Band:	Epysode
Album:	Obsessions
Style:	Melodic progressive metal
Release date:	August 11, 2011
A review by:	Susan

01. File 41807
02. Silences Of Dawn (Poetry)
03. First Blood
04. Obsessions
05. Invisible Nations
06. Gemini Syndrom
07. Fallen's Portrait
08. Season Of Redemption
09. The Other Side
10. Shadow Lord
11. One Chance
12. Divine Whispers
13. March Of The Ghosts
14. Last Sunset

What do you do when you enjoy and want to promote an album that you know is flawed? Let me just start by saying "I really like it." So even when I describe why I think it was swallowed up by the competition, know that I found its positives to outweigh the negatives. But it's a harsh world out there for competition.

So, this is a symphonic prog concept album with a cast of vocalists a la Star One and Ayreon. What drew me to Epysode in the first place were two very special names: Kelly "Sundown" Carpenter (from Beyond Twilight's 2005 masterpiece Section X) and Magali Luyten (the powerhouse behind heavy metallers Beautiful Sin's only album). Two phenomenal singers I thought I'd never hear from again, together in one place. Fantastic!

The music follows a smooth trajectory of tempos, pulling you in with epic, bombastic melodies you'd hope for from this style. The keyboards are plentiful though never overpowering, and the guitar riffing flirts with the heavier, crunchier side of things, just to keep it interesting!

Speaking of interesting, though, there is some sadly uninteresting singing going on today. With the exception of the two mentioned above, the other vocalists are rather unexceptional, especially Liselotte Hegl. I suppose her music was written in contrast to Luyten's strong belting; Hegl is in the soprano/sweet-feminine-voice role and sadly miscast. Her voice is completely uninteresting and lackluster, which makes it one of the main drawbacks of the album since she is featured so often.

Songs featuring Carpenter and Luyten do their best to save this album, and I would say that they succeed. These two add their special spice to every note they sing and give performances that make their songs instantly memorable and immensely pleasing.

Other details in the songwriting seem to have been overlooked here and there as well. There is a marked difference between the great songs and the rest. Not calling them filler? ok maybe I'm calling them filler. Thing is, they mostly work in context and make the album a great whole, but overall prevent this from being a CD you want to spin again and again. There are too many damn songs. Fat needs trimming. The songs that are truly stellar are almost drowned out. Thankfully, those stellar songs are there, and that's what keeps me coming back to this album.

Because, when they're on, they're fucking ON. Here is some gorgeous, epic, epic music. When you're listening to the right track, that is.

At the end of the day, Epysode has released an album for metal geeks to discover, but hasn't done quite enough to make the fans come running in droves. They have laid the foundation for a very strong future, though, and hopefully they'll capitalize on their achievements with this album and grow into brilliance for their sophomore release. That's an album I'll be eagerly awaiting.