LIZZARD: Shift (ALTERNATIVE METAL): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

In two albums, the French of Lizzard have affirmed their signature at the crossroads of alternative metal, progressive and atmospheric. Three years after a "Majestic" which gave signs of emancipation compared to an initial approach very marked by Tool, the trio is back with "Shift".

In spite of his title (change), Lizzard hasn't fundamentally changed and still offers a very refined metal that is supposed to hit the bull's eye from the very first listening, relying on its load of memorable riffs, reptilian grooves and melody-rich choruses. With the triplet formed by the progressive 'Singularity', 'Gemini' in the form of a coupling between Godsticks and This Misery Garden and the groovy 'Min(E)d' which reminds as well the Australian scene (Karnivool, The Butterfly Effect) as the Scandinavian one (Morph), one can barely make more effective. The French have understood everything about composition by refining their introductions and their finishing touches and by fluidifying the progression of their songs as in the three previously mentioned tracks but also the superb 'Bloom' and its irresistible emotional rise.

Lizzard doesn't forget their atmospheric appétences, a specific feature present from the beginning, but as we had already heard in "Majestic", these are less directly spacey ( maybe that's the change), more in the register of pop, in the form of piano arrangements or ambiences (the mid-tempi 'Bloom' or 'Passing By' in a style close to Demians) and more scattered in the body of the songs. And especially via the articulations and the very well mastered bridges as in 'Singularity' to launch the final Dantesque ascension, the pre-chorus of 'Gemini' or 'Open View'.

"Shift" achieves a flawless performance if we exclude three small remarks. These one concern the instrumental 'Shift' which suffers from a lack of variety and which would have gained in density if the vocals had been added, 'Leaving The Dream' less melodically rich than the other tracks and the end of 'Passing By' that we would have liked to be more grandiose to close the record rather than a simple decrescendo.

These few moderations do not detract from the pleasure of listening to "Shift", which consolidates Lizzard's polymorphic style a little more. This step in the artistic career path of the trio follows a logic of efficiency which corresponds perfectly to it but nothing says that the group, faithful to its progressive spirit, follows this way in the future. Already, "Shift" is the album that confirms the status of Lizzard as a sure value of the French metal. - Official website

LIZZARD

SHIFT

METALVILLE

ALTERNATIVE METAL