Call Us at the Number You Provide

Scenes | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 19, 2005)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Escapi
• ASIN: B0007ZSHE4
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #852,278 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

About the Artist

SCENES originally started in 1995 as a two-piece project which turned out to become a real band when the line-up was finally completed in 1998. In the following year, the band recorded the demo „New Beginning" which sold about 600 copies. After a couple of line-eup changes – singer Nektarios Bamiatzis took part in the German version of „Fame Academy" and made it into the final) the band looked for new territories to approach.

SCENES these days consists of Chris Lorey (git), Florian Wenzel (keys), Hendrik Edelthalhammer (drums) and Jan Ebert (bass) plus new singer Alex Koch (ex-POWERGOD, ex-SPIRAL TOWER). Their sound stands synonym for heavy, diverse metal riffs with influences from various genres. Melodies and technical finesse nevertheless remain to be the guide.

SCENES regulary perform live and most recently joined the stage with a couple of well-known bands at bigger events such as the Radio-Ton-Festival or at WNF (with BONFIRE & URIAH HEEP)

Vocals: Alex Koch Guitars: Chris Lorey Keyboards: Florian Wentzel Bass: Jan Ebert Drums: Hendrik Edelthalhammer

Product Description

SceneS originally started in 1995 as a two-piece project which turned out to become a real band when the line-up was finally completed in 1998. In the following year, the band recorded the demo "New Beginning" which sold about 600 copies inside Germany alone. After a couple of line-up changes – singer Nektarios Bamiatzis took part in one of the German versions of "Fame Academy/ Pop Idols" and made it into the finals there – and SceneS looked for new territories to approach.

The band these days consists of Chris Lorey (git), Florian Wentzel (keys), Hendrik Edelthalhammer (drums) and Jan Ebert (bass) plus new singer Alex Koch (ex-POWERGOD, ex-SPIRAL TOWER). Their sound stands synonym for heavy, diverse metal with influences from various genres. Melodies and technical finesse nevertheless remain to be the guide. Playing live belongs to the biggest strengths of the band as it was proven many times in the past by supporting bands such as Uriah Heep, Bonfire and many more.

SceneS’ first full-length release "Call Us At The Number You Provide" immediately raised the interest by Escapi Music and ended up in a multi-album deal for the band. Being produced by Chris Lorey, Florian Wentzel and Ecki Erlenbusch, the album was finally was mixed and mastered by Tommy Newton (Victory, UFO) at his Area 51 Studios in Hannover, Germany.

"Call Us At The Number You Provide" contains 9 highly-versatile but nevertheless catchy progressive metal tunes including a new, astonishing version of TALK TALK’s smash hit "Such A Shame". Former singer Nektarios handled the lead vocals on the songs "Safe The Light" and "My Own Life" whereas vocalists Dirk Thurisch (Angel Dust) and Marcus Juergens (Pump, ex-Brainstorm) took over the backing vocal duties for "I Will Stay".

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Competent melodic prog metal debut, April 30, 2005

By 

Murat Batmaz (Istanbul, Turkey) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Call Us at the Number You Provide (Audio CD)

Call Us at the Number You Provide is German melodic prog metal band Scenes' first full-length album. Unlike their demo with Hubi Meisel on vocals, this one has Alex Koch (ex-Powergod, Spiral Tower) at the helm. Koch may sound a tad flat at first, but he gets better with each listen. He doesn't necessarily have a very wide range; however, he is mixed excellently on the album and he delivers a fitting performance over melodic guitar harmonies, solid rhythms and curious arrangements. Original vocalist Nektarios Bamiatzis still appears on two tracks, the melodically engaging "My Own Life" and the relatively more concise "Save the Light". Both songs have almost poppy vocal styles with a more fortright songwriting approach.

According to guitarist Chris Lorey, Call Us at the Number You Provide deals with "misunderstandings and problems which could have been avoided with the right communication". This is best explored on the opening song, "So (Father)", a number about the generation gap between parents and children. It also defines the musical scope of Scenes. Great, warm keyboards; heavy and powerful rhythms, pounding drumming which is all over the place; and ethereal keyboards. Similar to Threshold a bit, Scenes also loves using the dichotomy of musical soundscapes. Very heavy rhythm guitar and bass lines are played over velvet-like keyboards. Then vocalist Koch places his vocals almost delicately over them. The 10-minute monster, "Start Again", is easily my favourite song. It begins with electronic samples and then moves on to show Koch's darker singing. The music encompasses a wide variety of styles, going from a serious guitar-keyboard duel to powerful vocal harmonies and lush, orchestrated textures. Lorey plays some of the best guitar solos on this track.

There are also more compact numbers such as the short piano ballad "Deep Inside My Heart", the amazing bass-driven number "I Will Stay" (note the killer keyboard solo here) and the almost AOR-oriented hard rocker "Such a Shame". I personally don't think this song fits the flow of the album, since it's completely focused on a multi-layered chorus that is simply repeated too many a time.

The Dream Theater-inspired album closer "Nothing Left to Say (Unforgiven)" wraps the album up. Beginning with something that wouldn't seem out of place on Scenes from a Memory, it quickly retreats to the band's signature melodic sound, lots of Threshold meets Vanden Plas sort of vocals melodies, neverending guitar and keyboard solos that wail, soar and rule. Producer Tommy Newton (Conception, Ark) has given the band exactly what they needed - lots of reverb on the vocals, a very crisp and warm sound, and lots of punch in the rhythm section. One of the better debuts of 2005. Let's see what they'll do on their next release.