Progressive metal from USA, two full-length albums released in 1990 and 1992.
Because this was the bands starting point, there is really no better way to start my review. Psychotic Waltz was at the start of their career under the moniker Aslan which recorded its first demo in 1986. Upon finding another band of that name, they later they changed their name to Psychotic Waltz. A dear friend was asked to describe their music and he dubbed it a Psychotic Waltz, which is my mind there could not be a more suitable moniker. These guys had it all back then, bongos, trippy hippie elements, progressive song structures, amazing musicianship, heavier than fuck mix, may I go on? Buddy Lackey is easily one of the greatest vocalists ever, his range and diversity are beyond comprehension. A social grace is different than most albums out there, it's integrity has lasted even to this day, the production is crystal clear, the songs are all equally as satisfying, and the lyrics are poety in and of itself. The drumming by Norm Leggio who later moved on to Teabag for a short time is very competent. Dan Rock's, and Brian McAlpin's riffs definatly stand out as being very technical and outright fucked up. Its hard to pick Psychotic Waltz'z greatest album out there , but A Social Grace is definatly their speed-rush, heaviest and most aggressive album. This album is what other bands could only dream of making. The emotion that was put into every song will never be forgetten.
Concisely put there has never been another band with a sound even remotely close, this could never be imitated or reproduced. I strongly suggest this to any metalhead with an open mind. After first hearing this album a couple years back i didnt know what to think. After a couple listens half the songs were stuck in my head. I was hooked. This was named "Album of the Month" by Rock Hard and Metal Hammer, launching the band's career in grand style. The band thrived off their European exposure, and even today its easy to see why. It's astonishing to listen back and hear the breadth of the material on this disc...from the insistent pounding of "I of the storm" to the sinister but glorious "Spiral Tower", the band were able to capture listeners from the heavier side of the spectrum. Then effortlessly, they can transition into the technicality of the opener "And the devil cried" then soar on majestic melodies as within "Another Prophet song" and "Only in a dream"before stunning you with a beautiful peice like "I Remember", Lackey's spot-on tribute to Jethro Tull frontman Ian Anderson. Meanwhile, tracks such as "A Psychotic Waltz" are an architecture of genious , showing a deft touch for arrangements and orchestration that musicians of their age are simply not ment to possess. It was only their first step but what a distinguished on it was.
The chapter called “Psychotic Waltz” is a very tough one to review, even for music journalists. Imagine how hard it is for me, a listener (a young one, too) to describe and review one of the most unique, complex and sophisticated music acts of all time. Well, let’s give it a try.
“Into The Everflow” is the second Waltz album, one year after the breath-taking debut album called “A Social Grace”.
The guys from San Diego are one of the few bands on earth that proceeded to record four pure masterpieces, in a way that it seems completely unfair to make comparisons between them. All four of them are in the first place for some fans, there is no best or worst album. All of them top the ranks, yet from release to release, Waltz transfigured their style without ever losing musical identity. It sounds bizarre, but in my opinion no other band ever succeeded in doing this. So, to the album. The first and foremost I have to comment about this progmetal extravaganza is its atmosphere. Lord, this album is haunting. I can’t quite transform the feeling into words, but I feel like there is a glowing fog around the room when I put it in the stereo.
I feel like being abducted by something unseen, and taken to a voyage through unseen skies and unknown solar systems. It spins and spins around me from the very first second of “Ashes” right until the finishing tones of “Butterfly”. It envenoms me with time travelling guitar harmonies and vocals from somewhere far from here. The experience of listening this album (no matter what the conditions are) is truly memorable. Every time you lay your ears on it, it has something different to tell you, each and every time you discover bridges, riffs and sounds that you didn’t notice before.
It is an inexpendable treasure. The artwork is also awesome, but the music speaks for itself in this case, as on all truly masterwork music albums. Psychotic Waltz were probably the one and only band that played progmetal without ever being even close to other progmetal bands. No one sounds like them, and no song of them reminds of anything whatsoever. This album is, in my opinion, the best of Waltz, but: by no means you are a complete metal listener without having possession of all four albums. You may start with this one, you may not. In my opinion, “Into The Everflow” gains the gold with its haunting, travelling, foggy atmosphere, just a few centimeters in front of the rest Waltz masterpieces. Awesome.
Note! Requestor said about some glitches in the old torrent version of 1992 album. I checked mine - it's the exact size and bitrate in the dead torrent. I don't hear any sound glitches though. It's only the drums fus who sound strange, but this is MP3 and it couldn't sound perfect as the original CD. If this is what annoys the requestor, please reject the req fill.
/ XBTT (1) by Dejavu