Artist: Brain Connect
Label: Self-released
Release: 2010
Rating: 4.2/5
Polish progressive rock. A few names instantly flash before our eyes: S.B.B., Riverside, Czesław Niemen, Abraxas. The fact is that this kind of music is growing in Poland, just like the whole music scene there, maybe even more than ever these days. It’s impossible to keep up with the sheer pile of new progressive bands coming out of Poland. But it’s definitely worth keeping an eye out for one of the Polish newcomers every now and then.
Brain Connect, an experimental-progressive trio from southern Poland, formed in 2005 and has already put out two demos. That’s down to guitarist Michal Ziaja joining the band after the first demo was already recorded. The decision of the freshly formed lineup was clear – present themselves in a new light. After three months of sweating it out in the studio (from November 2009 to January 2010), the second demo from the Polish musicians saw the light of day – “Get On Time”.
“Get On Time” is a pretty ambitious project, one the Poles are using to court bigger labels that might take them under their wing. It’s completely instrumental music, symphonic progressive rock with a big dose of experimentation, built mostly on epic peaks within a dreamy atmosphere, which they pull off with quick rhythm changes and drum and guitar soloing.
The three-part track “Bullet” (part I, II, III) is exactly that. The first part creates a dreamy musical landscape, mostly thanks to Marcin Szlachta and his keyboards, whose potential monotony gets broken up by Michal Ziaja with the occasional “lick”. Still, the mood is somehow ominous and primed for a sudden shift. The second part is that epic peak, reached so harmoniously by building up the rhythm and volume and with Przemyslaw Calus coming in on drums. Ziaja completely steals our attention, since the whole second part is in his hands. The third part takes the song back to the beginning, to that dreaminess of keyboard effects and “jazzy” guitar inserts, and despite the drumming carrying on, the calming effect is no less strong, all the way to the track’s final peak, which somehow echoes the second part, just a bit more powerfully, as the trio gets tangled up in a melodic hard rock approach that is also the song’s last punch.
“The Art Of Flying” is already a bit less predictable, with way more elements from other genres than “Bullet”. Although it starts out continuing the trend from the end of the third part of “Bullet”, it soon slides into a more symphonic progressive rock tune, which then drifts into some kind of bluesy-rock guitar strumming over light drum accompaniment, with bass in the background. An extremely experimental intro falls into a solo that at first has more of a dreamy than an epic role, but the peak is soon reached through virtuosity and the fast fingers of all the musicians. “The Art Of Flying” ends its flight with a sudden drop.
When the trio gets tired of the gentle side of progressive rock and various dreamy keyboard melodies, while still wanting to keep the hard rock melodicism and the experimenting, “Compression” is born. A track where each of the three virtuosos gets their moment, it’s loaded with emotion; it has everything – speed, loudness, distorted riffs, “clean” solos, everything a melodic hard rock fan holds dearest – with a touch more originality and experimentation, especially with instrument effects and an interesting way of layering keyboard arrangements over the guitar soloing.
After listening, our brains are definitely plugged in. Plugged into a world of fantastic music, which they create with the help of bands like Brain Connect. Half an hour of enjoying a world that’s far from ours, yet so familiar that we fall for it in an instant and never want to leave. The other (probably even better) alternative is to visit Poland and catch Brain Connect live.
The established Polish prog crowd has thus gained another “comrade”, who is building a bridge to somewhat harsher rock music through experimentation. After two demos, it’s time for some label to notice them; with the new demo (which, by the way, the Poles are offering completely free for “downloading” on their website), it’d be a miracle if at least half a dozen offers weren’t piled up on their table.
Lineup
Marcin Szlachta – keyboards, bass guitar
Michal Ziaja – electric guitar
Przemyslaw Calus – drums
Production
Brain Connect
Track list
1. Bullet (Part I) (3:43)
2. Bullet (Part II) (7:29)
3. Bullet (Part III) (4:14)
4. The Art Of Flying (6:44)
5. Compression (6:26)
