like me), the band does an excellent job of not letting them go
unnoticed. Though they are pushed to the background most of the time, they are
still quite audible during each track and are brought to the forefront when
necessary, thus retaining an integral part in the music.
The band has a few tricks up their sleeves as well. To add to the worldly theme
of the album, certain ethnic vibes were incorporated into the tracks. There is
an evident Middle Eastern theme to the first single, “Cloak & Daggers,” while
the track “One Silent Moment” gives way to a Scottish mood set by the inclusion
of bag pipes. Then there is my personal favorite, “Ritual of the Blade,” which
is induced with an oriental atmosphere through the keys. These might seem cliché
at first, but again, the band never overdoes it, allowing the core of their
instrumentation to overshadow any gimmicky feeling you might have otherwise
derived.
Clocking in at around sixty-seven minutes, this is also the band’s longest and
most progressive venture as well. The album houses two songs that push toward
the ten minute mark, which are the most extensive pieces they have ever done.
The two songs, “Alagoas” and “Eyes of Jealousy,” hearken to the likes of bands
such as Dream Theater and Symphony X. Although I found “Alagoas” to be a little
too much at its length, “Eyes of Jealousy” comes off as a great prog song and
fits as a perfect median between the two aforementioned bands.
However, the total length of the album does seem a bit drawn out. Again,
“Alagoas” felt too long as do a few other tracks we could have done without or
maybe would have appreciated more at an edited length.
Final Verdict
Sounding tighter than ever, Cloudscape has really come together as a band on
their third release, Global Drama. The production quality is high without being
too glossy and vocalist Mike Andersson sounds as good as ever. While the album
does tend to drag on occasion, the music is still very well done. The album
picks itself back up quickly and continues to suck you into. As for becoming a
global phenomenon, the band certainly deserves a larger fan base and hopefully
their latest effort will give it a nice boost.
Rating
8.50 out of 10
Cloudscape Official Web Site
Cloudscape on Myspace
Cloudscape - Demon Tears
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