Egor Lappo - Trancevoicer Review

There are some thoughts and opinions about Progressive Rock, or Art Rock, that are really crystalized into the mass. The first is that Progressive Rock is all about the 1970s. Nah, it’s not the full picture of it. To me this kind of comparison is exactly the same as saying that good Metal music is only from the 1980s and nothing better was ever done after. Well, in fact, I know people that think exactly this way, but whatever. In the 1980s, there was a kind of refreshment – not to say the word reformulation because it wasn’t really the case – of the genre with new bands showing new features and established bands – I avoided the word old, because I don’t think it’s accurate – releasing new exciting albums. Marillion and Yes are two good examples of it. Marillion was a band that developed their fandom during the 1980s and Yes that released great albums in the decade changing a lot their own style – some may say the band sold out, but that’s another story. Second, that Prog Rog relies its music on keyboards and keyboards only. Not precise either. It’s a fact, though, that many important bands as Emerson, Lake, and Palmer fit this description, but Pink Floyd, on the other hand, don’t. Ok, then.

I do like Prog Rock and its bastard son Prog Metal. Moreover, it would be fair enough to say that there are times that Prog Rock pleases me more than Prog Metal. I can’t stand Dream Thater, for instance. Not really for me, but, on the other hand, I do enjoy Emerson, Lake, and Palmer, a band that for many, even Prog Rock hardcore fans turn out to be real boring. But, albums as “Trancevoicer” requires from me extra listening to get in the mood. Yeah, that’s right, to get in the mood or to fall for the band. Both ways explain the situation. It’s because the album is complex and each track has many textures that are really hard to get for the first time with the album. Ok, Metal music has the same layers of textures. It’s true indeed. However, we’re talking about two different things. Different musical experiences, you know. Different intents. So, I had to listen to “Trancevoicer” three times to get it. First, it was the voice. Then, the instrumentals. I had to dive deeper to get what Egor Lappo wanted to pass. As I said, different intents.

“Trancevoicer” is better defined as a Prog Rock album from the 1980s with huge influences of Marillion, 1980s Yes and Rush. From my comprehension, the music Egor Lappo do here falls into this category best. Considering the vocals I’d rather say that Marillion is a way better reference. “On Such a Sad Note” shows it better because guitars and keyboards have the same spotlight in the song. They are combined in a way that no one of them stands out the other. The same thing doesn’t happen in “With You” where guitars and keayboards bounce to get the attention. From where I’m standing, “With You” is the track that better fits the description of Prog Metal. Europe could have recorded it, for instance.

It was a rather different experience to review Egor Lappo “Trancevoicer,” if you ask me as a person that easyly bounces through Heavy music styles. Its an album that will please Prog Metal fans and others if they give it a chance.

Egor Lappo “Trancevoicer” will be released on March 19th.

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