Label : ProgRock Records
Review by Tony Cannella
On their 3rd album Portugal’s Progressive/Gothic metal duo known as Factory of Dreams decided to take a different tact than on their previous two. Not so much musically (although the band continues to progress with each album), but lyrically their new album “Melotronical” is a concept album, revolving around the evolution of an electronic molecule into a living, breathing entity. Wow! That is certainly a unique idea for a concept album and one that I am willing to bet hasn’t been tried before. On “Melotronical”, the complexity of the music matches the intricacy of the lyrics perfectly. The songs feature some cool orchestration and moody passages compliments the story as it develops. Jessica Lehto really pushes herself to new heights vocally and multi-instrumentalist Hugo Flores is also there to help out in the vocal department when needed, to give the songs a more aggressive feel when called upon. The 13-song opus begins with two very strong tracks, “Enter Nucleon” and “Melotronical” kicks things off in strong fashion and showcases the duel vocals of Jessica and Hugo. The spacy vibe of “Taste of Paradise” is up next and features Jessica exclusively on vocals. This song starts with a slower tempo that steadily builds as the song progresses. “Protonic Stream” is next and at 8-minutes, this is the longest song featured here and is divided into two parts, part 1 is “The Illusion” and part 2 is titled “Protonic Matter”, Jessica’s vocal work is simply breathtaking throughout the album, but especially on this epic number and the melody really enriches this tune. Other highlights include: “Into Oblivion”, “Obsessical”, “Dimension Crusher” and the finale “Reprogramming”. Okay, so I like Factory of Dreams and have a great appreciation and admiration for what they do. Having said (or wrote) that, it is also true that “Melotronical” may be a bit much to take in all at once. There certainly is a lot going on here, on both the music and lyrical side of things. Still, “Melotronical” is a huge accomplishment for this Portuguese band and just may possibly be their best, involved and most complete work to date.
Rating – 90/100
Tracklist
- Enter Nucleon
- Melotronical
- A Taste of Paradise
- Protonic Stream
- Into Oblivion
- Obsessical
- Back to Sleep
- Whispering Eyes
- Subatomic Tears
- Dimension Crusher
- Echoes from Earth
- Something Calling Me
- Reprogramming
Line Up
- Hugo Flores – Vocals, Music, Instruments & Production
- Jessica Lehto – Vocals, Vocal Harmonies & Arragiaments
Links
MySpace * ReverbNation * Facebook * Twitter * Site