Quick Reviews: DGM, Ignescent, & Soledriver

I don't have much to say about these records, all coming from Frontiers Records this month, but let's say something anyway.

DGM - Life

This Italian prog band has the right idea. While the playing is expert, and still rather technical, the focus is still on writing great songs. They don't all hit that level, but there is a focus on melodies we don't often get in prog metal, and it's refreshing to hear amazing musicians who want to impress us with more than merely their raw ability. I will say I find the music to be busy enough at times that it gets a bit tiring to listen to the entire record in one sitting. There isn't much in the way of diversity, as notes keep coming at you in rapid fire, and perhaps a bit more shifting in tone and tempo could have gone a long way. This is still a good record, but it's one that is actually too focused, if you can believe it.

Ignescent - Fight In Me

One of the more modern bands on the roster, Ignescent fills the same sort of style that New Years Day and the like have been making popular. It's very heavy, peppered with modern electronic bits, and a bit of a bizarro-world take on pop/rock. It's certainly interesting, and I think there is potential in there for something really good, but they're still putting the pieces together on just how to do that. If they can work on honing the hooks, they have something to offer. For this record, I think they're still standing in the shadow of the bands they're obviously inspired by.

Soledriver - Return Me To Light

Oh look, it's yet another Michael Sweet project. This time, he teams up with the label's in-house songwriter for some melodic rock a-la Journey. I think I pegged Del Vecchio at having written over a hundred songs on records last year, and that's just too much. I'm sorry, but I don't think anyone can write that many songs and have them all be worth listening to. Plus, I'm burned out on his style, and I don't need to hear any more of it for a long time. Combine that with Sweet's voice, which seems to operate at full volume 90% of the time, which flattens out every melody, and this is the sort of thing that shows there's a difference between being melodic and being hooky. This is melodic, sure, but I don't really remember a bit of it.