Withem - The Point Of You

Guess what? Them crafty Norwegians have started playing around with progressive metal now. And it's pretty good!You don't hear a lot about progressive bands coming out of Norway, but damned if Withem hasn't released a pretty impressive debut with The Point Of You. And luckily they avoid the cliches that most progmetal bands seem to fall into. Instead, you get about an hour of clearly talented musicians that know their away around some odd time signatures, but don't turn it into the "look how we can turn a song on a dime" pissing contest that you normally see in the lesser bands of this ilk.

A big part of this success is due to the great vocals of Ole Aleksander Wagenius, who lends a sophistication that is often lost in the instrumental flurries that are a hallmark of such music. Reminiscient of Enchant's Ted Leonard, Ole's voice (and harmonies) is a vital instrument that compliments rather than competes with the other musicians to exhilarating effect. Aside from that, it's pretty standard progressive metal fare, but avoids the boring, mechanical gymnastics in favor of song-oriented compositions that serve a coherent melody without losing that all-important crunch that helps defines the genre.

The Bottom Line: Proving that there's more to Norwegian metal than just melodeath, Withem does a damned fine job of making some progressive metal that avoids much of the cliches of the genre. Using a steadfastly song-oriented approach gives their music a sophistication that delightfully belies its heavy yet complex, powerful rhythyms. And that is progressive metal, folks.

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- Genghis sure wishes he could shred - especially after playing guitar for 25+ years...