Mind Key - Journey Of A Rough Diamond

Year of Release: 2004
Label: Frontiers
Catalog Number: FRCD 197
Format: CD
Total Time: 59:01:00

The Italian label Frontiers is growing up slowly in other areas apart from melodic rock, introducing some very good prog stuff like Empty Tremor, Genius and so on.

The first album from Italian prog metal band Mind Key is a demonstration of it and I have to say that we Italians have been waiting for a release like this for many years.

The band brings a lot of new and interesting ideas, that isn't easy to find in other recordings in the genre.

In fact, Mind Key has a lot of different influences that can be recognized on the album, like Toto, Dream Theater, Symphony X, Deep Purple, and even Herbie Hancock. To give an example of what I just said, the piece called "Deep Inside" is a rarity for prog metal albums because it has a strong hard rock base and melody, with an astonishing fusion central part that reminds me of some Hancock's stuff. Other unbelievablely cool songs are "Lord Of The Flies," based on William Golding's book, where it is possible to find a reggae section; Very funny! Or the last epic "Waiting For The Answer," where you can listen to all the trademarks of the group (melody, technique and complexity).

I have to add to all these particularities the great technique of all the players, like the versatile guitarist Emanuele Colella, inspired by Steve Morse, able to perform metal, fusion and blues indifferently, or Dario De Cicco, whose piano layouts give a wide breadth to all the compositions.

So I can surely declare that a wide audience of music listeners (prog metal, prog rock, AOR, hard rock, fusion, and metal fans) will like this first opus by Mind Key.

Italy has finally found a new brilliant shining star. And I assure that this album will appear in my Top Ten of this year.

[Disclosure: at the time or subsequent to this review, Davide became the manager and press agent for the band - ed.]
Tracklisting:
Secret Dream / Love Remains The Same / Deep Inside / Memory Calling / Lord Of The Flies / World Of Illusion / Without Rain / Waiting For The Answer ? Part I Soul Voyager (instrumental) -- Part II ? The Zero Dimension

Musicians:
Dario De Cicco -keyboards
Emanuele Colella - guitars
Lele Castaldo?- bass
Marco Basile -vocals
Andrea Stipa -drums

Discography:
Welcome To Another Reality (demo) (2000)
Journey Of A Rough Diamond (2004)

Genre: Progressive-Power Metal

Origin IT

Added: June 23rd 2004
Reviewer: Davide Guidone
Score:
Artist website: www.mindkey.it
Hits: 1863
Language: english