Member: The Silent Man (Profile)
(All
Album Reviews by The Silent Man)
Date: 5/10/2007
Format: CD
(Album)
For
those not familiar, Ixion is basically an Ayreon-type project,
being the brainchild of bass/keyboard player Jankees Braam,
who wrote and produced the whole album, and even designed the
packaging and took the photos! Talisman is the second
album from the project, and he uses an array of guest
musicians - several of whom also played on the first
album.
First I have to say that this is a beautiful
package even before getting to the music. The concept is an
intriguing one, telling of a mysterious talisman, and the
effect it has had on lives and events throughout history, and
the booklet is tastefully designed with an appropriate picture
forming the backdrop to the lyrics to each one. This would
have been stunning as a full vinyl-size booklet.
The
music itself is equally rewarding, definitely prog rather than
prog-metal, but with enough of a hard edge to lift it above
the traditionally symphonic. Certainly not Dream Theater, but
then again, not Camel either, you might say.
It's a
multi-faceted album, with several pieces requiring more than
one listen to fully draw the listener in. A good example of
this is the very first track, the 8-minute plus “Crimson
Puppeteer” - on first listen I found it disappointing, and
thought it never really took off, but subsequent listenings
revealed its stately charms, and much of the album is like
that. Often delightfully understated, much care has gone into
putting the music together, and the rockier sections are never
exaggerated for over-dramatic effect, but blend seamlessly
into the overall mood, which complements the historical
narrative of the whole piece.
If I were to offer a
criticism, it would probably be of the male vocals on the
album. Mostly by Michael Hos, these are not the strongest, at
times coming over as little more than a narrative recital,
when a really strong voice is needed to make the passage in
question truly soar. The female vocal sections, courtesy of
Esther Ladiges and Maaike Breijman are better, and though
neither will worry the likes of Haslam or Findlay, they get
the job done more than adequately. In the end however, I guess
some allowance always has to be made for singing in what is
not the vocalist's native tongue.
Overall, I have to
give this high marks, both for packaging/concept and also the
music. A worthy contender to the Ayreon throne.
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