Macabre Studios - Passion play - 2000
intro
Only 16 minutes of music in Macabre Studios' second work (see the review of their first work in progVisions) but it demonstrates a great maturity and evolution of Mattias Snygg –in charge of composition and instruments of the four pieces of this CD -, which moves away from the previous heavenly sounds and enters more than in the progressive rock arena.
review
The CD includes four songs. In the first of them, "Passion play" (4:20) we can observe the influence of classic bands in Macabre Studios' music. An electronic-medieval piece of great lyricism and with big changes of tempo and intensity. "Electric sheep" (4:08) returns us to the Macabre Studios of the first CD, a more electronic but musically consistent piece that contains elements of "Astradyne" of Ultravox (that song by Ultravox is unequivocally progressive!!) and of Giorgio Moroder. Particularly I consider this to be the worst of the four songs, although some light years better than the first CD. "Visions from afar" (2:57) is a beautiful intimate piece that conjugates the lyricism of an electronic Camel with the sensibility of Enya. The best thing comes at the end, and it is "Eastern moon" (5:01), the mine Macabre Studios should explore to be catapulted into the first division of the European ambient-electronic music. A track full of power, rhythm changes and film structure that remembers to the more sci-fi/urban Vangelis ("Blade Runner") and that adds some interesting eastern arrangements.
conclusion
When valuing the CD globally, I should say that it is not the same to give three stars to a band with economic and technical resources as Yes (for example) than to a young multi-instrumentalist that, taking out hours of his daily activities, records his own songs. This is why, inside the logical limitations and looking at it from a totally objective perspective, this CD has a lot, a lot of merit and, with the opportune support and resources, it can end into being a very interesting project in a near future. Resources and technology can be bought with money, talent can not.