Mixed and pre-mastered by
rock legend Michael Wagener(METALLICA, OZZY OSBOURNE, SKID ROW, DOKKEN, RAVEN,
MEGADETH), "Our Own Devices" is a fantasy storybook set to music.
Combining cultural and literary elements of steampunk, dystopian
society and futuristic technologies with highly articulate progressive
metal music, the album transports the listener to a world broken and
needing a hero. That oppressive world is devoid of arts, creativity, light,
and ultimately, humanity. But from it springs an enigmatic character,
Arabella Vash, who is called to The One Constant, a group of rebels who
maintain the history and teachings of the last free society.
The core members of MINDCAGE — Dietrick Hardwick (guitar), Brian Howell (bass) and Craig Nudo(drums) —
have been connected personally and through music for almost thirty years. The significance
of this project, for them, is that a lifelong goal has come to fruition.
With the addition of power vocalist Jeff Hignite, the intense and unique synergy of writing and performing became apparent.
Progressive metal is a very hit-or-miss genre for me. It seems that for every great release there are ten that are content to engage in 70-minutes of sloppy Dream Theater fellatio. Fortunately, Florida-based Mindcage don’t have any intention of getting their lips chapped on the shaft of prog-metal wankery. In fact, if comparisons had to be made they would be to the classic prog of early Fates Warning and Queensryche, but with a heavier vibe overall and enough originality to distinguish the band from their influences.
Mindcage’s debut, Our Own Devices, is a concept album about a dystopian society where technology has smothered the arts and creativity. This, of course, leaves the world broken and oppressed – and, thus, a hero is born. This hero is a girl named Arabella Vash (voiced by Hydrogen’s Julie Westlake), and she becomes humanity’s only hope to return to a free-thinking, creative society. Operation: Mindcrime this is not, but the album mostly lives up to its grandiose ideas and influences. This is in large part due to the expressive vocals of Jeff Hignite. Hignite’s voice is steeped in the classic 80s-era Geoff Tate style, right down to the soaring highs and deeper refrains. If there is a difference between the two styles, it’s in the actual vocal phrasing and Jeff Hignite’s throatier delivery. His expressive vocalization really does help to make the (occasionally over-dramatic) storyline work.
Musically, Our Own Devices runs the gamut from upbeat and intense to solemn and mellow as the storyline demands, and it is pretty well done. Queensryche’s first two full-lengths seem to be a pretty big influence on these guys, but I can also hear some Perfect Symmetry in the busier nature of the rhythms and some of the riffs. This is combined with a more modern, heavy undercurrent that keeps the album from simply sounding like homage to the past. This conglomeration of influences allows the band to stick to a very traditional sound when a song demands it while still being able to push the intensity without it sounding like an unattached tangent.
At this point, Mindcage is a relatively unknown band, but that will probably change once Our Own Devices has been released. Our Own Devices is an excellent extension of those classic progressive metal albums that existed before Images and Words messed everything up, but without sounding like a straight-up tribute to the past. It is a song-driven concept album featuring the theatrical vocals of Jeff Hignite and backed by a collection of excellent riffs, melodies and leads. This album will almost certainly appeal to anyone into the classic sounds of Fates Warning, Queensryche and any similar artists that put the song ahead of the prog.
- T R A C K L I S T -
01. For All Mankind (The Dark Design)
02. Our Own Devices
03. The Human Race
04. Firefly
05. The One Constant
06. Anabella's Arc
07. The Serenity Sequence (Renaissance Pt. I)
08. The Serenity Sequence (Renaissance Pt. II)
Bitrate: 320 k
Genre: Power
Subgenre: Progressive / Power Metal
Size: 93.83 MB
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FILE LIST
Filename
Size
01. For All Mankind (The Dark Design).mp3
12.1 MB
02. Our Own Devices.mp3
12 MB
03. The Human Race.mp3
16 MB
04. Firefly.mp3
12.2 MB
05. The One Constant.mp3
10.3 MB
06. Anabella's Arc.mp3
10.5 MB
07. The Serenity Sequence (Renaissance Pt. I).mp3
10.1 MB
08. The Serenity Sequence (Renaissance Pt. II).mp3