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"Despite a successful first part and a good production, the score is a sanction of this lack of risk taking unfortunately predictable."
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2/5
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For more than 10 years now, Leprous' Norwegians have been officiating in the metal scene with a dazzling rise. The flamboyant, inventive and avant-garde prog metal of the early days gave way to a more conventional rock music that opened the doors to success for them and a wider audience. Their releases every two years are still carefully scrutinized by the Music Waves editorial staff and this sixth Viking misdeed, "Malina", following two relative disappointments, is still enough to whet our curiosity.
Bonneville's jazzy intro quickly gave way to the ethereal voice of the omniscient Einar Solberg, whose influence has now been vampirising the band's creations for three albums. The melody is soft and the musicians retain their notes, printing a softness that only turns into darkness when the not very elaborate central riff starts and raises the second part of the track. "Stuck" is built on the same melodic foundations but rhythmically more removed. With even more obvious effectiveness, 'From The Flame' has all the characteristics of a single to such an extent that the excellent chorus introduces the song as if to underline its hymnical character. Nevertheless, it works and, in the absence of originality, simplicity, efficiency and pleasure are the order of the day.
The rest is also melodiously delightful with "Captive" and "Illuminate" with catchy choruses, but much less original since the ensemble remains suspended to Solberg's omnipresent voice while the guitars deliver simplistic riffs. This EP ends with a "Leashes" in the form of a copy and paste of "From the Flame". Excuse me,... you say? Isn't this an EP? Oh, yeah, there's five more titles after that. Well, the creative exhaustion is such that they no longer even offer interesting melodies and do not deserve their place on a Leprous album. Electro introductions, plaintive and haunting voices, repetitive and monotonous riffs, nothing will make metal prog fans blink.
The "band" relies almost exclusively on its leader, whose voice is certainly magnificent, but it is no longer enough. Too many titles are useless or are unnecessarily long. For three albums now, Leprous no longer offers anything original or exciting, whereas it used to be the spearhead of an avant-garde progressive metal with unlimited potential.
Despite a successful first part and a good production, the score is a sanction of this lack of risk taking unfortunately predictable. In 2015, we urged Leprous to regain the life-saving inspiration of a collegial writing style, but Solberg apparently did not see things in the same way. So certainly, the melodies are effective, some vocal parts beautiful to cry about, but it's so little. Only the fans of the Norwegians' latest outings will find what they are looking for. As for the others, they will listen to this one and the following ones, hoping to find in them the hope of a glimmer of creativity. - Official website
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TRACK LISTING:
01. Bonneville
02. Stuck
03. From The Flame
04. Captive
05. Illuminate
06. Leashes
07. Mirage
08. Malina
09. Coma
10. The Weight Of Disaster
11. The Last Milestone
LINEUP:
Baard Kolstad: Batterie
Einar Solberg: Chant / Claviers
Oystein Landsverk: Guitares
Simen Daniel Børven: Basse
Tor Oddmund Suhrke: Guitares
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(0) MIND(S) FROM OUR READERS
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(5) COMMENT(S)
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Le seul album de Leprous que j'écoute avec plaisir. Oui, c'est maniéré, un brin précieux, mais c'est souvent très beau, parfois puissant et franchement surprenant pour un "vieux" comme moi !
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Au final, ceux qui veulent du "metal prog" sont déçus et ceux qui veulent juste de belles compositions bien travaillées avec une voix exceptionnelle sont aux anges... je fais partie de ces derniers. Les deux premiers titres sont terribles !
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Même si la formule est proche des albums précédents cela reste très bon, avec un coté calme ( presque op) plus présent. Un des meilleures albums de métal prog pour moi pour 2017
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superbe album comme les autres , toujours en progression , j'adore vivement le prochain !
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Tellement vrai, tout est dit.... Il ne chante quasiment plus sur cet album, c'est proche du Lyrique, vivement qu'il vomisse des moules comme Labrie
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READERS
4.5/5 (13 view(s))
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STAFF:
2.9/5 (9 view(s))
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IN RELATION WITH LEPROUS
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OTHER REVIEWS
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OTHER(S) REVIEWS ABOUT LEPROUS
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