Written by Warman on 15.02.2014 at 20:27

Written by Guest on 15.02.2014 at 19:39

So what does this sound like if it isn't original?

Like bad Cynic? Like progressive metal with shitty vocals? I never said it's not original, I said it's not THAT original. Seems like some think it's mindblowing in originality. And hey, maybe it is to them. But to me it certainly wasn't something which made me think "whoa, what's this?".

Please enlighten me. I don't see anyone here or on the Internet that have claimed that this is incredibly original.

Written by Diverge on 16.02.2014 at 01:53

Please enlighten me. I don't see anyone here or on the Internet that have claimed that this is incredibly original.

You're right, bad choice of words from me. What I should have said is that I don't think this album is gonna divide MS because Cynic "has tried to do something different". It will divide MS because some of us will think it's just a bad metal album overall.

Written by Warman on 16.02.2014 at 10:19

You're right, bad choice of words from me. What I should have said is that I don't think this album is gonna divide MS because Cynic "has tried to do something different". It will divide MS because some of us will think it's just a bad metal album overall.

Well, I might add that this album probably fits better in the category of Progresive Rock than Progressive Metal

Anyway, I still have mixed feelings about it. A few more spins should fix it!

Written by Warman on 16.02.2014 at 10:19

Written by Diverge on 16.02.2014 at 01:53

Please enlighten me. I don't see anyone here or on the Internet that have claimed that this is incredibly original.

You're right, bad choice of words from me. What I should have said is that I don't think this album is gonna divide MS because Cynic "has tried to do something different". It will divide MS because some of us will think it's just a bad metal album overall.

Well that's understandable, seeing as this is hardly a metal album. If anything, I'd say this goes under something along the lines of "progressive space-jazz rock." That's the closest description I have at least... Definitely not much of an album for those who were attracted to the "metal" side of Cynic.

Written by Lethrokai on 18.02.2014 at 20:06

Definitely not much of an album for those who were attracted to the "metal" side of Cynic.

I guess you're right. I do love "Focus", as everyone else.

Sometimes it is hard to understand who is "average member" of Metalstorm. Yeah, album is confusing and takes time to get in. And Traced in Air and Focus were better (I even like Carbon Based anatomy very much). But some kind of real bullshit like Ayreon is applauded by almost every single MS user while Cynic is not .

And criticism that this album is not metal also seems weird since aforementioned Ayreon and tons of other bands listed on MS are 1000x less metal than Cynic s new album.

Finally I got the record to play on.

Well, it was terribly average album with "great" moments. Aforementioned, bass. I really liked the bossy bass sounds. It had some good moments with guitars which created a good atmosphere of song( Infinite Shapes) but nothing compared to "Focus". They lose the plot and flow in middle section and ending was just drab. Yeah, it was like listening to "Carbon-Based..." all over again.

Good album ruined by lack of energy. They could have done much better in a span of 3 years considering how talented Cynic's musicians are.

Written by PēterisP on 20.02.2014 at 12:08
And criticism that this album is not metal also seems weird since aforementioned Ayreon and tons of other bands listed on MS are 1000x less metal than Cynic s new album.

From what I've gathered the criticism is directed at the actual quality of the music, not the style its played in. Generally fans of prog don't take issue with the metal vs non-metal debate which is more common amongst fans of extreme metal, or at least that's how it seems in the forums.

Written by Troy Killjoy on 20.02.2014 at 15:02

Generally fans of prog don't take issue with the metal vs non-metal debate which is more common amongst fans of extreme metal, or at least that's how it seems in the forums.

True, but in the specific case of Cynic, you can find lot of guys complaining about the death metal influences seen on Focus missing on their post-reunion albums.

Very good and groovy

This sounds really whiny. There isn't even a vocoder or screams anymore, just a bitch filter stuck on the singer's voice.

Totally addicted!

