Evergrey : Glorious Collision
by Justin Gaines
Staff Writer
Glorious Collision is the long-awaited eighth studio album from Sweden’s masters of dark progressive metal, Evergrey. Once again, the band’s lineup changed prior to this album’s release. Tom Englund is the only remaining founding member (to be fair, he pretty much IS Evergrey), and keyboardist Rikard Zander is the only returning member. They are joined by Marcus Jidell (ex-Pain), Johan Niemann (ex-Therion) and Hannes Van Dahl. Instead of distracting the band or adversely affecting the music, Englund and company seem intently focused here, and the results indeed are impressive.
Evergrey seems to have moved beyond Monday Morning Apocalypse’s attempt at a crossover audience toward their core fanbase with this album. 2008’s Torn was a step in this direction as well. Glorious Collision is an as intense an album as Evergrey has given us, though it’s a subtle intensity as opposed to the more overt The Inner Circle. Englund is a superb songwriter, and his lyrics continue to challenge listeners on an intellectual and emotional level. Glorious Collision is just as lyrically dark as previous Evergrey albums but on a more personal scale. Musically, this is about what you’d expect from Evergrey. It’s a more complex album, but on some level it’s similar to recent Katatonia releases. However, it still has Evergrey’s signature dark progressive sound that no one has ever been able to duplicate. Highlights include album opener “Leave It Behind Us,” as well as “Frozen” and “It Comes From Within,” but the haunting combination of “The Disease…” and “…And the Distance” really stand out.
It’s hard to imagine any real Evergrey fans being disappointed by this one, though Glorious Collision instantly does not satisfy the way Recreation Day or In Search of Truth did. It’s a complex album that reveals a little more (and resonates more) with every spin. You’re going to want to spend some time with this album, and that effort absolutely will pay off.
Edition Notes: There also is a limited edition version of Glorious Collision that includes expanded liner notes (a mini-comic, actually) and a bonus version of “…And the Distance” that features vocals by Carina Englund, who has contributed guest vocals to many memorable Evergrey songs in the past. This is no exception.
Genre: Progressive Metal
Band:
Tom Englund (v) (g)
Rikard Zander (k)
Marcus Jidell (g)
Johan Niemann (b)
Hannes Van Dahl (d)
Track Listing:
1. Leave It Behind Us
2. You
3. Wrong
4. Frozen
5. Restoring the Loss
6. To Fit the Mold
7. Out of Reach
8. The Phantom Letters
9. It Comes From Within
10. Free
11. The Disease…
12. I’m Drowning Alone
13. …And the Distance
14. …And the Distance (Carina Englund version)
Label: SPV
Website: www.evergrey.net
Hardrock Haven rating: 8/10