Track Listing:
Contact
Eyes Of Fire
Intermission
Into The Aftermath
Walk Away In Silence
Revelation To The End
Follow Your Way
Live Your Life Like A Dream
The Master's Voice
Never Walk Alone
When Angels Unite
Norwegian progressive metallers Pagan's Mind are ready to release their fifth studio album "Heavenly Ecstacy". It's been four years since their previous release "God's Equation", during which time the band has gone on to make a name for themselves in territories outside Norway through appearances at festivals like ProgPower USA and tours with the likes of Sonata Arctica, Fates Warning and Stratovarius. The aforementioned 2007 release was an excellent amalgam of melodic and heavy arrangements, and it remained to be seen as to whether this particular release would be the next logical step in their musical journey.
Throughout their 11-year career thus far, they've been a band that mixes theatrical elements into their music, something that makes them stand out among other progressive bands. The album's intro piece "Contact" is a classic example of that, a dramatic, dark and exotic piece of music that it sets the tone for the album. If you're familiar with Dream Theater's music but haven't heard of Pagan's Mind, I can assure you that you'll find this album quite to your liking. Tunes like "Eyes Of Fire" and "Intermission" have a Dream Theater-esque blend of melodic keyboard segments, guitar solos and heavy guitar riffs, with Nils Rue's pristine vocals adding further oomph. These tunes are extremely easy on the ears, almost catchy to an extent.
"Into The Aftermath" is a fascinating, bass-heavy track that instantly reminds me of Billy Sheehan and Mr. Big. Besides the lead-style of bass playing, it is decorated by some brilliant arrangements that should delight any music connoisseur. "Walk Away In Silence" is probably the most melodic tune on the entire album, and is very appropriately placed between two of the heaviest tracks. "Revelation To The End" is a representation of the entire album as it consists of all the elements that have been used to create the music. I foresee it turning out to be the most memorable tune from this album in the long run as it reaches the listeners in months to come. "Follow Your Way" on the other hand is a much faster, catchier tune that should achieve instant success.
"Live Your Life Like A Dream" is more along the lines of "Walk Away.." is its musical style but is rather down-tempo, giving it a hard rock ballad-type feel. "The Master's Voice", a typically heavy mid-tempo power metal tune, again keeps the song-to-song contrast intact. The album draws to a close with two more melodic tunes "Never Walk Alone" and "When Angels Unite".
Overall, "Heavenly Ecstacy" totally justifies its title as it turns out to be a musically rich composition, ranging from theatrical arrangements, progressive metal, power metal, melodic hard rock, and even some segments that make me pleasantly reminisce early Bon Jovi and A-Ha tunes. It's a release that will not only appease the desires of Pagan's Mind fans, but every fan of progressive rock in general. It varies so much from track to track that it's hard for me to give you any first recommendations. I'd suggest listening to the whole album to truly feel the musical progressions, and this isn't a bad thing at all. It's refreshing to see a band giving importance to creating album-oriented rock in this day and age.
A brilliant composition that is certain to leave the listener ecstatic.
