Customer Reviews

A Great Divide

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Suspyre's first album, The Silvery Mist, although good, didn't adequately prepare me for the sonic onslaught that awaited me in their new release, A Great Divide.

How many times can I type "Wow" before someone slaps me?

Everything about A Great Divide smacks of excellence -- from the pristine production to the packaging (Nightmare Records devotes as much TLC to its packaging as their artists do to their music) to the instrumentation to the vocals to the lyrics. This is as close to a perfect album as anyone is likely to get, folks.

This isn't just prog metal. Not by a long shot. This is well-crafted music that spans, perhaps even defies, genres. Sure, A Great Divide features fat riffs, speedy time signatures, and screaming solos. But where some prog metal bands lose me is in their inability to craft actual *songs*.

Not Suspyre. A Great Divide sounds like a cross between the best jazz-rock fusion of the Seventies (the short instrumental break around 6:00 into of the 9-minute "The Singer" is fusion all the way) with the technical virtuosity of Dream Theater and the sheer chutzpa of King Crimson. Oh, and the lush orchestration. Can't forget that. If there's one thing that gets me every time it's combining acoustic instruments (especially piano and acoustic guitar) with the roar of electric ones. Such balance showcases talent, whereas a constant barrage of sound merely bores me, no matter how well-played it may be.

A Great Divide features truly insane noodling, but the enchanting melodies of such songs as "Galactic Backward Movements" are glorious in their own right. They give my mind a rest, and a vehicle in which to travel along with the musicians. It's a journey I enjoy taking. (In fact, the day I received it, I left it on repeat, listening to it all day long in my office while I wrote. I felt energized, creative, and completely transported.)

Once every so often an album is released that blows me away. This is one of those times. A Great Divide is heavy without being annoying, lush without being sappy, and compelling in all the right ways. I predict this is going to be one of those albums that is talked about in reverential tones a decade from now.

If you have friends who think that the only good prog metal comes from European countries (or if you're one of those music snobs yourself), I suggest popping A Great Divide into your CD player, sitting back, and experiencing it first hand. Oh, and try to keep your mouth from dropping open. I dare ya.

I can't recommend A Great Divide highly enough. I urge everyone who loves exceptionally well-made music to buy a copy. And tell your friends to buy one, too. Let's see if we can turn Suspyre into a household name. These guys deserve it. A Great Divide is a remarkable achievement.

I first heard of this band when they were posting their demo songs on garageband. From that point on, I knew it was only a matter of time before they got a record deal and started producing high class prog metal. Their first album was more a combination of power metal mixed with progressive and classical elements. A Great Divide is a much different album yet is still recognizable as Suspyre. The songs are longer, more technical, more diverse, and more dramatic. Barton's lyrical content has become more abstract, matching the music's complexity and forcing the listener to think. One amazing thing I have noticed is this: Reading the lyrics without the music is very confusing, but in the context of the melodies and music composed by Rosetti and Skibinsky, it beautifully articulates the passionate emotions flowing through this cd.

The production is fantastic. Absolutely nothing to complain about. All instruments are clear and mixed properly. The guitar tone is heavy, comparable tone to Opeth's Ghost Reveries. The piano and orchestral accompanyment sounds authentic and you'd never know the difference if you didn't read the booklet and see that they didn't hire an orchestra!

This music is immensely creative and is full of pleasantly unexpected surprises. Jazz elements are fused with modern classical approaches which yields very intesting arrangements. This is the kind of album which other bands are going to be emulating and will soon be the father of a new genre in metal.

For anyone who is tired of the same formulaic "progressive" music and is aware that "formulaic progressive music" is an oxymoron, I urge you to give this band a listen and discover the true meaning of "progressive".

This was one of the five albums of 07 that I was REALLY looking forward to. My expectations for the album were perhaps unrealistically high. After all, I was expecting not just the greatness that was A Silvery Image, but I was expecting more. I actually sometimes wish my expectations were lower for albums, because it helps me enjoy them more.

However, The Great Divide (Suspyre's record label debut) did not disappoint me. It has gotten better each time I've listened to it, definitely, but the first listen was not a letdown as it so often is. When I got it in the mail yesterday, I listened to it in its duration straight through. It was like the old days where a kid would pick up a record and just listen to it - usually I multitask and play a game or something while listening to my music. But I wouldn't and couldn't for this. It was breathtaking (fitting, given the name of the band!) in its complexity and sheer beauty. During the second opus, I literally found myself saying 'This is beatiful!" For many metal bands, beautiful is not necessarily a compliment. But Suspyre is so much more than just a metal band. They are a progressive metal band with fusions of classical and jazz.

