Pryzme - True Stories And Other Lies
PV007
This is the Sophomore album from French outfit Pryzme. This coming some 3 years after their debut album Four Inches of 202.
It has landed, Continuing in offering strong progressively inclined music with touches of more mainstream bands apparearing but still keeping elements of bands like Rush in their sound,
Offering strongly melodic fare with great guitar work from David Chollet and Dominique Blanchard and strong rhythmic support from Benoit Torquet (Bass) and Lucas Planque (Drums), This quartet are certainly impressive sounding as opener Earth Song shows clearly,
The album has a total length of 56:42 comprising of 7 tracks, 2 of which are over 11 minutes duration the other tracks apart from Echo Of Silent Place ( which is a short opening track) are all over 7 minutes duration meaning each track has space to develop fully.as it needs and thus benefits from.
This is very apparent on the fourth track Green Eyes a song about Jealousy which has a very prominent bassline alongside some excellent guitar parts, Opening gently with a fine acoustic guitar before bass enters, and strong vocals commence, The song takes a harder tack at the 2-minute mark, as the track gains in intensity before reverting to the acoustic section then switches back again to the harder section. This is a very strong track for the band, the song the disseminated into to a sweeping guitar motif of staccato playing and synths, all very well done when a strident bass plays a counterpoint melody to the guitar lines , Highly effectively too, we then enter s section of synths backing the guitar solo, again all very well delivered by everyone, there is a lot happening in this track, multiple parts and time shifts and general proggyiness it really is a fone long song.
After this we have Reality Of Dreams, Which opens with another complex guitar section of plucked notes and tones, Before more synths and strident acoustic strums and a muscular bass line, this has another fine vocal and backing vocals, The song is about making your dreams come true and also about working on your talents to achieve your dreams, it’s a generally positive song with lots happening in the background and musically it’s interesting and strong too.
Never Again is a more muscular track with a flanged bass and some solid crunch to the guitar tones, and a very active bass presence too, lots of complex guitar lines pervade this track, and great synths parts too gives this more than a taste of 1980’s Rush, the vocals are interesting in that the play against the music that supports them, With scat vocals 8n tandem with a very active bass part before the excellent guitar solo, that takes flight during this song, ending with some clipped fiery power chords another winning track for the band.
Final song is the second epic, Silent Place which has an athletic guitar motif that works in tandem with the vocals, Again we have an upfront bassline to the fore and some great Chord work from the guitars, Again there is a great solo at the 4 minute mark and some fine Ensemble playing, before the last chorus plays yearning for more time as there is still much to accomplish, another guitar solo follows playing once again over the final verse.
This track is certainly powerful with a lot to commend it, I think Rush fans will be especially impressed with it, Yet whilst it has echoes and Elements of Rush’ sound it remains very much a song of its own style. The main guitar motif returns towards the end of the track, Once again making a very favourable impression.
Overall this is a fine conclusion to what has proved to be an excellent album.
One I highly recommend as a fine Modern Prog album well worthy of your consideration in my view.
Best Track for me being Green Eyes with its excellent interplay and musicianship overall. Yet in all truth there is much to commend this fine second album from Pryzme.
So do yourself a favour and investigate it for yourself. I t
Think you may possibly be glad if you do.
Info here: True Stories... And Other Lies | Pryzme