OK, here we go !
Dissonance - The Golden Virtue
Got this album from Kyle a couple of days ago and heard it about 20 times by now. (those who know Evergrey, know who Kyle is).
Dissonance is a project done by Kyle Stout, recorded between 2002 and 2004 together with a bunch of guest musicians:
Kyle: all music and lyrics, guitars, bass, keyboards, choir vocals, growl vocals, drum programming, some backing vocal harmonies, theremine
Evergrey Guys -
Tom: two solos, clean vocals, choir vocals, additional vocal arrangements
Henrik: four solos
Rikard: two keyboard solos
Carina: all female vocals and choirs
King Diamond Guys -
Andy LaRocque - two solos
Snowy Shaw - drums on track 2
Therion Guys -
Andy Engberg - high male vocals and choirs
Kristian Niemann - three solos
Other -
Daniel "Mojjo" Moilanen (Runemagick, etc.) - all drums except track 2
Morgan Bergkvist (Embrace of Despair) - growl vocals
Tomas Backlin (Lord Belial) - growl vocals
Martin Lindström (???) - saxophone solo on track 2
Arnold Lindberg (duh) - vocals, choir vocals, additional drum programming
tracks:
1. Others
2. The Golden Virtue pt.I
3. The Golden Virtue pt.II
4. The Golden Virtue pt.III
5. Driven
6. The Brooding Storm
7. Stargazer
8. Others (instrumental)
Track one is the track with only growl/grunt singing, so for me it was a so so start at first listen since i'm not too fond of that kind of singing. It all got much better when Tom started to sing on track 2 and it got beyond best when Carina joined. (didn't knew the line-up before i got to listen to it the first time). Carina actually gets a major part of singing in a few of the tracks, so very good news for those who love to hear her sing (->moi<-).
Great songs in both ways: singing wise and instrumental wise. Strong songs, choirs, backing vocals, it has it all what a good album needs.
Good news for you Bear, the album hasn't been released yet, so still hopes for you to get your hands on it once it's released. Can't tell about a possible release-date since there isn't an actual record deal yet.
Keep an eye on this, if you love Evergrey, i bet my ass you'll love this as well. (if you can stand occasional growl/grunt in a few songs).
No website yet, but once it's in the air i'll post the link
