Riverside – Out Of Myself (2003)
Line-up:
Mariusz Duda - Bass, Vocals
Piotr Grudziñski - Guitar
Piotr ``Mittloff`` Kozieradzki - Drums
Michal Lapaj - Keyboards
*Guest musician: Krzysztof Melnicki - trombone on "OK
Tracklist:
1. The Same River
2. Out Of Myself
3. I Believe
4. Reality Dream
5. Loose Heart
6. Reality Dream II
7. In Two Minds
8. The Curtain Falls
9. Ok
‘’Riverside’’ is now being recognized as one of the best European progressive band. The band consists of musicians who were tired of doing death metal stuff and wanted to experiment with a more inspired project. The result was a progressive metal band that is influenced by bands like ‘’Pink Floyd’’, ‘’Porcupine Tree,’’ ‘’Anathema’’, ‘’Opeth’’ and ‘’Katatonia’’. Listening to this band is actually a journey. Sometimes you are thrown into big epic spacey moments to finally land into a big metal section. The lead guitar work, courtesy of Mr. Gudzinski, is just gorgeous. He seems to follow the path of the legendary David Gilmore of ‘’Pink Floyd’’. The vocals of Mr. Duda are some of the best in the business. I can compare him to Akerfeldt and Renske. The overall vibe of the music is depressed and dark. Sometimes it’s a bit frightening. Every song is a different journey so I’m going to review Out Of Myself track by track.
Track by track
1-The Same River 5/5
This song is the longest of the record with his 12 minutes. It starts with some radio noise. Instantly. The synth starts to play and the guitar and bass work is just perfect. The Lead work is similar to Shine On Your Crazy Diamond but with more bass work. Duda’s doing some vocals noise behind all that. The drum finally comes in with the great palm muted clean riffs. The drum is actually great. A lot of fills are thrown here and here with a lot of cymbal work. This song is very progressive. After the 4 minutes mark it gets a bit heavier. The drumming is more intense and Distortion comes in. The first guitar solo is played and then the keyboard is playing leads also. The guitar tone is very unique and this is one of their trademarks. The keyboard is also doing a great job at the end of the intro. Everything stops then a bass line comes in. Duda’s is again doing some vocals but with a lot of effets. The regular voices come in. At first it reminds me of Maynard’s way of singing. The song continues to grow and grow. The vocal harmonies are a delight. A solo comes in and then it fade to a clean guitar melody with emotional harmony vocals. The song finish with an emotional guitar solo. Very Beautiful.
2-Out Of Myself 4/5
This song is way shorter. The song starts with and acoustic rhythm that reminds me of tool. The song is a bit darker. The keyboard is doing some good background works. The drum get intense with a lot of double bass work and crazy fills after the first verse. Some growls can be heard in background then the chorus is a pure beauty. Duda’s voice is a bit harsh during some part. The vocal line of the chorus follow the melody of the guitar.
3-I Believe 4,5/5
This one starts with some people talking then the synth starts in the same way of The Same River. Duda’s starting to speak over the synth chords. A beautiful acoustic part comes in. The vocals is so depressed. It gives me shivers. It’s actually a beautiful ballad. Nothing fancy here. This song is more mainstream sounding and catchy but still good. The guitar work is as always one of the best I’ve ever heard.
4-Reality Dream 5/5
Reality Dream is the first part of 4. This is an instrumental journey that starts with some clock noises and weird synth work. It finaly starts and this part is really Dream Theater influenced. Time signatures, intricate guitar work, bass driven riffs. It’s not a speed showcase. It’s just a good demonstration of what is a good musicianship. It slows down then a low bass face the surface with some background voices. The melody a 4:05 is one of the catchiest I’ve ever heard. It’s frightened beautiful. Some metal riffs follows with a good drumming then the melody comes back. The bass is also great and should get more attention. It finishes with a clock ringing.
5-Loose Heart 5/5
The most mellow song of the record. The guitar is clean and delayed. The keyboard work is beautiful and gives a great vibe. The first solo starts with a fade in bend. There is a great feedback work in this solo. The vocals are so emotive and catchy. There’s a lot of harmony stuff. Keep your ears open to get the nice piano work in the background. The second solo is also a tear jerker. The ending of the song is heavier. Duda’s even screaming.
6-Reality Dreams II 4,5/5
The second part of this four piece concept starts with an awesome drum fills. The song is again bass driven and you can hear some telephone noises this time. The guitar work is a bit more complex after the 1:30 mark. One of the part is similar to Rush’s guitar and drums exchange of Tom Sawyer. The solos are some of the best of the record.
7-In Two Minds 5/5
An acoustic strumming starts this song with a kind of telephone voice. The regular voices come in with the bass. This is probably the best vocal performance of the record. His lines are catchy and well constructed. This song is another depressed one. The guitar and the keyboard are doing well in the background. The solo another emotional piece.
8-The Curtain Falls 3,5/5
This is the second longest songs of the record. It starts with a keyboard, guitar and bass melody with the natural harmonics. A good clean solo is features in the intro. This is probably the only song that I less appreciates but it still good. This one is a bit boring.
9-OK 4/5
The closing songs. It starts with a standard drum beats and some keyboard chords under the vocals. This one is ‘’Pink Floyd’’ influenced. Some weird keyboard sounds that sounds like saxophones and trumpets are heard. This song is really experimental. The guitar solo has a good clean tone. The song fades with the same keyboard chords than the intro. There’s 30 sec of blank then some weird vocals stuff similar to Opeth’s By the Pain I See in the others can be heard.
Pro’s:
-Amazing bass work
-Unique guitar work.
-Duda has a great voices
-This band is unique sounding
Con’s:
The music may get you depressed.
Song Recommendations:
-The Same River
-Loose Heart
-Reality Dreams 1 and 2
