Not many bands can say their début album has been produced by Prog icon Mike Portnoy, nor features a cameo from Neal Morse or a release deal with one of the major record labels in the modern Prog scene, InsideOut, especially when its members ages range from 16-17 years of age. Not so surprising however when one Max Portnoy resides on the drum stool, clearly bring some weight with it. Fortunately they also have a wealth of talent and songwriting prowess way beyond their years, as A Light In The Dark (InsideOut/Radiant) showcases.
The big elephant in the room it has to be said is how strikingly similar their music is to Dream Theater, of course the band where Portnoy senior made his name before the infamous split. Their take on progressive rock influenced metal seems to come from the same line of inspiration as the aforementioned stalwarts, sounding symmetrical in tone and formula with use of unusual samples and keyboard leads. Even vocalist Thomas Cuce sounds eerily like a younger James LaBrie with his soaring and powerful voice – on the ballad, ‘A Lonely Walk’ particularly the resemblance is uncanny – although he does also have harsh growls in his palette, which add an obvious enough distinction.
Where there may be some degree of idol worship at hand here, there is also a resulting level of well thought out and complex song structures, and beneath the surface some clear signs of their youth and their own identity. Album opener ‘The Edge Of Sanity’ uses a range of strange samples during one breakdown for example, including an elephant trumpeting and what sounds like a segment from the original Super Mario games. Elsewhere the likes of ‘Runaway’ offer signs of contemporary prog metal, if seen through the DT lens.
It also has to be acknowledged at just how talented they are individually. Yes the focus point for many may be the presence of Max Portnoy but throughout there are performances that grab your attention, in particularly the Cuce’s sporadic keys in ‘Control’, if his vocals are found wanting at times, both in identity and in strength.
It is a sad state of affairs; the fact that their sound all too closely resembles that of one of the genre’s premier acts, making the family ties with Mike Portnoy all the more too difficult to shake off their back. A Light In The Dark is an album that clearly displays a wealth of talent and surprising maturity, but little of its own recognizable stamp.
6.0/10
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CHRIS TIPPELL
