UMUR "Silence" is the 4th full-length studio album by Swedish progressive rock/metal act A.C.T. The album was released through InsideOut Music in June 2006. It´s the successor to "Last Epic" from 2003 and it´s the band´s first release on a larger label. InsideOut Music also picked up "Last Epic (2003)" for a 2007 reissue. The five-piece lineup who recorded "Last Epic (2003)" is intact on "Silence".

Stylistically A.C.T continue the melodic progressive rock style (with the occasional progressive metal element) of the previous releases. Although A.C.T try their hands at some darker lyrical topics than usual, most of the tracks are still uplifting in mood and the instrumentatal performances as sophisticated as ever. "Silence" is a technically well played album, but A.C.T aren´t an abrasive progressive rock unit, who play thousands of notes and fretboard/keyboard runs for the sake of it. Those elements exist in their music, but they are often incorporated in a more subtle manner. Lead vocalist Herman Saming has a distinct sounding voice and delivery which provide the music with a unique touch.

"Silence" consists of 11 individual tracks and the 22:41 minutes long closing multi-part epic "Consequences". The latter also consists of individual tracks, which make up the epic, so it´s not one long continuous song. The material are well written, but the album still feels a little long (running at 68:15 minutes), and some of the individual tracks aren´t that memorable, which is odd since they are all highly melodic and catchy. "Consequences" is definitely the highligt of the album and also the track where A.C.T get to really show their playing skills and creative ideas.

Although I did mention that A.C.T on occasion include heavy riffs and other heavy metal traits in their music, it´s only an element and it´s not a dominant one. So "Silence" is first and foremost a melodic progressive rock album. Sometimes I wonder if the members of the band (or at least some of them) come from a heavy metal background, because of the way some of the riffs are constructed, but since the distortion is not turned to 11, but rather to 4, you won´t get an aggressive heavy metal feeling that often when listening to "Silence".

"Silence" is a well produced release, featuring a clear sounding and detailed production, suiting the melodic and sophisticated nature of the material well. Upon conclusion "Silence" is another quality release by A.C.T and a 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

The Crow After two great albums (Today's Report and Imaginary Friends) and a third which was not so brilliant but very good nevertheless (Last Epic), A.C.T failed to deliver a competent album with Silence.

The style of the record is the same as their previous three efforts, but this time with a bit more serious tone and with darker lyrics. And I think that's one of the biggest mistakes that they made with Silence. The lyrics of A.C.T were never their stronger point, and this time are so cheesy as always, but not as funny. And I think that's unforgivable!

The production of the album is very good again, but I find the vocals of Herman Saming lost a bit of strength this time and I don't really don't know why. He sounds tired, or bored. At least in most of the songs. Maybe it was deliberated, but then that's also a mistake, just like the lyrics. The rest of the band sound so good as always.

Truth is Pain is a good summary of what this album delivers. A darker shade in the lyrics, tiresome vocals and a worrying lack of authentic new ideas. Even the instrumental section is not so good as always, despite the great musicians. Puppeteers is not better, with its typical Saga-riff, Queen inspired choirs and a very weak chorus. What happened to you, guys?

This Wonderful World is a boring mid-tempo which talks about ecological matters in a very predictable way (it pales in comparison to Waltz With Mother Nature), while Out of Ideas is just lame, despite its fine Ola Andersson's solo. At this point I'm really worried about the compositional abilities of the band.

But hey' Not everything is lost!

Hope suddenly rises the level of the album, with a powerful pseudo-thrash metal riff with palm muting and a catchy chorus despite the less than stellar interpretation of Herman. And this good line is maintained by Into the Unknown, with another good chorus, verses with symphonic arrangements and an outstanding progressive instrumental section.

No Longer Touching ground is not so good, but it has a nice bass during the verses. Useless Argument is an uplifting tune, with some nice hard rock elements and a guitar solo which oddly reminds me to Joe Satriani! An interesting one. On the contrary, The Voice Within is another forgettable mid-tempo.

Call in Dead has strong Queen influences in the verses and a funny chorus. In the second block of verses some Arabic melodies appears, contributing to the variety of the album. Silent Screams is an introduction to Consequences, the long song of the album, advancing some of the melodies that we will hear later.

Introduction is the second introduction to the epic of the album (a bit weird, I know), this time in the form of a nice acoustic melody, which remembers me to Spock's Beard. Then The Millionaire appears to introduce the concept of the epic, which talks about wealthy and its consequences. The song is far from being brilliant, nevertheless.

Joanna is far better, being maybe the best instrumental moment of the whole album. Powerful and precise, just what this album lacks. A Father's Love has lovely keyboard melodies and a splendid chorus with orchestral arrangements, while Memory to Fight brings another typical A.C.T riff and good choirs, alongside a great final section with splendid guitars.

The Diary is one of the best sections of the album, with imaginative riffs and constant tempo changes. I specially love the riff after the bridge, the one we can hear in the chorus. Just fantastic! This is what I expect from an album of A.C.T.

And so is A Wound That Won't Heal, another very good song with a marvelous final section, which contains a very delicate guitar and vocal arrangements. Why were they not able to achieve this quality through the whole record?

The Final Silence closes this album with a very good guitar solo, ending an epic which is the best section of the album despite its unfitting lyrics.

Conclusion: Silence is by no means a bad album. It has some fine songs and a very good epic. The problem is that alongside we encounter five or six forgivable tracks, and a pair of really bad ones. Maybe lack of inspiration? Or a futile attempt to search new paths for the band? Or just too long? I don't know, but this inconsistence makes Silence the worst effort of A.C.T

In addition, the lyrics are also very poor. More than ever. And considering that this was always the weakest aspect of A.C.T's music, you can imagine how bad and unfitting they are.

Best Tracks: Hope, Into the Unknown, Useless Argument and Consequences.

My Rating: **

This review was originally written for ProgArchives, and rewritten to be included here.