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"If "A Secret To Hide" is full of good ideas, the music of Poverty's No Crime is however cruelly lacking of originality."
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3/5
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A flagship band of German progressive metal from the turn of the century, Poverty's No Crime returned in 2016 with an appealing but unoriginal album after a long 10-year break. Now they're back with a highly anticipated 'A Secret To Hide'.
From the very first bars of 'Supernatural', the Germans remind us of their direct and accessible style by stringing together no less than 5 different riffs in the only intro of the track, in the style of Rush. Same thing on 'Grey To Green' with its 3 different riffs to start, and a Volker Walsemann always so expressive behind the microphone. 'Flesh and Bone' shines with its efficient and numerous melodies and a convoluted construction, just like 'Schizophrenic' with its Bon Jovi-like vocoder at the beginning and its swaying tempo.
Poverty's No Crime cleverly varies the subject by placing the ballad 'Within The Veil' in the middle of the album, just before a very interesting progressive and instrumental piece, 'The Great Escape', also full of riffs and drawers, revealing a complex construction that reminds us of Cloudscape from the 2000s and the sublime 'Global Drama' from 2008.
But there is something wrong with this album. Is it its lack of originality? Not really, because it was quite predictable considering the band's background. Could it be the clumsy side of some keyboards that came out of nowhere? A little, yes, but the quality of the songs makes you forget them quickly. In fact it seems to come from the solos or rather, from the guitarist who is supposed to play them. Marco Ahrens seems to stammer a few disordered neck descents unworthy of the rest of the album. The epic closer 'In The Shade' is one of the best example.
It is likely that with a soloist worthy of the name, the album would have been much better, like 'Spiral Of Fear' in 2016, this is all that 'A Secret To Hide' lacks. The accessible and catchy tracks follow each other without revolutionizing the genre but with a real pleasure. The melodies are rich and evolving within the tracks. The heavy riffs are effective and the production is in accordance with the current standards. The result is a mixed feeling of a rhythmically solid album that is pleasant to listen to but that lacks many things to make the difference. - Official website
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TRACK LISTING:
01. Supernatural
02. Hollow Phrases
03. Flesh And Bone
04. Grey To Green
05. Within The Veil
06. The Great Escape
07. Schizophrenic
08. In The Shade
LINEUP:
Andreas "theo" Tegeler: Batterie
Heiko Spaarmann: Basse
Jörg Springub: Claviers
Marco Ahrens: Guitares
Volker Walsemann: Chant / Guitares
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(0) MIND(S) FROM OUR READERS
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(0) COMMENT(S)
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READERS
2/5 (1 view(s))
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STAFF:
2.3/5 (3 view(s))
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IN RELATION WITH POVERTY'S NO CRIME
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