Written by LeChron James on 24.02.2014 at 02:48

This sounds really whiny. There isn't even a vocoder or screams anymore, just a bitch filter stuck on the singer's voice.

The vocoder is still there.

Written by Diverge on 25.02.2014 at 07:21

The vocoder is still there.

Really? They must be using it completely differently or something, because it almost sounded autotuned.

After some time, I feel like it just gets worse with repeated listens, the vocals irritate me more than before and the guitars lack any real edge to them. It's progressively degraded to just being a letdown for me. It just leaves an annoying, sour aftertaste.

First song makes it promising, but then it's just average songs with one or two more decent ones. However, as mentioned previously, bass work is really impressive!

Im so torn at this release. Initial assessment: it is way below Traced in Air, which was arguably below Focus, but not in a great gaping way. This album is confusing, but that just makes me want to research it more. The majority of the songs are OK, Gitanjali and Endlessly Bountiful are abysmal in my opinion, they sound like the crap that was present on the Portal Tapes, fortunately most of the songs sound similar to Carbon Based Anatomy which is definitely a good thing. All in all, I don't know what to think yet.

"Moon Heart Sun Head" totally captivates me. I didn't expect it.

Written by ylside on 08.03.2014 at 23:38

"Moon Heart Sun Head" totally captivates me. I didn't expect it.

But then again you are quite a Cynic fanboy

So it is Cynic's Heritage...

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 08.03.2014 at 23:41

Written by ylside on 08.03.2014 at 23:38

"Moon Heart Sun Head" totally captivates me. I didn't expect it.

But then again you are quite a Cynic fanboy

well yes, I am sure you can understand hahaha

I've been relistening to Focus and it makes me upset to hear how much they've changed, but Kindly Bent to Free Us is definitely a grower, I'm started to kind of enjoy it.

Kindly Bent to Free Us is definitely a grower. The guitar riffs are just amazing, and the drums do their part to. It's not as good as their best, Traced In Air, but it's close.

This is probably one of those albums which everyone wanted so hard to like, but couldn't because of various things. For me, the band here sound tired on various songs, as if they left their energy back on "Carbon-Based Anatomy". Some of the songs are really disjointed too, feeling like the band tried to shove as many experimental sounds as possible into a five-minute song. It doesn't really feel like a logical progression on songs such as "Infinite shapes" and "Holy fallout".

Yet I do like it somewhat, if only because of how harmonic Masdival's voice and guitar playing is. Sometimes it's so harmonic that it feels more like a bubbly pop song than a progressive/experimental one, but because of that I felt like I was nodding my head to the beats and rhythms of the album's two highlights, "True hallucination speak" and "The Lion's roar". Not saying that Cynic should ditch the whole jazz fusion/prog metal/avant-garde thing, but if they carried on writing songs like the aforementioned (in this same paragraph obviously), then they could work on it so the next album is more cohesive and fluent as a result.

It was quite enjoyable but I couldnt help but feel there is a strong pull towards Post Metal and even some Psychadelic/Indie elements here. Just strange, not sure how to rate it, I'm not sure if I even liked it

Very disappointing album. It has no growls... Ok, no problem, Carbon Based Anatomy is only clean singing but is a beautiful EP, but this album... is weak and a bit boring for me >_<

Nice album, but somehow I think I won't be listening to it a lot of time. It's quite well-written and well-performed, but, in my opinion, it lack a certain charm Traced In Air had.

Honestly, I can't fathom why most of the metal community is pissing all over this album. It's the same Cynic, the same style as Traced in Air, just a lighter, less metal version of it. I'm not sure I like it quite as much as Traced, but I definitely prefer it to Focus.

The title track and Holy Fallout are such great songs.

Excellent album indeed. So many great tracks; I'm loving the melodies and the moody atmospherics. I could never get into Focus but this one suits my tastes. Favorites: Lion's Roar, Moon Heart Sun Head, Holy Fallout.

Not their best material IMO. Interesting listen nevertheless.