Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Worlds collide?, September 19, 2002
The label description of Somnambulist says to the effect The Paranormal Humidor is a collision of Yes and Soundgarden which on a simple (and easily marketable) level is true.This is the second album by Somnambulist, the first being more experimental in nature. On The Paranormal Humidor things are a bit, note - a bit less avant garde than their previous lineup. New lead vocalist Peter Cornell (brother of Chris) at times sounds like his brother and musically there is a good deal of intensity which makes the Soundgarden comparison reasonably fair. Musicially Somnambulist borrows some influences in terms of progressive rock gestures. There's plenty of Mellotron, Organ and Moog to find on this album and it's played with virtuosity.
Where Somnambulist is different is it's use of darker tones, darker themes and a heavy approach that is far more intense and riveting than Progressive Metal. This is not an album that demonstrates how fast everyone can play and how dense a sound they can get. Prog Metal acts could take a lesson from Somnambulist. The intensity is more in the hard rock meets progressive style circa 1974 rooted in the ideas started by King Crimson on it's brilliant album, Red from that period of time. In a lot of ways Somnambulist sounds like a different route taken from their 80's Belew, Fripp, Bruford, Levin period. Here is the symphonic progressive meets hard edged rock that most of the "great" acts rarely touched. There are many time changes and stop on a dime moods on The Paranormal Humidor. Peter Conell's vocals are great with lots of changes in feel, at times soaring, at others gruff, dark, light and often in one song. The musicians are all talented and have their moments. Thankfully the solos are not wank-fests but smart and concise. Somnambulist is "difficult" in that their potential audiences may experience culture shock. Credit is due for Somnambulist's attempt at progressing progressive rock. For me the jury is out as to how successful the result is. At it's very least most open minded prog fans will enjoy The Paranormal Humidor. Recording quality is excellent as is performance. Feeling the urge to experiment or maybe spice up your music collection? Start here. This band takes risks and hopefully potential listeners will too.
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4.0 out of 5 stars
Great progressive grunge, October 26, 2008
This 2001 release by Somnambulist is really very good and is definitely molded in a post-progressive form. What I found most interesting about the music is the blend of early 1990's grunge rock influences (Soundgarden, Alice in Chains), the arty heaviness of Angel Dust era Faith No More, and the overwhelming ensemble virtuosity of 1973-1974 King Crimson. What I especially appreciate about this mixture is the dark ambience - trust me, grunge rock, Faith No More, and King Crimson makes for a pretty heavy mix.
The musicians are all very good and some even have links to the Seattle grunge scene - lead vocalist/lyricist Peter Cornell is not only the brother of Soundgarden lead singer Chris Cornell, but sounds like him. Along with Peter are Terry Clouse (fretted and fretless bass), Jody Park (piano, Hammond organ, synthesizers, mellotron [samples?]), Charlie Shelton (electric 6 and 12 string acoustic guitars), and drummer/percussionist Jo Whitaker. There is some excellent ensemble work on the album, and fortunately the guys do not place emphasis on the overused clichés that many of the current neo-progressive bands rely so heavily on. Somnambulist have a very original sound - in fact, I do not know of many other bands that sound quite like these guys.
Musically this is about as good an example of progressive grunge as you are going to get. That is, while the group works within the framework of the classic grunge sound (heavily distorted guitars, a thunderous rhythm section, and distorted vocals), they do so with an emphasis on complex and asymmetrical time signatures, dark sounding root movements (like King Crimson), in addition to dense and complex ensemble work - the complexity can get overwhelming at times.
Although the overall sound is very (very) heavy, these guys are good arrangers and they work in quieter sections that feature the Mellotron, acoustic guitars, and spacey, clean-toned electric guitar parts ("Infant" is a nice example). There are also some pleasant, albeit brooding, melodies during the vocal sections - I should note that Peter has a great voice and is capable of a very smooth tone along with some nice vocal harmonies. One other nice aspect of the music is the fact that the keyboardist seems to be in touch with the tone colors of the classic 1970s progressive rock style. As such, lush Mellotron pads mingle with brisk solos on what sounds like a mini-moog synthesizer, Hammond organ, and the acoustic piano. These delicate timbres work well to offset the freight train rhythm section and the hard-edged guitar work. Other nice touches include samples of pre-recorded voices and other effects.
This Laser's Edge release is pretty good and features the lyrics and a photo of the group. The sound quality is excellent and the production is both modern sounding and very crisp. The seven tracks range in length from slightly over 1 minute to the 13:20 minute long title track. Most tracks are in the 7-8 minute range. Total running time equals 54:28.
All in all, this made for a very exciting listen and renewed my faith in the future of progressive music in the 21st century. Unfortunately, these guys have apparently disappeared off the map, which is a shame - I would have happily continued to buy albums by Somnambulist. Recommended to those open-minded prog fans that can enjoy Alice in Chains, Angel Dust era Faith No More (1992), and Soundgarden just as much as King Crimson circa 1973-1974.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Somnambulist - Too Bad They Could Not Keep This Lineup Together, April 6, 2008
Five years after their debut album burst on the scene Somnambulist finally came up with a follow up. The big change in the band was the addition of vocalist Peter Cornell, best known as brother of Soundgarden / Audioslave vocalist Chris Cornell. Peter has a similar set of pipes to his brother and it really brings this band to a higher level.....and they were already very good. When this album came out the band seemed right on the edge of making a splash. The album got great reviews, and they were booked to play the prestigious North East Rock Festival as a featured act. Then something went terribly wrong. Rumors had it that Cornell quit the band. They cancelled all of their gigs and have not been heard from since. It really is a pity as this album is very very good. Somnambulist incorporates much that is good about progressive metal, yet this is not at all a metal release. The band manages to invoke dark tones and melodies into a classic progressive rock sound. There is really no one else that I can think of that sounds like this band. They are truly unique. If you like modern progressive rock with both a classic pedigree and modern aggressiveness this one is a very good purchase.
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