Remedy Lane [Import]

Pain Of Salvation | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 26, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Avalon Japan
• ASIN: B00005YEAP
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (58 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,373,827 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Of Two Beginnings

2. Ending Theme

3. Fandango

4. A Trance of Blood

5. This Heart of Mine (I Pledge)

6. Thorn Clown

7. Undertow

8. Rope Ends

9. Chain Sling

10. Dryad of the Woods

11. Remedy Lane

12. Waking Every God

13. Second Love

14. Beyond the Pale

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One word: Powerful., April 3, 2002

By 

Lord Chimp (Monkey World) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Remedy Lane (Audio CD)

Along with many others, I was disappointed to learn that Pain of Salvation's fourth album would not be the continuation of The Perfect Element story, which began with part I in 2000. Instead, we get Remedy Lane, a stunningly powerful and convoluted semi-story that is emotionally fatiguing in its intense pathos. Pain of Salvation has crafted a masterpiece here, perhaps one greater than The Perfect Element Part I. The band's original music and emotional performances are more powerful than ever. I'm not making any real objective statement here...it's just that I feel more drawn to this album than any of the band's previous works (which are all good, if not great).

Remedy Lane is another theme album (like One Hour by the Concrete Lake), this time about various forms of reconciliation. There is a roughly defined story, but it is fairly disjointed and the album mainly deals with different issues tied to the theme. Mainly it seems to cover the challenges of relationships and the connection between love and sex (you can have sex without love, and love without sex). It touches on tragedies like a miscarriage ("A Trace of Blood"), attempted suicide ("Rope Ends"), and a simple broken heart ("Second Love"). It's not all sad, though. There's some happier subjects like simple romance ("This Heart of Mine") and an obscure hint in the dark "Beyond the Pale" that two people can make each other better.

I am in the minority that thinks Gildenlow is not an amazing vocalist, but his performance on this album _is_ amazing. Mainly, this is because he no longer mistakes melissima for emotion, which always annoyed me before (I know I know...I'm demented). He conveys much less melodrama through his singing on this album, which really makes the emotions sound more natural and convincing, as if Gildenlow has improved as an "actor." He just gets better and better: the barely controlled pain of "Undertow"; the vicarious hopelessness of "Rope Ends"; the heartbreaking "A Trace of Blood". Since the emotional power of Pain of Salvation's music is so very closely tied to Gildenlow's singing, this improvement is critically important.

Just like always, Pain of Salvation's unique brand of music is refreshingly...fresh! "Fandango" weaves staccato guitar, bass lines and eddying pianos through odd patterns. "A Trace of Blood" is a fast, powerful mix of twisting piano run, heavy riffing, strange vocal accents, scratching guitar (?) effects, and tragic chorus. Eight-minute songs don't usually go by so fast. "Rope Ends" works heavy guitars through hypnotizing time signatures without being awkwardly technical. "Undertow" is initially understated sonically with a weird recording technique -- almost sounds like they put the microphones in the opposite end of the room or something. It erupts into a crippling outburst of emotional power (isolated and captured by vocals & instruments), suggesting suppressed emotions breaking free. "Remedy Lane" is a quick instrumental that reintegrates themes from previous songs with unusual keyboard effects. "Chain Sling" features melodies based on Swedish folk music (actually, that seems trendy these days). "Beyond the Pale" is the engaging finale, deceptively simple at face value but very involved texturally, with complex melody shifts. Unfortunately, I don't think this song ends the album with the powerful finale it deserves, and the vocals are awkward in places.

And even when the songs are "normal" they remain strong, showing that the band can tackle any format. "Second Love" is an understated, melancholic acoustic/electric mix, with Gildenlow's pained vocals rousing an image of a lonely night under the stars. The lyrics smell like an 80s love ballad, but it works, you know? (Interestingly, the song was written about 15 years ago, so it _was_ an 80s love ballad, hehe.) Another ballad, "This Heart of Mine", stands out with its powerful middle section and affectionate chord structures. "Dryad of the Woods" is a beautiful instrumental with pastoral acoustic guitar melodies befitting the title. I love the piano melody on this one, heh. What can I say? I'm a sucker for nice little piano bits.

Even the recording quality is great...there's none of that grievous lack of clarity that impaired some of the heavily textured sections on The Perfect Element Part I. There's a lot going on in Remedy Lane's songs, but you can hear everything. Plus, you can gain appreciation for a whole new level of nuance in this recording through headphones. Even the booklet for this album is great, with elaborate artwork and twisted imagery.

Remedy Lane is another album that captures Pain of Salvation's creative magic. The band's fans are pretty energetic, so most of them have probably bought this disc by now. If not, well, they'd better have a good reason not to have it! If you happen to be a prospective fan, I strongly recommend you check this out no matter what your tastes are. Take a walk down Remedy Lane.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One word: Powerful., February 18, 2002

By 

Lord Chimp (Monkey World) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Remedy Lane (Audio CD)

Along with many others, I was disappointed to learn that Pain of Salvation's fourth album would not be the continuation of The Perfect Element story, which began with part I in 2000. Instead, we get Remedy Lane, a stunningly powerful and convoluted semi-story that is emotionally fatiguing in its intense pathos. Pain of Salvation has crafted a masterpiece here, perhaps one greater than The Perfect Element Part I. The band's original music and emotional performances are more powerful than ever. I'm not making any real objective statement here...it's just that I feel more drawn to this album than any of the band's previous works (which are all good, if not great).

