Assignment (GER)
Napísané: 19 Feb 2021, 15:21
Assignment - Inside Of The Machine (2013)
Year : 2013
Style : Progressive Power Metal
Country : Germany
Audio : 320 kbps + all scans
Size : 160 mb
Bio:
Assignment stands for music without boundaries, as their influences are spread across the full panoply of Rock & Metal music: from Death Metal to Progressive Rock, but with the melody and arrangement of the songs always foremost in mind. Assignment therefore unabashedly calls their unique brand of music: Art Metal!If comparisons must be made for the sake of identification, then think of Assignment as having combined such diverse influences as Queensrÿche & Fates Warning, with stylistic nods to Ayreon or early Pain of Salvation. In addition the hard-edged riffs, memorable hooks and skilful arrangements result in a personal musical style of which the whole is greater and vastly more impressive than the sum of its individual influences.Guitarist / Composer Goran Panić formed assignment around the turn of the Century. After going through the habitual trials and tribulations – part of the growing pains of any new band, Assignment released their debut album "Progressive Changes," recorded at Claus Grabke’s studio in Guetersloh, Germany, in 2004, via Rock Express Records.A supportive amount of praise hailed upon the band, encouraging them to write and record their follow-up effort “Disunion Denied," which was released in 2008, and on which the band evolved towards a more forceful sound. Careful not to change a winning team, Assignment once again entrusted Claus Grabke with the recording, and later sought out Michael Schwabe (Scorpions, Paradise Lost) at the Monoposto Studios in Düsseldorf to handle the mastering.During the first decade of their existence, and thanks to the favourable reviews of their first two albums, Assignment managed to regularly perform and tour, often in combination with bands such as Poverty’s No Crime, GB Arts, Orden Ogan, and Brazilian act Stormental.For their third album: “Inside Of The Machine” Assignment decided to revisit the epic conceptual theme first deployed on their debut record Here the Machine is a metaphor for the darker side of the soul of the lead character; his inner struggles in life, his role in society. Besides featuring Bernie Versailles (Redemption) on lead guitar, the presence of some very special guests interpreting the vocal parts of the various characters from the storyline, among them: Robin Beck, Michael Bormann (Jaded Heart/ Bonfire), Mats Leven (Yngwie Malmsteen/ Addagio), and Carsten Kaiser (Angel Dust), elevates “Inside Of The Machine” to a truly towering status.Recorded throughout 2011–12, the album was mixed and mastered by Carsten Kaiser and Goran Panic at the Meta4 Studio in Bochum, Germany. There’s a hidden bonus track: "Nowhere Fast," originally interpreted by Meat Loaf, and at the time also included in the soundtrack of the Walter Hill film "Streets of Fire."
Album:
There is a reason Progressive Metal is my favorite genre to listen to and write about. Many reasons, in fact; Prog Metal bands employ everything I could love about music: intelligent songwriting, catchy hooks, technicality, unpredictability, versatility and, in many cases, heaviness, and every member of the band is showcased for their skill on their given instrument. It is to my pleasant surprise that ASSIGNMENT first graced my ears in receiving the promo on which this review is based. Their upcoming release, "Inside Of The Machine" is truly a progressive titan, a concept album of 14 full length tracks and featuring an impressive range of guest musicians; the majority of which are vocalists playing the album's 4 'main characters', including the great Mats Leven of ADAGIO. Shall we begin?It is all too easy to write pages and pages of essay material on this album, and therefore even harder to pick the standouts, but I shall try my best. The opening track, "Upload The System" is a beautifully composed (and long!) instrumental track that effectively sets the scape for the album's story, even without the employ of vocals – where the 'Machine' stands as a metaphor for the dark part of the main character's soul. Progressive-sounding enough yet? "I Am The Macihne" is one of the more straightforward tracks on the album, albeit one of my favorites, featuring a main riff reminiscent of JUDAS PRIEST's "Painkiller", and is all throughout a fast and heavy rocket ride showcasing Mats' raucous, yet soulful singing. "Love Between Heaven and Hell" best shows off the powerful voices of Michael Bormann, resonant of the great Tobias Sammet, and the female guest, Robin Beck. The latter's vocals particularly stand out for me, because she strays from the operatic vocals that women metal vocals have been known to belt out, and commands a deeper, heavier tone, likened to that of Cristina Scabbia. On this song, the two singers' voices synergies perfectly, simulating a love relationship between the story's personal heaven and hell."Betrayal" does nothing to betray the excellence that is this release, focusing on Carsten Kaiser's heavy and gritty vocal performance; definitely for fans of Jon Oliva and Jorn Lande. "Messiah's Fall" is another track I must include in my list of favorites. One of the more diverse tracks on the album, it contains passages from all of the guest vocalists; this, and the unpredictable and syncopated musical runs, ranging from the heavy to the jazzy, uses sound to paint a picture that we can see and read. "Another Sacrifice" deserves a special mention,, simply for the lengthy bass-piano playoff solo that takes up almost a third of the track. The album's closing track, "End of the Machine" is over 6 minutes of pure majesty, with riffs and passages reminiscent of a number of genres of rock and metal.For the sake of my new found love for this album, I would very much enjoy to go on; there is simply too much to say. Listening to it was an absolute pleasure, and will continue to be. The upcoming release of this album will be, for true fans of Prog Metal, an absolute killer, and will hopefully draw people to listen past more mainstream bands like DREAM THEATER, with whom, I must admit, ASSIGNMENT are on equal fitting.
