By Abaddon
(Please note that this review has been translated using an online translator)
Three years after the remarkable and noticed “Moments”, the English IOEarth remember our good memories. Given the excellent impression left by the previous album, it’s an understatement to say that this “New World” was watched eagerly, not just David (why David? Because David guetta) …
Changes occurred in the line-up, but the architecture of the compositions should not be affected, the quartet Adam Gough (guitar-keyboards) / Dave Cureton (keyboards, guitars) / Christian Nokes (bass) and Luke Shingler (wind instruments) still holding their places as musicians and composers. However, for the form, there is the arrival of two newcomers, Christian Jerromes to replace both battery Cureton, and Linda Odinsen vocals. Moreover, Jez King is now credited to the violin.
These adjustments without changing fundamentally musical aesthetics of IOEarth, which remains in a symphonic progressive tinged accents world, cause some shifts. The rhythmic won pep, Christian Jerommes not hesitating to use the double pedal to boost some piece of purposes (‘Redemption’, ‘New World’), emphasized in this by many heavy guitar riffs (‘Colours’ , almost hard-rock) and biting solos (‘Insomnia’). The vocals are mostly female and the enhanced use of the violin takes the atmospheres to Frequency Drift (‘Trance’). The play of influences – or comparisons – the world music keys remind Unitopia (‘Morning’, great atmosphere), and some passages seem very cameliens (‘The Rising’, smooth).
In this long opus of more than 100 minutes, there is almost no downtime (except ‘Dreams’, languid). The album was received with a constant interest, multiplying the collisions of styles and rhythms (‘Collision’, aptly named) group’s trademark, with this surprising ability to switch from one style to another. Compared to “Moments”, “New World” appears however a little smoother, leaving the electro rhythms in favor of a stronger dynamism, but has a less typical coloration, although the use of EWI ( Electronic Wind Instrument, a device that can control a party of a synthesizer wind instrument) provides interesting tones. The world connotations are somewhat less marked, which may slightly disappoint. Nevertheless, with a production became more pointed, a huge quality composition developing a great variety of moods, IOEarth presents an intelligent and challenging world prog record. Great success!
Abaddon: 5 out of 5