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Review:
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It’s always a pleasure to get to write
a review for a new Subsignal album. I am a fan of all three
of their previous albums, and even loved their previous
projects, as well. Recently, the band released their latest
work, “The Beacons of Somewhere Sometime”, and I find it
to be somewhat different from their previous albums. Indeed,
I think the cover art for the new album is itself a sign
of some of the differences. It’s darker and somehow lusher
and more nuanced. Usually I like to discuss all the great
things about an album first, then I cover some of the drawbacks.
This time around, I think I need to turn that structure
on its head.***
Subsignal is a band, but sometimes it still
feels like a side project. Mainstays Arno Menses on vocals
and Markus Steffen on guitars are still here, and their
new promo photos only show these two members. That is because
the rest of the group—Luca di Gennaro of Soul Secret on
keyboards, Ralf Schwager of Dreamscape on bass, and Dirk
Brand of Axxis on drums—are all involved with other bands
primarily. Or, at least, I think that’s the reason. Ralf
has played bass for Subsignal on every album, though Luca
and Dirk are both new to the project.***
And this brings me to the few qualms I
have with “The Beacons of Somewhere Sometime”. There are
two, mainly. First, I miss the thunderous drumming of either
Roel Van Helden or Danilo Batdorf. Danilo even won my much
coveted (not really) award for best drumming performance
of 2013! Dirk is not a bad drummer by any means, but, being
from a heavy metal band, I find his style to be more prone
to double bass, yet without the progressive trappings. The
album is also mixed differently than in the past, with the
drums being in the background more. I’m not sure if this
was a purpose, but it makes the album sound less like Subsignal,
in my opinion. My second qualm is the over-layering of Arno’s
magnificent voice on the first few tracks. I thought they
had moved away from this on “Paraiso”, leading to a much
more emotionally satisfying experience. That is a small
complaint, obviously.***
But, now it’s time to discuss why I love
this album so much. I’ll try to keep it to three main reasons.
First of all, Arno continues to be one of the best voices
I’ve ever heard. Especially on the latter half of the album,
Arno shines and emotes on a level I’ve never heard from
him. He gives a truly griping and masterful performance.
As an added bonus, Markus’ guitars are simply awesome, featuring
a really low, dark growl in the riffing that provides a
stark contrast to the elegant beauty around it.***
Second, Arno’s vocals are made all the
more poignant because of the raw and emotion subject. The
band mentions that this new album is all about the kinds
of events in life that can be damaging, but are also unavoidable
or unforeseeable. We all experience unexpected events that
change our lives and our perspectives, and this album is
dedicated to that message. So, the griping performance from
Arno is even more riveting because of the emotional punch
that this album gives. For the events happening in my own
life, I feel like I’ve been able to connect on a very personal
level here.***
Lastly, “The Beacons of the Somewhere
Sometime” is closer to the classic Sieges Even material
than any other Subsignal album. That means it is slightly
more progressive and less ballad-driven (though I’m a big
ballad fan). It’s simply different than their previous works,
and so it’s great to see the band continue to evolve.***
The album is structured well, too. It starts
out slowly with “The Calm”, “Tempest”, and “A Time Out of
Joint”. That seems to be on purpose, though, given the theme.
It picks up a bit with “And the Rain Will Wash It All Away”
and “Ashes of Summer”, the former being one of my favorites
on the album with a distinctive rhythm. The album then reaches
my two favorite tracks, the gentle “A Myth Written on the
Water” and the masterful “Everything is Lost”, representing
a height of despair. Finally, the band presents us with
a 20+ minute “epic” of sorts in the four part title track.
This final song is chock full of grand moments, quiet despair,
and incredible melodies. Indeed, it’s like a summary of
the rest of the album, in some ways.***
Thus, this album ends up being just over
an hour long, and it leaves an impression like few other
albums this year, especially on an emotional level. It manages
to evolve their style while still being human and vulnerable.
I always appreciate it when musicians share their feelings
and perspective on the world, and Subsignal has done just
that, in spades.***
So, despite a couple things that were
initially disappointing, “The Beacons of Somewhere Sometime”
ends up being one of Subsignal’s best, probably placing
#2 in their discography, behind only “Paraiso” for me. And
I know it will only continue to grow on me as I delve deeper
into the vulnerable expressions of the human soul that are
such a strength here. I know that many reviewers have already
made their “favorites of 2015” lists, but making those lists
so early risks missing out on profound experiences such
as this. So, like the cover art, this album is a beautiful,
yet dark ode to the human experience. It might seem like
life is always in haunted by the night. But there will be
a dawn.***
Jason Spencer
The
Prog Mind
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