Time Machine - Act II: Galileo

Year of Release: 1995
Label: Omega Records
Catalog Number: n/a
Format: CD
Total Time: 52:10:00

"On June 22nd, 1633, the Inquisition in Rome read the sentence that condemned Galileo Galilei, guilty of heresy, to imprisonment. Galileo, at the age of seventy, was humiliated by being forced to disavow his studies and far-reaching achievements to which he devoted his entire life."

This is a partial summary of the life of Galileo as given to us in the disc booklet by the great Italian progressive metal band, Time Machine. It was written as a prelude to the actual lyrics of Act II, a story about the condemnation of Galileo by the Holy Office and the oppression of individuality during that time. Act II: Galileo is a progressive metal feast of such a concept, incorporating a virtual booklet of lyrics to go along with their particular style of presenting such a story musically. Time Machine can be proud of the fact that Act II is a disc that stands alone, on its own merit, not paying homage to any other band, thus avoiding anyone calling them a clone or a copy. In a genre that sometimes betrays itself and becomes the victim of countless, frustrated fans that yearn for something so different, every band has the undaunted task of trying to create an identity that will free themselves from the very concept of progression that they stand for. In the case of Act II, Time Machine has proven that such a feat can be achieved with intelligence, patience, and artistic vision.

Driven by the conceptual vision of bassist Lorenzo Deho, who has a hand in just about everything that is Time Machine, including artwork, song writing, production, etc., heavy keyboards, dark guitar sounds, tempo / time changes galore, Time Machine throws just about every aspect of the definition of "progression" into every song, which never sounds the same as a previous song on the disc. Personally, I deem this one of the "true progressive" metal discs of the time, and easily one of the finest Italian prog metal discs ever created. It does contain some of the finest, darkest atmospheres ever put down on disc without depressing the listener. It is easy to hear how persecuted Galileo was just by listening to the dark, menacing music without even hearing the lyrics. The lyrics are presented by Folco Orlandini, who possesses a voice more than capable of bringing these dark lyrics to life. His voice is a pleasant mid-range, which never strays out of his range, and sings convincingly with the least amount of an accent, which sometimes plagues Italian vocalists.

The disc has been re-mastered by Lorenzo Deho, and the sound is much more even here than on the original, which was very good to start with. The sound is more full and rich now, and the drums really stand out. A second bonus disc has been added with 3 songs, for the same price as the single disc. One of the true "absorbing" discs, it takes many long nights of thought and reading to uncover the entire spectrum of what this disc is all about, but then that?s what makes progressive metal so appealing to fans of the style, and Act II is a must for any progressive metal fan.

Also released by Lucretia Records

Tracklisting:
A New World / Guilt / Regrets / The Holy Office / The Old World / A Nightmare / Nightly Visions / The Trial / Pain

Musicians:
Lorenzo Deh? - bass and keyboard
Folco Orlandini - vocals
Joe Taccone - guitars
Ivan Oggioni - guitars
Antonio Rotta - drums

Discography:
Project: Time Scanning (1993)
Dungeons of the Vatican (1994) (Japanese EP)
Act II: Galileo (1995)
Shades Of Time (1997) (ep) Secret Oceans Part I (1998) (ep) Eternity Ends (1998)
Secret Oceans Part 2 (1998) (ep) Hidden Secrets (2000)
Aliger Daemon (2001) (ep) Evil (2001)
Reviviscence (2004)

Genre: Progressive/Power Metal

Origin IT

Added: October 31st 2000
Reviewer: Larry "LarryD" Daglieri

Artist website: www.timemachine.cjb.net
Hits: 1917
Language: english