Each song has its own personality, and having only listened to the disc three times thus far, I have yet to truely understand each song fully. That is part of what makes a band like this so exciting - they bring such a fresh, creative approach to music that you can't just listen once or twice to understand or fully appreciate each song.

Some of my favorite things about the album include the bold 10 minute instrumental ("Galactic Backward Movements") the choral parts (which are IMMENSELY superior to those of the first album), and the acoustic bit on "Resolution." I also liked the subtle reference to "Father of Hate" on the previously mentioned song "Galactic Backward Movements." They really shred it out a lot more at certain points on this album than the previous one. Every moment is fresh and never is it boring.

So, by now you've probably gathered that I like Suspyre. But I am not just rump kissing - I truly believe that The Great Divide is a musical masterpiece. It really is a shame that the musical ignorance of the general individual leaves a band with such enormous talent and knowledge as they do to have to work side jobs as bankers and music instructors. I sincerely hope that Suspyre will eventually catch the break they deserve, and join the ranks of Symphony X and Dream Theater.

I heard about this from a review off blabbermouth. I've given this a few spins and it's really, really good stuff. If you're into Symphony X at all, give this a whirl...it's a guaranteed home run. Killer guitars, bass and drums, crisp production, and BIG TIME classical influence all over this disc, and the singer is really quite good as well.

Yes I am a big fan of Nightmare Records artist, and why????? They never fail to deliever the goods, and Suspyre now joins those ranks. Their new CD "The Great Divide" is in one word AWESOME!!!!!!!!! This, their sophomore effort is head and shoulders above any release so far for 2007, it combines the driving guitars and keys and melodic vocals that they are know for, but on a more professional level. Where can they go now??? If this is any indication then they have their whole future ahead of them. Buy this CD NOW you will not be disappointed at all.

This is a very good Progressive Metal album loaded with intricate arrangements and interesting ideas. Initially, I was in a bit of sonic overload, there being simply too many ideas to fully absorb. But, as with all good Progressive music, repeat visitations are rewarded with enlightenment. There is so much detail in the songcraft of this recording that even ten spins in I am catching new sounds, overlaying intricacies that are nearly impossible to notice within the first few spins. The lead guitar work is especially noteworthy, as it is both aggressive and creative. The album is broken up into two sections, each around 35 minutes in length, and both are so crammed with detail that they seemingly represent parts of a double album. Fans of Progressive Metal should not hesitate to purchase "A Great Divide" at once.

Highly talented music students deliver progressive metal at its technical extreme. Everything can be found here including classical, jazz, strings, orchestration, and even tenor saxophone. A Great Divide is progressive metal's Tubular Bells. If you love eclectic music, this one is for you.

Great progressive metal album with jazz and classical influences. Some of my favorite tracks are "The Singer," "The Spirit," "April in the Fall," and "Blood and Passion." Definitely worth checking out!

I have been browsing for new bands to listen to for months. I am a fan of progressive music; whether it be rock, metal or a heinz 57 of genres smashed together to form a collaborative whole. Suspyre is closer to prog metal, but is also heinz 57. "A Great Divide" cconsists of twelve tracks, split into "Opus II: the alignment of galaxies" and "Opus III: the origin of a curse". The musicianship is top-notch, all of their composition work is polished to a fine gloss. Required tracks of this album would be "Forever the Voices", a short masterpiece resultant of classical four-part vocal counterpoint and "The Singer", a nine-minute dance of musical ideas with influence from 80s power metal, jazz and a dash of classical. The lead singer is more of a dated specimen, his voice is reminiscent of early 90s progressive frontmen.

The only reason Suspyre receives four stars instead of five is that I am not a big fan of how they eq their guitars, the strings lack some body and warmth. Suspyre is definitely worthy of adding to your playlist if you have not discovered them yet. All in all "A Great Divide" was a pleasant surprise when I listened to it in its entirety.

The first Suspyre CD was one of my favorites at the time of it's release and they have managed to follow it up with an equally impressive release. If you are a fan of prog metal or metal in general, you owe it to yourself to get this cd. Many bands in this genre are suspect of being clones and you can not say that about this band. If you like Symphony X, Dream Theater and the likes you will enjoy these guys.

*Also, check out all the other great titles on this same label. Nightmare Records.