SYLVAN: Artificial Paradise CD Art rock w. intelligent songwriting modern and youngful approach

Description

Aren’t you tired of flat 80’s guitars, Fish pastiche vocals and Fantasy Casio keyboards? Well, that’s pretty much what Néo-Prog has to offer for over 2 decades. I am sick and tired of the Marillion clone and I need fresh, new rookies to prove me wrong. Few bands are trying to sound fresh, but since year 2000, Néo-Prog tends to harden his sound and more bands are crossing the line towards the real commercial sound. As a very careful circus artist walking on a thin steel rope, Sylvan is taking advantage of the best of the 2 worlds: intelligent songwriting iced with a modern and ‘youngful’ approach. Art rock in this case could be more appropriate to describe them. I can’t figure how Sylvan wouldn’t charm your ears, or at least grasp your attention. Their songs are intentionally created to please and entertain. This is a band that exploits drum programming, crunchy guitars, poppy bass lines and refreshing vocals. Indeed, the vocals are not fancy or superimposed to create a wall of voices (like Arena did in Contagion), this is just a guy singing his heart out. And fans of P.O.D. or Our Lady Peace will recognize some similarities with their favorites singers; Gluhmann has a charming post-teenage voice that rocks all the way, without falling into clichés of Néo-Prog.Sylvan is obviously not following the Néo pattern, as Carptree did not also last year. The ballads are not cheesy (thank you lord) and some heavier stuff could make your eyebrow rise a couple of times. their FM approach is a great recipe, mixing smart-ass structures to create accessible stuff that grabs you almost immediately. A very good bet, with lots of replay value.

Track Listings:
1. Deep Inside (9:14)
2. Thatâs why it hurts (7:08)
3. Strange Emotion (4:19)
4. Human Apologies (8:29)
5. Timeless Traces (8:12)
6. I still believe (3:06)
7. Around the world (6:25)
8. Souvenirs (2:09)
9. Artificial Paradise (20:16)
Total Time: 69:18

Line-up/Musicians:
Marco Glühmann / vocals, – Matthias Harder / drums, – Sebastian Harnack / bass , – Kay Söhl / guitars , – Volker Söhl / keyboards “