The ten-track album kicks off with Lost, a melodic track that is fairly typical of the rest of the album. Alder's voice these days is much smokier than it was in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and the material written here reflects the change. Out of all of the 1980s metal singers still regularly touring and putting out new music, Alder is perhaps the one who has most comfortably adapted their singing style to accommodate for their ageing voice. There are no high notes to be found here, but a rich, warm vocal display that showcases all the emotional depth of Alder's voice. The track is co-written by Abdow, Fates Warning's current touring guitarist, who has helped Alder to pen the majority of the album. The song opens with some percussive drumming from Anderson, and some chiming guitar melodies that recall Empire-era Queensrÿche somewhat. In fact the Queensrÿche comparisons are somewhat apt here, with the song mirroring the darker, melodic tone of tracks like The Thin Line and Della Brown from the aforementioned album. Alder's verse delivery is very gentle, which sits nicely alongside the prominent bassline, before the song moves into a heavier chorus with walls of droning guitar chords and layers of tortured harmony vocals. Although this is Alder's solo album, the musicians he has hand-picked to help him out all turn in strong performances - with Anderson's groove-based drumming here really setting the tone and an effects-heavy Abdow solo adding extra melody. Despite the album as a whole being a more concise effort, there are still some progressive moments and Crown of Thorns is one of them. The song is extremely bass-heavy, with a deliberate groove coming from Abdow's playing really holding the whole piece together. His guitars add colour here rather than dominating, with some lines and textures replicating keyboard-esque sounds. The song is a mish-mash of different sounds, but it all seems to hang together nicely, with Alder's voice perfectly cutting through the mix - sounding particularly powerful during the weighty chorus. While the music throughout the chorus is less angular than the rest of the song, the bass is still extremely high in the mix, which helps to marry to the two sections together. It is one of the most diverse tracks here, and Fates Warning fans should immediately enjoy it. Some Days is more laid back, with gorgeous chiming guitar melodies and a smooth bass sound throughout that often - again - provides some of the main melodies and grooves. Considering that both Abdow and Hernando are primarily guitarists, the fact that the album is so bass-focused comes as something of a surprise. It is no bad thing however, and it really helps the album to create its own identity and set it aside from Alder's day job. Matheos is a great riff writer, so it is unsurprising that Alder wanted to showcase a bit of a different sound here. There is still plenty of great guitar work throughout the album, such as the spacey leads and eventual solo that pepper this track, but often the spotlight is shined on the bass.
Shine is the first of Hernando's efforts, so unsurprisingly it sounds different to the opening three numbers. Hernando is more of a power metal artist, so the fact that the track opens with a muscular guitar riff, complete with some screaming pinch harmonics, should not come as a surprise. It is a testament to Alder's songwriting however that the track does not sound out of place here, and instead serves to give the album a shot of energy. The pace generally is upped, with Anderson laying into his drum kit with a bit more venom and Hernando never far away with another chunky riff. The strong bass presence is retained, but the guitars certainly dominate more here. The pace allows for some more overt, catchy melodies too - with a chorus that recalls Parallels-era Fates Warning with some rather commercial-sounding vocal lines before Hernando adds to this vibe with a dual-guitar solo. Under Dark Skies hands the musical duties back over to Abdow, so the more atmospheric vibes that he creates earlier return but with a little more added weight from the guitars. The song opens with some heavier guitar drones, which do surface again occasionally throughout, but largely things stick to the template established early on. A melancholic bassline drives the verses, while the guitars moan away in the background - and the chorus sticks to the same feeling. It is a song with a very distinct sound and one that really seems to sum up the direction that Alder was pursuing overall with the album. His voice sounds excellent here, and it is clear that songs like this are how best for him to showcase his current vocal abilities. His emotional delivery suits the murky music perfectly, and Abdow has certainly created a strong soundscape for his croons. A Beautiful Lie is another Hernando piece, which is obvious from the moment the song starts and a faster-paced riff kicks in. Anderson's drums have a lot more punch about them during Hernando's songs, which suits the more overtly-metal vibe, and he never really lets up throughout the track with his fast-paced beat setting the tone. The riffing and leads are much more in-your-face too, with the verses constantly being backed by snaking guitar leads before beefy riffing takes over for a much more anthemic chorus. There are not too many anthemic moments to be found throughout the album, as this is not that kind of collection of songs, but it works really well here - and Hernando's lengthy, shredded solo is one of the album's best instrumental sections. The soloing here is mostly quite to-the-point, but Hernando was afforded more time to shred here and it elevates the track to the next level. The Road strips everything back to the bare bones, and opens with some very simple guitar lines and Alder's rich vocals. While drums and other layers of instrumentation do join in occasionally, largely this is much more of an atmospheric piece with Abdow's guitar textures creating a strange vibe and some electric harp courtesy of Katie Pachnos adding further chiming melodies that mix in perfectly with the guitars. The song is a ballad, but it still manages to create a strange, unsettling tone throughout. This is no sappy love ballad, but instead something that is filled with emotion and unsure feelings. It all comes together nicely, and a spacey guitar solo from Abdow is the icing on the cake.
Wait is the last of Hernando's three contributions to the album, and it picks up where his previous two tracks left off. Initially the track does not seem to be has heavy, as it does not immediately kick off with a heavy riff - instead choosing to build up more slowly like Abdow's contributions. It is not quite as heavy as his previous songs as a result, but it is still pretty weighty with some stabbing guitar riffing that surfaces throughout and some double bass drumming. It is certainly the most dynamic piece of the three though, with bass-heavy sections sitting nicely alongside more conventional riffing - and a screaming, shredded solo that races out of the blocks with a flurry of notes. The album's pseudo-title track What the Water Wanted is the album's penultimate number, and probably the heaviest of Abdow's contributions. There is a really strong Fates Warning vibe here, and it could have easily fitted on any of the band's recent albums. It kicks off with a muscular guitar riff, but the main highlight of the instrumental portion of the track is a tasty guitar lead that provides one of the song's main hooks. It is a classic progressive metal hook, and it really helps the song to stand out and provide a late-album shot of energy. It is another more anthemic piece too, with a great chorus that sees Alder lay down quite a few layers of harmony vocals to boost his singing during the song's main melodies. If these songs ever make it to the stage then this one is going to be a sure fan favourite, with a hooky chorus that can be sung easily and some great guitar leads to draw everyone in. The album comes to a close with The Killing Floor, a great mix between heavy and atmospheric with some really dirty-sounding heavy guitar chords kicking everything off before a groovy verse takes over with a funky bassline and some laid back guitar patterns. It is another song typical of the album's overall sound, and therefore is an excellent closing track. There is a bit of everything here, with nearly every sound that has been flirted with throughout the album finding its way into the mix. Everything seems to hang together well however despite this mix of sounds, and Alder really puts in a stellar vocal display as a result. The track contains some of his most earnest vocals here, with a section before Abdow's excellent guitar solo showcasing what he can still do with his voice. The aforementioned solo is one of the album's best too, and showcases what a great player Abdow is. I would be interested to hear him contribute more to Fates Warning going forward, as I think him and Matheos could really come up with some interesting riffs and songs if they chose to write together. Overall, What the Water Wants is a great debut solo release from Alder and one that allows him to showcase his voice and songwriting style in a different way to your average Fates Warning album. Fans of the band are still sure to love this however, and anyone into hooky, but murky progressive music should also check it out.
The album was released on 18th October 2019 via InsideOut Music. Below is Alder's promotional video for Crown of Thorns.
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