Review Summary: Soen stubbornly walking on their beaten path leaves me occasionally pleased, yet wanting something more.
Rewrote it in parts, assuming it was deleted because of something I did wrong.
So to put it into context, I've liked Soen a lot, for the past 2-3 albums, so let me say: It's a pretty mixed bag.
I really want to say I like this so let's start with the positives:
The production is top notch, perhaps it's the best the band has ever sounded. Everything sounds crisp and well defined.
The vocals are only getting better, especially on the semi-harsh side of things, Joel kills it on multiple occasions (Unbreakable, Hollowed, and featured singer Elisa kills it as well on that song).
The guitarwork is as good as expected. Nohing to throw you off your chair, but many decent solos and riffs.
Now let's address (and confirm) some of the criticisms for the album:
The cheese. Oh so much cheese. Soen lyrics are at this point mostly unbearable, devoid of any interesting social criticism or metaphors. The generalization I could make is that they're running out of vocabulary; both literally (take a shot every time you hear the word tyrant in Imperial and Memorial) and musically.
Now the musical side of things is not unsalvageable, I disagree with people saying otherwise. The riffs are there, the trademark catchy choruses are there, but perhaps the Soen formula at this point is all too visible to a semi-trained ear. Still, I can't be convinced that this criticism doesn't apply to Imperial or Lotus at all.
And to give credit where credit is due, Soen even go as far as to add some new touches, for better or for worse. Fortress features Gothenburg styled dual lead guitar harmonies and their hooks all get tighter and tighter, creating some of the best recent iterations of their formula imo (Incendiary, Fortress). But I can't help but feel their growing infatuation for the 90s styled ballads doesn't have as much to offer, as this time around, they didn't manage to grab me as much. Vitals straight up is a Celine Dion B-Side, it doesn't feel right.
Overall, I don't think I'll be returning to this album a lot, it pales in comparison to their last efforts. However, some songs off there will be on rotation for a while, cause I like me some proggy radio rock. Peace.
