CD review RIVERSIDE "Love, Fear And The Time Machine"

(8/10) What an awesome album. Riverside's sixth longplayer belongs to one of the best ones the band ever recorded. "Love, Fear And The Time Machine", by the way six words (something for insiders), is a kind of logical summary of everything the band from Warsaw, Poland released so far. Actually it's even more since Riverside focussed on new components too.

The new longplayer tells the story of essential changes in life that we all have to face sooner or later. It's not for nothing that the first song is called "Lost" and the last one got the title "Found". The tunes in between tell the story of the torn feeling of holding on to what you know combined with the curiosity for the new. It's like in a time machine where you want to go back to the comfort zone while your head is already exploring a new world.

When it comes to music I think that the new album is the most mature one Riverside has written so far. It comes with ten excellent prog rock songs that are more build on strong melodies; something that is one of the those new elements in Riverside's sound. Secondly the music sounds brighter than what we know from the previous releases. Still there is a melancholic vibe in each of the tunes, but there are also swinging moments of music that adds a positive aspect.

It is damn hard go pick out a few songs and mark them as 'highlights'. The level throughout the album is on a constant high level. That starts with the gentle opener "Lost" and ends with the earlier mentioned "Found". Along the way you meet the light "Under The Pillow", the strongly rhythm-based "Caterpillar and the Barbed Wire" with a dominant bassline and the darker "Afloat". This tune is with 3 minutes the shortest one on the album and comes with a lot of melancholy, embedded in a sphere of hope.

Talking about time, the long songs are gone on "Love, Fear and the Time Machine". There are still 8 minutes proggers such as "Towards the Blue Horizon" on the album, but the 13 minutes long ones are gone; something that I think is positive since it makes the album more exciting.

"Love, Fear And The Time Machine" became an excellent album that will please all the existing Riverside fans and that has the potential to open new doors for the band too. Great music.

(8/10)

Tracklist:

1. Lost (Why Should I Be Frightened By A Hat?)
2. Under The Pillow
3. #Addicted
4. Caterpillar And The Barbed Wire
5. Saturate Me
6. Afloat
7. Discard Your Fear
8. Towards The Blue Horizon
9. Time Travellers
10. Found (The Unexpected Flaw Of Searching)

Label: InsideOut

Genre: Prog Rock

Release Date EU: September 4th, 2015