Line Up:
Heiko Maag - Bass (, 2005-present)
Sven Pollkötter - Drums (1994-2003, 2010-present) - See also: Morbus
Goran Panić - Guitars (1994-present)
Gert Sprick - Keyboards (2004-present) - See also: ex-Disjecta Membra
Guests:
Bernie Versailles – Lead Guitar
Mats Leven – Vocals
Michael Bormann – Vocals
Carsten Kaiser – Vocals
Robin Beck – Vocals
Tracklist:
01. Upload the System (6:03)
02. The Intrusion (4:08)
03. I am the Machine (5:06)
04. Resistance (4:41)
05. Love between Heaven and Hell (4:15)
06. The Betrayal (3:30)
07. Messiah's Fall (4:15)
08. Ending Love (5:03)
09. Another Sacrifice (4:48)
10. Electric City (4:45)
11. Walk Alone (4:40)
12. Eternal Silence (5:35)
13. Bug in the System (3:52)
14. End of the Machine (6:06)
15. Nowhere Fast (4:58) (Bonus Track)
Download links for all albums only on our blog here: http://goodmetalandhar.do.am/
Year : 2013
Style : Progressive Power Metal
Country : Germany
Audio : 320 kbps + all scans
Size : 160 mb
Bio:
Assignment stands for music without boundaries, as their influences are spread across the full panoply of Rock & Metal music: from Death Metal to Progressive Rock, but with the melody and arrangement of the songs always foremost in mind. Assignment therefore unabashedly calls their unique brand of music: Art Metal!If comparisons must be made for the sake of identification, then think of Assignment as having combined such diverse influences as Queensrÿche & Fates Warning, with stylistic nods to Ayreon or early Pain of Salvation. In addition the hard-edged riffs, memorable hooks and skilful arrangements result in a personal musical style of which the whole is greater and vastly more impressive than the sum of its individual influences.Guitarist / Composer Goran Panić formed assignment around the turn of the Century. After going through the habitual trials and tribulations – part of the growing pains of any new band, Assignment released their debut album "Progressive Changes," recorded at Claus Grabke’s studio in Guetersloh, Germany, in 2004, via Rock Express Records.A supportive amount of praise hailed upon the band, encouraging them to write and record their follow-up effort “Disunion Denied," which was released in 2008, and on which the band evolved towards a more forceful sound. Careful not to change a winning team, Assignment once again entrusted Claus Grabke with the recording, and later sought out Michael Schwabe (Scorpions, Paradise Lost) at the Monoposto Studios in Düsseldorf to handle the mastering.During the first decade of their existence, and thanks to the favourable reviews of their first two albums, Assignment managed to regularly perform and tour, often in combination with bands such as Poverty’s No Crime, GB Arts, Orden Ogan, and Brazilian act Stormental.For their third album: “Inside Of The Machine” Assignment decided to revisit the epic conceptual theme first deployed on their debut record Here the Machine is a metaphor for the darker side of the soul of the lead character; his inner struggles in life, his role in society. Besides featuring Bernie Versailles (Redemption) on lead guitar, the presence of some very special guests interpreting the vocal parts of the various characters from the storyline, among them: Robin Beck, Michael Bormann (Jaded Heart/ Bonfire), Mats Leven (Yngwie Malmsteen/ Addagio), and Carsten Kaiser (Angel Dust), elevates “Inside Of The Machine” to a truly towering status.Recorded throughout 2011–12, the album was mixed and mastered by Carsten Kaiser and Goran Panic at the Meta4 Studio in Bochum, Germany. There’s a hidden bonus track: "Nowhere Fast," originally interpreted by Meat Loaf, and at the time also included in the soundtrack of the Walter Hill film "Streets of Fire."
