good, solid - Good outing from a solid prog outfit. Nice moody atmosphere. I actually think it gets less interesting and almost clumsy when it strives for the edgier hard rock moments. I am still finding my away around this more recent crop of europrog stuff. My impression is that these guys are a bit generic.
Amazing! Unique! - Why is this band not popular? I just don t get the music industry...Riverside does everything perfectly in their debut. Brillant musicianship, composition, and vocals. Their progressive song writing means the songs never get old, I love this cd (and their other cds) more with every listen. In Two Minds (a breathtaking ballet), Out of Myself (more their typical sound), and Loose Heart (a bit 80 s sounding, but awesome) are my favorites. Riverside does not sound like any other band, so there is no point in trying to describe them or saying that if you like band X you ll like Riverside. Just check them out (Loose Heart is on their myspace page). They may be your new favorite band.
Simply Amazing! - What else can be said of this group? They are an amazing bunch of musicians, I love all their music, this cd especially. If you love Pink Floyd, Porcupine Tree, Marillion, etc then you have to have this in your collection. Poland has been a breeding ground for this type of Progressive Rock in the last 5 yrs ( Quidam, After, Satellite etc)But Riverside seems to be the leaders right now! this is a MUST HAVE in any prog rock heads collection.
Fits My Taste Perfectly - I review the way I want others to review. Tell me who you like and then I can decide if your taste and mine are the same. Your rating and taste go together. My collection is the following. I WILL add this entire CD to it because it is my exact taste. In other words I cant say this is a good/bad CD, to some it may be the best thing they ever heard or not. It DOES fit in my collection and taste. Adagio, Amorphis, Anand Mahangoe, Andromeda, Angra, Ark, Ayreon, Balance of Power, Beyond Twilight, Billy Sheehan, Black Majesty, Blackfield, Bozzio-Levin-Stevens, Burning Point, Circus Maximus, Communic, Dragonforce, Demons Wizards, Derek Sherinian, Divine Regale, Dream Theater, Dreamscape, Emerson-Lake-Palmer, Explorers Club, Faraz Anwar, Green Carnation, Helloween, Heed, Ice Age, Jelly Jam, Joe Satriani, Joe Satriani/Steve Vai, John Mclaughlin, John Petrucci & Jordan Rudess, Jordan Rudess, Jorn, Kamelot, Kenny W Shephard, Lost Horizon, Magnitude 9, Manticora, Mastermind, Masterplan, Mercenary, Michael Pinella, O.S.I., Pagan s Mind, Pathosray, Planet X, Porcupine Tree, Primal Fear, Riverside, Robin Trower, Royal Hunt, Rush, Russell Allen, Santana, Secret Sphere, Serenity, Shadow Gallery, Sisters of Mercy, Sonata Arctica, Spheric Universe Experience, Steve Morse, Steve Tibbetts, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Steve Vie, Stratovarius, Stride, Superior, Suspyre, Symphony X, Terry Bozzio, Therion, Threshold, Thunderstone, Tony MacAlpine, Uriah Heep, Vanden Plas, Yngwie Malmsteen - Pink Floyd, especially Pink Floyd
Riverside - Outstanding Debut Album From Polish Proggers - Riverside are a progressive rock band from Poland who have really made a name for themselves in the past few years. Their music reminds me of Porcupine Tree or more melodic Opeth in spots and I really enjoy this album. Comparisons to Pink Floyd are probably also inevitable, but Riverside takes all these influences and makes them something unique. The album starts out really strong with the first track, the almost all instrumental The Same River followed by the haunting Out Of Myself. The rest of the album maintains a high quality and never really falls off. Melodic guitar is the name of the game through most of this, and there is also some really nice work on percussion. The vocals are mostly subdued although Duda does occasionally scream. Unlike other bands of this ilk, he never quite gets to cookie monster vocal styling s and keeps it all pretty straightforward. For a debut album this is really really good and I think it would appeal to fans of melodic progressive rock or the mellower side of prog metal.