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""Double Vision", without any major flaws, is another good Arena's album."
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4/5
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After the six-year break following "Pepper's Ghost", then the recovery with the lukewarm "Seventh Degree...", fortunately caught up by the excellent "Unquiet Sky", which way could this latest record go, that is the question that anxious fans are asking themselves...
The reading of the cover can reassure: the five members were involved in the compositions, Clive Nolan signing all the lyrics according to a habit now well established in Arena. Six tracks of an average length - between 4 and 6 minutes - and finally (Clive promised it, he did it) a good big epic of more than 22 minutes, which is the longest track ever proposed by the band: we salivate in advance.
Throughout this "Double Vision", the Arena markers are present: the moods first of all, dark, threatening, "intranquished" as indicated by the title of the last album, underlined by excellent bass lines and the strong strike of Mick Pointer who tries more and more to use the double pedal ('Red Eyes'). Some tracks send a power rarely deployed by the band (the beginning of 'The Mirror Lies'), on the other hand the acoustic guitar takes a part that we had only seen a little ('Poisoned', or the excellent end in contrast to the same'Mirror'). The first six tracks confirm a melodic orientation that blossoms in the vocal parts: with Paul Manzi, Arena has found a powerful vocal signature that has taken a big leap forward, sometimes with somewhat incongruous pop accents (some "woho-wo" on the choruses), sometimes a little too strong ('Poisoned'), but with a nice amplitude. Clive's keyboards bring as usual all the necessary depth, with pretty sounds that sound very Richard Wright on the particularly successful "The Mirror Lies". However, these first six titles are more a matter of proven know-how than a difficulty for Arena ('Paradise of Thieves', effective but conventional).
With 'The Legend of Eliah Shade', the band changes gears. The seven parts of this epic appear as a treasure hunt, full of references to the combo's previous albums, and in particular to the "Visitor" (fans will have noticed that the title of the album refers to a track from the "Visitor"). No wonder when you know Clive's taste for puzzles and hidden messages... Begun on a slow rhythm in three steps as 'Solomon', ending on the same note as 'The Visitor', with the same lyrics ("I will always find you"), enriched with a judicious theme cover in 'Tenebrae', this 'Legend', a little less brilliantly composed than 'Moviedrome' which remains a model of its kind, unfold with brio its seven parts without any dead time, with varied arrangements enhanced by an impeccable production. Particular mention should be made of 'Omens', which allows Clive to develop an excellent and dynamic instrumental section dominated by imperial keyboards.
"Double Vision", without any major flaws, is another good Arena's album. It may appear as a compromise between the power claimed by Mick Pointer, the accessible vocal themes delivered by Paul Manzi and the neat ambiences orchestrated by Clive Nolan. It's just a pity that John Mitchell as a soloist was a little forgotten in this production. - Official website
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TRACK LISTING:
01. Zhivago Wolf - 04:47
02. The Mirror Lies - 06:57
03. Scars - 05:16
04. Paradise Of Thieves - 05:10
05. Red Eyes - 06:40
06. Poisoned - 04:27
07. The Legend Of Elijah Shade -22:39 (i-veritas/ii-i Am Here/iii-saevi Manes/iv-it Lies/v-tenebrae/vi-omens/vii-redemption)
LINEUP:
Clive Nolan: Chant / Claviers
John Mitchell: Chant / Guitares
Kylan Amos: Basse
Mick Pointer: Batterie
Paul Manzi: Chant
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READERS
3.4/5 (8 view(s))
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STAFF:
3.8/5 (4 view(s))
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