Band:	Wolverine
Album:	The Window Purpose
Style:	Progressive metal
Release date:	December 2001
A review by:	Malcolm

01. End
02. My Room
03. His Cold Touch
    1 - Part I: Within These Walls
    2 - Part II: A Silent Outside
04. ?
05. Leaving Yesterday
06. Towards Loss
07. The Storm Inside
08. Coma
09. Release
10. Post Life
11. Again! [re-release bonus]

This album was originally released in 2001 through the label DVS Records, but is now re-released through Elitist Records/Earache Records.
And I don't think any real Progressive Metal fans are complaining, when this album was originally released it was honoured almost everywhere and the band received a lot of great reactions around the world.
Their following release "Cold Light of Monday" didn't really live up to all expectations, and every since that it has been quiet around Wolverine, until now when the debut is re-released.

On this re-release we're given the whole album newly re-mastered and also one bonus track, the last song "Alive" and a new cover artwork.
If you're not into Wolverine, you might wonder what kind of band they are.
Well, that was what I wanted to know too, since I never heard of them before receiving this album.
But what I can tell you is that their Progressive Metal is a little original, or at least unusual.
It's not the regular Power/progressive music that's very well liked in southern Europe, it's more against the American bands, but without even getting close.
It's very melancholy and moody, and with the great voice of Stefan Zell the band reaches up pretty high.

The album itself is actually a concept album, about a guy that dies (First song "End" is his funeral), and enters a strange room with some paintings on the wall. A familiar voice welcomes him and tells him to look around. He's instructed to study the paintings carefully and reflect on what they tell him on order to walk into his afterlife.

It took me quite some time to really get into Wolverine, I wasn't that impressed in the beginning, I felt that the material was way to boring and couldn't really find something to grab onto throughout the journey.
But after a while I really started to like voice of Stefan Zell, and it's actually reminds me a bit of Timo Kotipelto (Stratovarius) sometimes, but without the accent and the really high and bright tunes.

With Zell's voice and the growls (produced by the drummer Marcus Losbjer) Wolverine has a great ground to stand on, and with brother Mikael Zell and Per Broddesson on guitars, Wolverine really has a great band, musically.
But why they haven't made a better album than this is surprising me, because even if the musicians are good and the album are more than average, I feel that they band has so much more inside of them than this, they could be one of the worlds leading Prog bands, but apparently something is missing.

In general I've to say that I like the album, it's no masterpiece in my eyes, but still more than worthy to buy.
So if your really into melancholy and moody Prog, and never heard of Wolverine, I think it's time for you to change that. Go to your local record store and buy "The Window Purpose", because remember, even if I don't give it full score, many others are really loving this album, give it a shot.

Check Out: "Towards Loss", "The Storm Inside" & "Post Life".