Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
~Perfect in every sense of the word~, May 20, 2004
The astounding thing about Swedish prog/metal whiz-kids Pain of Salvation is simple: You NEVER know what you are going to hear next. The Perfect Element is a crystal-clear example of their diversity. This was my third PoS purchase, behind Entropia and One Hour by the Concrete Lake. Let me say at the outset of this review, TPE is a radical departure from those aforementioned masterpieces.After hearing this release, I quickly purchased Remedy Lane and the astounding 12:5, but looking at the entire PoS catalogue, TPE stands above all others as their crowning moment. Some have complained about the chunky/rap vocals on the opening track Used, some have bemoaned the fact that this release is not "proggy" enough. I say, hrm. I have listened to this CD solid for a couple of months and can honestly say that I have yet to tire, and I continue to find wonder buried deep inside each and every song on the album. As far as I am concerned, and I know that I may be in the minority here, Daniel Gildenlow is one of the greatest vocalists to ever grace the music scene. There are moments when he lapses in operatic, saccharine-sweet mode, but this listener can only say that it adds to the quality of his vocal performances. Musically I can honestly say that I believe PoS stand heads above the rest. Daniel Gildenlow is an amazing lyricist, as well as being a stylish guitarist. From the stunning "In the Flesh," which I feel is their finest recording, to the haunting "Ashes," and the phenomenal "Idioglossia," this album is a must have title. HIGHLY recommended.
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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Terrific, unique., February 28, 2001
Pain of Salvation is one of progressive metal's most promising bands. While I consider myself a pretty big fan, I think The Perfect Element (Part I) is their only album that deserves five stars. Entropia was extremely original and mostly solid, but much the album's experimentation was too esoteric for its own good. One Hour By The Concrete Lake was an improvement, with better songs overall, but it was more straightforward progressive metal and it lacked the striking originality of Entropia. Clearly, a balance had to be achieved.With The Perfect Element, PoS has refined their sound, synthesizing the remarkable uniqueness of Entropia and the stronger songcraft of One Hour. Gone are the awkward herky-jerky musical passages, the needlessly embellished vocals, and turgid lyrics. Here, everything works. No, it's not perfect. But it's damn good. The band's nature is very eclectic, for they change musical bearing unpredictably. The first tract, "Used," best exemplifies this. It begins with the harrowing coupling of heavy guitars and synths, with vocalist Daniel Gildenlow's dark, fierce intonations. With the chorus, the song undergoes a complete change as it suddenly shifts into a harmonious melody with sharply contrasting "lighter" vocals. (Sound familiar, PoS fans? It's like "!" from Entropia, but better.) "Used" is a pretty extreme example, for the rest of the album is more cohesive from song to song, but the fundaments of this versatile approach remain intact. For those who are new to PoS, this might sound almost annoying. Let me aver that the polarizing course of the music is one of its greatest merits. Why? Because the they does it incredibly well. When a band can blend so many musical ideas so seamlessly and naturally, it's definitely stunning. More so than any other Pain of Salvation record, this one has the most equal balance of strident heaviness and balladry. Soft piano leads, clean electric and acoustic guitars are used as often as heavy guitar riffery. This dichotomy may irk those who favor the aggression to ballads, but this album is best thought of as a whole (it is a concept album, after all). In that respect, the balanced qualities work well. Daniel Gildenlow's vocals have improved much since One Hour By The Concrete Lake. He still reveals some weaknesses in the higher octaves, but he seems to have a better understanding of his strengths and weaknesses. He has also improved his lyricism. On previous albums they were almost silly in their gaudiness, but now they are just plain good. The poetic aptitude he shows in conveying this deeply emotional story about childhood is markedly impressive. As for the concept itself, it is extremely obscure, but this ensures that a lot of time will be spent unraveling this intricate story. For those listeners who don't care much about the lyrics, the album can be enjoyed simply by riding on the dynamic musical waves... The album's only fault is its production. PoS' sound contains myriad textures, many of which are difficult to dissect because the production splatters everything into a blob of keyboards and guitars. The guitar tone often makes it difficult to distinguish individual notes. When Gildenlow sings softy with a dense background of instrumentation, his words can be unintelligible. Similarly, when multiple vocal lines are concurrently sung, making out individual words his needlessly hard. The production is imperfect, for certain, but in other ways the band has never sounded better. The keyboards in particular sound stronger, and the crunching guitars are more raucous, and the vocals are strikingly visceral. In the end, the production doesn't detract from the listening experience too much, because it is so strong on the whole. Hopefully, The Perfect Element Part II will retain all of this one's merits and tweak the production. (Final note: If you see this in a store, don't get apprehensive about the band's photo on the back. Sure, they look like Korn or some other "nu metal" band, but the looks are where the similarities end. Enjoy!)
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Pure Beauty., August 8, 2004
Here lately, Pain of Salvation's music has just completely consumed my life, and as a result, I've had a major change of heart on my outlook on them. So, I'm having to re-review everything to repent my sins (hehe).
Every PoS album has its own unique sound to it, and this one here is just pure epic beauty. Musically, I would say that "Entropia" is my favorite of theirs, but this has their most beautiful melodies bar none. "Her Voices", "Morning on Earth", "Dedication", and "Song for the Innocent" are just breath-takingly beautiful. There's still plenty of diversity here though, with the crushing rapmetal-tinged "Used", the epic progginess of "Idioglossia", and the dark and menacing "Ashes". "King of Loss" is a song that took a while to grow on me, but it's a killer epic, full of dynamics. The title track may seem uniformly slow at first, but it'll sink in after a few listens. It's hard to believe it's over 10 minutes long, because it seems like only half that.
Daniel Gildenlow's vocals can seem a bit over the top at first, which may initially turn some off (me included), but given time, his brilliance will shine through. He's got amazing range, and unreal melodic tone. You'd be hard-pressed to find a better vocal performance than the one here, from a technical or emotional standpoint.
This is beautifully crafted and brilliant progressive music. If you don't like it first, please don't give up. If I had, I'd have missed out on what is easily one of the finest bands out there. Buy this, and be blown away.
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