Evergrey

Official Site

A Swedish band whose six albums, especially the breatkthrough "Solitude, Dominance, Tragedy" (99/2000), "In Search Of Truth" (2001), and "The Inner Circle" (2004) caused a wide-spread resonance. A heavy progressive / classic metal, with a heavy gothic feel, created a wide following for these guys. The band consists of Tom Englund (vocals, guitar), Dan Bronell (guitar), Daniel Nojd (bass), and Patrik Carlsson (drums). New album, "Monday Morning Apocalypse" (2006) just came out to please all fans immensely.

SOLITUDE, DOMINANCE, TRAGEDY (1999/2000)

RATING: **

BEST SONGS: "Nosferatu," "A Scattered Me," "She Speaks To The Dead"

This album is an awesome piece of heavy melodic prog (according to my own definitions). A good starting point to describe it would be to say that this is what Royal Hunt would sound like if Andre Andersen (A) became gothic and (B) let Jacob Kjaer actually play the guitar. The sound is fairly heavy, but the keyboards still occupy a large portion of the sound, but they're not as dominant as in RH. The music is full of melody and harmonies; it's lush and rich. Comparisons to mid-period Megadeth and early Queensryche also spring to mind. Guitar work from Dan Bronell and Tom Englund (who sings AND does solos) is intricate enough to satisfy many (not all) shred lovers. Endlund's vocals, to me, is the weak link. His low voice lacks range and power, as he tries to make up in passionate delivery, but it comes across as hysterial instead. The album's got plenty of hooks, most noteable being the chorus to "Nosferatu" (great stuff). Great catchy and melodic material, basically from start till finish, especially after I tried tolerating the vocals. "A Scattered Me" and "The Corey Curse" are both epic tunes, for fans of dark semi-gothic atmosphere. Several cool samplers in song's intro, the best one in "She Speaks To The Dead." Most of the lyrics deal with darker side of spiritualism, with "Nosferatu," "She Speaks To The Dead," "When Darkness Falls," and "The Corey Curse," and "The Shocking Truth" is the nod to "X-Files." Also, "A+" for arrangements and production from Andy LaRocque (of King Diamond fame).

MONDAY MORNING APOCALYPSE (2006)

RATING: 1/2

BEST SONGS: “Obedience,” “In Remembrance,” “At Loss For Words”

For five years I had little to no desire to hear Evergrey, and whatever little desire I had, was amply satisfied by Solitude, Dominance, Tragedy. I don’t know what prompted me to buy their latest, but I did, and not really sorry. It’s a good album, although not exactly what I expected from Evergrey. The uber-gothic dark power metal of S*DT is almost completely gone. Instead, this album, for some strange reason, makes me think of Anthrax and We’ve Come For You All. Not that it’s a direct influence or even the same style, but the hardcore-ish elements are obvious. Still, keys create nice atmosphere, when the guitar crunch does not come crushing down, and Tom Endlung’s voice is not as annoyingly hysterical as it used to be . Another band it reminds me in places of is Brainstorm, only not quite as powerful or steady (“I Should,” for example begins, completely in vein of Brainstorm, but then mellows away). The album starts out kinda slow, almost as if unsurely, but picks up with “Obedience,” and drives well for several tracks, which include “At Loss For Words” (this one could have been performed by, say, Sinner) and my favorite tune, “In Remembrance.” That is one song that somewhat resembles early Evergrey, although I can see it also generating a certain commercial success, with a proper push. In fact, this rings true for the whole album: it is fairly accessible and would not discourage people unfamiliar with the genre. Not a bad work at all, but its staying power remains to be seen.