I
guess Ricochet is a bit of a forgotten gem in the German progressive
metal scene, after all their debut album "Among the Elements"
dates back to 1996. Now they are back with their second album: a concept
album called "Zarah - A Teartown Story". In the words of
drummer Jan Keimer: "Put simply, it is about the short and painful
life of a young girl – from her abuse as a child, through to the
murder of the culprit, to her eventual suicide during her period in jail”.
Even
though the band almost split up when the original vocalist and bass
player left the band, the core of Ricochet continued to believe in their
music, and kept going. And it's clear to hear that drummer Jan Keimer,
keyboard player Björn Tiemann and guitarist Heiko Holler have been
playing together for a great deal of time... But it wasn't until
vocalist Christian Heise joined the ranks that things started to move in
the right direction. Hans Strenge is completing the line-up on bass, and
the result of more than 10 years of writing songs, writing more than 50
songs, of which 8 has made the final cut and made onto this impressive
piece of metal. The
story about Zarah is musically an eventful and exciting journey that
captures the listener for more than 70 minutes. A trip that leaves me
stunned more than once... how can such a talented and great band be
un-signed? Diversity,
complexity, intensity and melody are keywords for this quintet from Hamburg, and the whole album reeks of class. And it spans from the melancholic
piano ballad: "Final Curtain", which at times reminds me of
the atmosphere and mood of Dream Theater's "Space Dye-Vest",
thru progressive smashers like "Cincinatti Road" and "The
Red Line", before it all ends with the 18 minutes epic "A New
Days Rising" - sort of their musical statement. This
collection of songs is very impressive, and I really wish some label -
maybe InsideOut Music - would pick this band up! But don't wait
for some label to pick them up - get your own copy now (links above) and
sit back and enjoy the ride... Recommended
Tracks:
"Disobedience", "Cincinatti Road", "Final Curtain", "The Red Line" &
"A New Days Rising" |
