Band:	James LaBrie
Album:	Impermanent Resonance
Style:	Progressive metal
Release date:	July 29, 2013
A review by:	Ivor

01. Agony
02. Undertow
03. Slight Of Hand
04. Back On The Ground
05. I Got You
06. Holding On
07. Lost In The Fire
08. Letting Go
09. Destined To Burn
10. Say You're Still Mine
11. Amnesia
12. I Will Not Break
13. Unraveling [European limited edition bonus]
14. Why [European limited edition bonus]

I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting much from this album. I've not been exactly high on James LaBrie's solo stuff, nor have I been much satisfied with Dream Theater for that matter, but that's another story. So, I approached Impermanent Resonance with enough bias to confirm my doubts and thus it didn't disappoint me, if I can express it like this. My initial impression was of an album that is quite OK music-wise, but totally inaccessible due to its sound and production.

So, given the introduction above, I expect you to expect me to say that "it turns out this album is a great piece of music." Well... yeah, it sort of is, but for all the wrong - or unexpected, if you prefer - reasons. It so happens, that while this album is hardly progressive, easy-natured, somewhat sappy in lyrical content, light on thought calories, and with a kind of flat, wall of sound production that makes it hard to crack, it is actually a catchy album that can draw you in.

When I say it's hardly progressive, I mean it's hard to call this album prog metal at all. It has more in common, music-wise, with Amaranthe than, let's say, Dream Theater; which says a lot considering it's the voice of Dream Theater on vocals. But don't get me wrong, that works in its favour. The keyboards, which made me draw parallels with Amaranthe, are one aspect that give this album a catchy and poppy feeling, alongside the lyrical content. In contrast however, this album makes quite a show of good riffing and powerful drumming. It's got some seriously cool stuff right there.

As you can guess, the biggest gripe I have with this album is the compressed production. The music on the album comes with a lot of power, and would rock your socks off if given the chance. However, it feels like looking through a key-hole. You see light on the other side of the door, lots and lots of it, but it will hardly do a good job illuminating your side. Same with this album, you can feel there's a lot hidden there but it just doesn't come through. That said, crank up the volume and it kind of starts to open up; that's how it got to me.