Album:
There is a reason Progressive Metal is my favorite genre to listen to and write about. Many reasons, in fact; Prog Metal bands employ everything I could love about music: intelligent songwriting, catchy hooks, technicality, unpredictability, versatility and, in many cases, heaviness, and every member of the band is showcased for their skill on their given instrument. It is to my pleasant surprise that ASSIGNMENT first graced my ears in receiving the promo on which this review is based. Their upcoming release, "Inside Of The Machine" is truly a progressive titan, a concept album of 14 full length tracks and featuring an impressive range of guest musicians; the majority of which are vocalists playing the album's 4 'main characters', including the great Mats Leven of ADAGIO. Shall we begin?It is all too easy to write pages and pages of essay material on this album, and therefore even harder to pick the standouts, but I shall try my best. The opening track, "Upload The System" is a beautifully composed (and long!) instrumental track that effectively sets the scape for the album's story, even without the employ of vocals – where the 'Machine' stands as a metaphor for the dark part of the main character's soul. Progressive-sounding enough yet? "I Am The Macihne" is one of the more straightforward tracks on the album, albeit one of my favorites, featuring a main riff reminiscent of JUDAS PRIEST's "Painkiller", and is all throughout a fast and heavy rocket ride showcasing Mats' raucous, yet soulful singing. "Love Between Heaven and Hell" best shows off the powerful voices of Michael Bormann, resonant of the great Tobias Sammet, and the female guest, Robin Beck. The latter's vocals particularly stand out for me, because she strays from the operatic vocals that women metal vocals have been known to belt out, and commands a deeper, heavier tone, likened to that of Cristina Scabbia. On this song, the two singers' voices synergies perfectly, simulating a love relationship between the story's personal heaven and hell."Betrayal" does nothing to betray the excellence that is this release, focusing on Carsten Kaiser's heavy and gritty vocal performance; definitely for fans of Jon Oliva and Jorn Lande. "Messiah's Fall" is another track I must include in my list of favorites. One of the more diverse tracks on the album, it contains passages from all of the guest vocalists; this, and the unpredictable and syncopated musical runs, ranging from the heavy to the jazzy, uses sound to paint a picture that we can see and read. "Another Sacrifice" deserves a special mention,, simply for the lengthy bass-piano playoff solo that takes up almost a third of the track. The album's closing track, "End of the Machine" is over 6 minutes of pure majesty, with riffs and passages reminiscent of a number of genres of rock and metal.For the sake of my new found love for this album, I would very much enjoy to go on; there is simply too much to say. Listening to it was an absolute pleasure, and will continue to be. The upcoming release of this album will be, for true fans of Prog Metal, an absolute killer, and will hopefully draw people to listen past more mainstream bands like DREAM THEATER, with whom, I must admit, ASSIGNMENT are on equal fitting.
Line Up:
Heiko Maag - Bass (, 2005-present)
Sven Pollkötter - Drums (1994-2003, 2010-present) - See also: Morbus
Goran Panić - Guitars (1994-present)
Gert Sprick - Keyboards (2004-present) - See also: ex-Disjecta Membra
Guests:
Bernie Versailles – Lead Guitar
Mats Leven – Vocals
Michael Bormann – Vocals
Carsten Kaiser – Vocals
Robin Beck – Vocals
Tracklist:
01. Upload the System (6:03)
02. The Intrusion (4:08)
03. I am the Machine (5:06)
04. Resistance (4:41)
05. Love between Heaven and Hell (4:15)
06. The Betrayal (3:30)
07. Messiah's Fall (4:15)
08. Ending Love (5:03)
09. Another Sacrifice (4:48)
10. Electric City (4:45)
11. Walk Alone (4:40)
12. Eternal Silence (5:35)
13. Bug in the System (3:52)
14. End of the Machine (6:06)
15. Nowhere Fast (4:58) (Bonus Track)
Download links for all albums only on our blog here: http://goodmetalandhar.do.am/