Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Alias Eye
Label: Progrock Records
Released: 2007
Rating: 3.5/5
Alias Eye are an interesting art rock band from Germany who have made a bit of noise in the past, though judging by the looks of it, even after the release of “In Focus” they’ll remain a well-guarded secret for a handful of music connoisseurs who go for a blend of the best of several different genres. The band keeps developing nicely and digging deeper into the progressive side of their creations. The last time around they blew me away with the excellent third album “Different Point Of You” (2004), where an explosive mix of heavy guitar tones, soaring vocal harmonies and complex, subtle keyboard arrangements showed they’d reached a new level of maturity. Despite their German roots, there’s always something British, or rather Celtic, in the Alias Eye sound. The man responsible for that is mainly Scottish singer Philip Griffiths, son of the unforgettable Martin Griffiths, vocalist of the legendary Scottish symphonic prog crew Beggar’s Opera. The vocal resemblance between father and son is at times downright shocking, since Philip is just as excellent a singer (both technically and emotionally) as his father was. The vocals are also the main driving force behind most of the songs, giving their music a big dose of epic grandeur, pomp and subtlety alike.
After two albums that put a lot of emphasis on production and instrumental passages, Alias Eye return to their basic sound on “In Focus”. Largely responsible for the band’s new sound, with his rather heavy, hard rock, almost metal approach and virtuoso playing style, is new guitarist Matthias Wurm, who replaced Matthias Rihter. The keyboards are somewhat scaled back this time and focused mainly on piano and Hammond organ, to better match the rawer sound of most of the tracks. Which doesn’t mean there’s any shortage of dreamy keyboard passages adding the necessary finesse to individual songs. In the Alias Eye sound we again get a great blend of many genres: from symphonic prog, blues, prog metal, jazz, neo prog and AOR, plus the influence of all sorts of music giants like The Beatles, Queen, Deep Purple, Pink Floyd and Jethro Tull. And the influence of classical music is nothing to sneeze at either.
“I’m Your Lie”, with its constant back-and-forth between raw and melancholic passages, is a great opening to the album. You get remarkable dynamics across the passages, ranging from aggressive prog metal guitar riffing to dreamy space rock curtains of keyboards. “In Denial” is a more hard rock-flavored energy booster, featuring a funky rhythm, excellent riffing and guitar solos, and epic vocals. In some sections it even reminds me slightly of some of the newer work by the legendary Mr. Glenn Hughes (ex-Trapeze, ex-Deep Purple, ex-Black Sabbath, solo). On “The Call” we again get a few unpredictable twists and witty sounds. After a punchy, almost brutal intro, with a supersonic Hammond sound tearing through the guitars, the band sails off into an explosive mix of hard rock and symphonic prog. One of the most interesting and witty tracks on the album is “Enlighten Them”, with an accordion intro that creates a Mediterranean vibe. “Books” is a solid piano ballad with excellent vocals, full of pathos, sung the way it should be in this flood of saccharine ballads that dominate rock music today. “History Lesson” is again a somewhat heavier and more complexly built piece, full of witty instrumental passages and not lacking in jazz and pop finesse. Like Saga wandering into prog metal territory! “Rhodesian Rhapsody” is once again a differently kneaded combination of a subtle funky rhythm over playful bass jabs and epic hard rock choruses. “Hold On” starts out as a fairly basic power ballad with an epic chorus and a set of classicist piano passages, while raw guitar riffing tries to rip it out of the keyboards’ tender bed like a baby from its cradle. “To Be Or Not To Be…Revisited” has an almost Beatles-esque intro with cheeky percussion, before we’re once again treated to an expansion of progressive hard rock. “Falling”, mostly thanks to its excellent, epic chorus and wide stretches of Hammond organ, is definitely one of the album’s highlights. “How We Perceive” is a subtle, epic ballad marked by Philip’s ever-emotional vocals, which once again don’t contain a single drop of glucose. A female vocal guests on one of the verses. A very simple but no less beautiful ending to an excellent album.
For Alias Eye, “In Focus” is a kind of symbolic return to their roots, a logical follow-up to the previous album and a decisive step forward in their musical development. Despite a bit less jazzy sound and a bit more hard rock and prog metal passages, Alias Eye have once again managed to create a refined and energetic mix of many musical ingredients that will quickly win over all music connoisseurs with a broad musical taste and make sure they keep coming back to give it another spin. Given the wide musical spectrum of most of the compositions, I’d recommend “In Focus” above all to fans of prog, blues and jazz. Some fans of the more complex, adventurous and “eccentric” forms of progressive rock might of course turn up their noses at the album, but it wouldn’t hurt them to switch off their excessive purism from time to time and enjoy a somewhat less complex but all the more tasty blend of musical spices that Alias Eye certainly don’t skimp on here either.
Lineup
Philip Griffiths – vocals, didgeridoo
Matthias Wurm – guitar
Frank Fischer – bass guitar
Ludwig Benedek – drums
Vytas Lemke – keyboards, accordion
GUEST MUSICIAN:
Anna Sabrina Lopp – backing vocals (11)
Track List
1. I’m Your Lie (4:37)
2. In Denial (3:45)
3. The Call (4:04)
4. Enlighten Them (4:02)
5. Books (2:31)
6. History Lesson (3:45)
7. Rhodesian Rhapsody (4:22)
8. Hold On (4:15)
9. To Be Or Not To Be …Revisited (3:49)
10. Falling (4:25)
11. How We Perceive (11:14)
Album length: 50:49
