J-Man
A Mixed Bag
The debut album from young Polish progressive rock/metal band Crystal Lake is a pretty mixed affair. On one hand you have some solid compositions, but on the other hand you have pretty poor execution in terms of musicianship and production. Crystal Lake's potential is only hinted throughout Safe, but I think that with time, Crystal Lake can release a much better album.
Let's start with the positive aspects of this album. The best part of Safe is definitely the songwriting. There are some really memorable melodies on this album, and that really makes up for the album's glaring flaws. The vocals from Adam Plotnicki are pretty great, and I think he does a really nice job. His range isn't all that great, but his tone fits the music perfectly. Compositionally, this album is generally pretty good. Most of the songs have some weak transitions and forgettable moments, but generally this album has some good compositions. Even the weakest songs on the album (Way of Dream and Rose) have positive aspects compositionally.
Now onto the negative aspects of Safe. The biggest flaw on this album is the rather mediocre musicianship. The guitar playing from Marcin Gawalek and the keyboard playing from Piotr Wypych is pretty solid, but they never do anything too far out of the ordinary. Both of these musicians deserve some credit, though. Lukasz Bienkowski does a decent job on bass, but none of his basslines are that memorable. I wish he would have a little bit more variation with his playing style. The weakest link in Crystal Lake is the drumming from Krzysztof Grzelak. His drumming is really boring and uninteresting. Listen to the opening of Way of Dream if you want to know what I mean. Sometimes his rhythms don't match the beats of the song!
It's really a shame that the musicianship is this far under par. The songs are decent, but they are usually poorly executed. I often feel that this album is lacking in dynamics, and I believe that is why. The production quality is pretty muddy as well. This does not sound like a very professional recording. I've heard worse, but I think the production detracts from the overall quality of this album.
Conclusion:
Safe is a pretty mediocre debut album from Crystal Lake. It's really a shame that the final product of this album is so flawed. There are some really great moments on this album, but the muddy production and poor execution really mars the overall value of this debut. My rating will be a 2.5. I just can't go any higher than that with all of the flaws that this album possesses. My advice to this band is to spend some time before you make your next album to become more advanced on your respected instruments. You've got the talent, but now it's time to fully unleash it. I wish the band good luck in the future, but as for now, this is a pretty mediocre debut.