Description
Double album on black vinyls with gatefold cover
Swedish progressive metal juggernauts Andromeda’s debut Extension Of The Wish back in 2001 is often heralded as a technical and melodic metal masterpiece, with its crazy and complex time signatures and progressive attitude, while the follow-up, 2003’s II=I saw the arrival of new singer David Fremberg, along with a greater emphasis on melodies and song structures. Where does all this lead to on their third opus Chimera? Well, for one thing, the band now has gotten very good at writing a good, catchy tune, which might lead some fans to think that the band is slowly doing away with their brand of extreme chopzilla. Not to fret folks, there’s plenty of musical fireworks here, but Andromeda now seem better at their songwriting skills, and don’t feel the need to pummel the listener with blazing instrumental passages all the time. Much like the band Stride have done on their latest Imagine, Andromeda have created a batch of catchy, melodic and memorable songs that contain elements of metal, prog-rock, and pop. To top it all off, Fremberg is quickly emerging as one of the best singers in the prog-metal genre, as his performance here easily surpasses his work with the band on II=I. Not as insanely complex as their debut, but certainly heavier than their sophomore release, Chimera gets my vote for being simply a rock solid album through and through. It has chops galore, but not overdone, and the songs and melodies are well written and memorable. Like I mentioned before, amidst all these star players is a singer in David Fremberg who is really coming into his own as a force to be reckoned with. Add it all up and you have a release from Andromeda that is sure to get people talking and further cement their position as one of today’s most exciting and talented progressive metal bands.
Track listing
1. Periscope
2. In The End
3. The Hidden Riddle
4. Going Under
5. The Cage Of Me
6. No Guidelines
7. Inner Circle
8. Iskenderun
9. Blink Of An Eye
10. Album Commentary By Johan And Martin