Ian Parry Consortium Project - Ian Parry Consortium Project
	Released: 1999 Label: InsideOut Music America Cat. No.: IOMACD 2006 Total Time: 47:52
	Reviewed by: Stephanie Sollow, November 2000 As much as liked Elegy's Manifestation Of Fear, I like Ian Parry's Consortium Project much better. It is more in line with traditional metal and overall doesn't sound much different from much of the metal being released in the 80's. Oh, I don't mean Warrant and the like, I mean Iron Maiden mainly and the harder metal bands. Of course there's a drive here that came about later...think Dream Theater for the most obvious example. But not quite the same kind of chug as DT...it's closer to AOR in some respects. Ian Parry is not just vocals here as he plays the keys and synths, too. He is joined by Jan Vayne on piano, Stephan Lil, Thom Youngblood, Patrick Rondat, and Tamàs Szekeres on guitars, Barend Courbois, Martin Helmantel, and Arjen Lucassen on bass, and Dirk Bruinenberg on drums. Tommy Newton also provides bass on three tracks. Parry's vocal melodies make these tracks quite memorable, one of my favourites is "Change Breeds Contempt," which features Bruinenberg, Lucassen, and Youngblood. Though "A Miracle Is All I Need" comes close, especially with the beautiful piano backing of Vayne. And, I quite like "The Snake." (Lil, Lucassen, Bruinenberg). But then there's "Chain Of Fear" that I also quite like ... and "Pandora's Box." Hmm...that's nearly half the album. Not just Parry's vocals, mind you, but everything - from guitar to drums to bass...this is nearly a perfect album. Parry's vocals have a certain roughness to them that I think fits the music perfectly (though I know Bobo disagrees with me on this); he carries these melodies well, doesn't strain for notes in either direction - I'll have to put him up there with my favourite vocalists. This is quite a stellar album that is enjoyable to listen to - the performances here are terrific and tight. It's Rondat who gets the solo instrumental spot on "The Entity" a combination of acoustic and electric guitars in a shimmering cascade of notes. But doesn't mean the guests otherwise fade into the background as each get their moments. Despite this having been recorded in various studios in Holland, Hungary, Germany, and the US it holds together quite well, which has to be a credit to both Parry who produced the release and Tommy Newton who mixed it. [See also Bobo's and Bjørnar's reviews -ed.] More about Ian Parry Consortium Project: Track Listing: House Of Cards (4:17) / Banquet For Thieves (5:35) / Evilworld (3:44) / Garden Of Eden (4:20) / The Entity (instr.) (2:43) / Change Breeds Contempt (4:16) / A Miracle Is All We Need (4:48) / The Snake (3:21) / Criminals & Kings (4:12) / Chain Of Fear (5:23) / Pandora's Box (3:56) / Humanitarian (3:19) / Change Breeds Contempt (4:13) Musicians: Ian Parry - vocals, keyboards, synths Dirk Bruinenberg - drums; backing vocals (1, 4, 7, 9) Barend Courbois - bass (3 & 9) Martin Helmantel - bass (11) Stephan Lil - guitars (2, 3, 4, 8 & 9) Arjen Lucassen - bass (6, 7, & 8) Patrick Rondat - acoustic and electric guitars (1, 5, 7, 11), bass (11) Tamàs Szekeres - acoustic and electric guitars (10) Jan Vayne - grand piano (7) Thomas Youngblood - guitar (6) Tommy Newton - bass (2,4 & 10) Contact: Websites: www.ianparry.com www.consortiumproject.com Note: will open new browser window Discography Ian Parry's Consortium Project (1999) Consortium Project II: Continuum In Extremeis (2001) Consortium Project III - Terra Incognita (The Undiscovered World)
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