Remedy Lane is another theme album (like One Hour by the Concrete Lake), this time about various forms of reconciliation. There is a roughly defined story, but it is fairly disjointed and the album mainly deals with different issues tied to the theme. Mainly it seems to cover the challenges of relationships and the connection between love and sex (you can have sex without love, and love without sex). It touches on tragedies like a miscarriage ("A Trace of Blood"), attempted suicide ("Rope Ends"), and a simple broken heart ("Second Love"). It's not all sad, though. There's some happier subjects like simple romance ("This Heart of Mine") and an obscure hint in the dark "Beyond the Pale" that two people can make each other better.

I am in the minority that thinks Gildenlow is not an amazing vocalist, but his performance on this album _is_ amazing. Mainly, this is because he no longer mistakes melissima for emotion, which always annoyed me before (I know I know...I'm demented). He conveys much less melodrama through his singing on this album, which really makes the emotions sound more natural and convincing, as if Gildenlow has improved as an "actor." He just gets better and better: the barely controlled pain of "Undertow"; the vicarious hopelessness of "Rope Ends"; the heartbreaking "A Trace of Blood". Since the emotional power of Pain of Salvation's music is so very closely tied to Gildenlow's singing, this improvement is critically important.

Just like always, Pain of Salvation's unique brand of music is refreshingly...fresh! "Fandango" weaves staccato guitar, bass lines and eddying pianos through odd patterns. "A Trace of Blood" is a fast, powerful mix of twisting piano run, heavy riffing, strange vocal accents, scratching guitar (?) effects, and tragic chorus. Eight-minute songs don't usually go by so fast. "Rope Ends" works heavy guitars through hypnotizing time signatures without being awkwardly technical. "Undertow" is initially understated sonically with a weird recording technique -- almost sounds like they put the microphones in the opposite end of the room or something. It erupts into a crippling outburst of emotional power (isolated and captured by vocals & instruments), suggesting suppressed emotions breaking free. "Remedy Lane" is a quick instrumental that reintegrates themes from previous songs with unusual keyboard effects. "Chain Sling" features melodies based on Swedish folk music (actually, that seems trendy these days). "Beyond the Pale" is the engaging finale, deceptively simple at face value but very involved texturally, with complex melody shifts. Unfortunately, I don't think this song ends the album with the powerful finale it deserves.

And even when the songs are "normal" they remain strong, showing that the band can tackle any format. "Second Love" is an understated, melancholic acoustic/electric mix, with Gildenlow's pained vocals rousing an image of a lonely night under the stars. The lyrics smell like an 80s love ballad, but it works, you know? (Interestingly, the song was written about 15 years ago, so it _was_ an 80s love ballad, hehe.) Another ballad, "This Heart of Mine", stands out with its powerful middle section and affectionate chord structures. "Dryad of the Woods" is a beautiful instrumental with pastoral acoustic guitar melodies befitting the title. I love the piano melody on this one, heh. What can I say? I'm a sucker for nice little piano bits.

Even the recording quality is great...there's none of that grievous lack of clarity that impaired some of the heavily textured sections on The Perfect Element Part I. There's a lot going on in Remedy Lane's songs, but you can hear everything. Plus, you can gain appreciation for a whole new level of nuance in this recording through headphones. Even the booklet for this album is great, with elaborate artwork and twisted imagery.

Remedy Lane is another album that captures Pain of Salvation's creative magic. The band's fans are pretty energetic, so most of them have probably bought this disc by now. If not, well, they'd better have a good reason not to have it! If you happen to be a prospective fan, I strongly recommend you check this out no matter what your tastes are. Take a walk down Remedy Lane.

Now how about The Perfect Element Part II, huh? Give it to me!

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Everyone should own this album, May 8, 2003

By 

ELPsteel (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Remedy Lane (Audio CD)

I usually dont write reviews, but I had to say something here. I have seen a few reviews saying many ignorant things such as Gildenlow being a weak vocalist, melodramatic lyrics, etc. Well first of all, Gildenlow is simply the most amazing singer I have ever heard. His emotion, feeling, control, and variety are unmatched by anyone I have heard. Anyone who does not recognize his talent does not know very much about music. Secondly, to the one who said that the lyrics to A Trace of Blood are "melodramatic", his kid died, jackass. The song is about his wife's miscarriage, and the other songs on the cd are all real as well; the "storyline" is the story of Gildenlow's life. There's no melodrama here. The music on this cd is astounding and deep. The songs are so filled with emotion that you can feel it. From sadness to love to anger to pain, you will feel it with full force. It is impossible to describe the feelings associated with these songs unless you sit down with no distractions and give the cd a few spins. I dont want to go into detail about the particular song styles, but trust me when I say that this is truly one of the most amazing musical journeys you could ever take. The lyrics are a trip through the human psyche. Another comment was made that they do not have the "chops" to compete with Dream Theater; Pain of Salvation never said that they were as technically talented as Dream Theater. I don't see why this comparison should even be made. Gildenlow has never said that PoS should be labeled "prog metal"; that is just the genre that it most fits in. Don't listen to ignorant, unfounded comments that are directed at this album; give it a try yourself, see what you think. It just may change your life.