SOEN- "Imperial"

SOEN  made one of the most promising progressive metal albums of 2021. "Imperial' is standing out among the new releases, even if it came out by the start of this year. An album full of color and shades. Melancholy and social distancing and isolation meet the climax of the human attempt to overcome the 2020 difficulties. Songs like "Illusion', "Fortune', "Antagonist" are prime cuts from the progressive metal body of work. PINK FLOYD, KING CRIMSON, DREAM THEATER, POS can be found in this unique album. Silence echoing the inner screams of  Joel Ekelof makes the audition of these songs a journey first to the down spiral and the ascension to the light.

 

Breaking the barriers of contemporary progressive metal, it elevates the band and the album to a new level of musical /artistic performance. Without reinventing the genre it transcends the songs, based on some really catchy, listener friendly melodic lines to an experience worth spending your time.From the opening heavy riff 'Lumerian" with the DT, FATES WARNING influences to the closing slow burner "Fortune", "Imperial" is a masterpiece of modern progressive metal with pop aesthetic.'Deceiver" is one of the examples, where pop aesthetics meets prog metal .Music that appeals and connects with the listener and not only the progressive metal listener. Complex and yet immense enough to work out of the progressive metal context. 

 

 

Sensitivity, creativity, musical intelligence and this deep sense of melody alongside the technical accomplishment of the band, creates an album that demands (and earns the right to do so), your attention (physically and mentally). A musical journey for the heartbroken, those  who live in the shadows, a barbed wired soul unveiling the music that was hidden inside it those days of confusion and fear. SOEN are making an imperial return to the throne of the metal albums, once again. We pay our respects and thank you wholehearted

 

8,5