666sharon666 Spheric Universe Experience's latest offering is The New Eve, an album which I'm sure has fanbase divider written all over it due to some fairly major changes in their approach to progressive metal. First off the album is heavily influenced by electronic music and when we're talking metal electronic influences can be a very hit and miss affair. Secondly the songs are structured much more traditionally and are generally shorter than those found on previous album Unreal, and exceptionally shorter to those found on SUE's first two albums Mental Torments and Anima. This is still a progressive album, which also contains some power metal styled fast riffs and symphonic touches in the background of several songs, but it's most definitely fair to say that The New Eve is less obviously progressive and requires many dedicated listens to pick up on the fine details.

It may feel, should you come to The New Eve after any of SUE's previous work, that the band has toned their sound down in order to appeal to a wider audience, or have sold out, but the truth is they've actually become more adventurous with their music than ever before. The previous albums were amazing, but The New Eve has them branching out into a sound which is a little more unqiue. That doesn't change that I see The New Eve as a fanbase divider, but despite some obvious mainstream influences that have crept into it The New Eve is the bravest album SUE have made yet. It's also their best, but not for that reason. The reason that it is their best is because every single song is as good as the last, with repeated listens only giving me even more of a high regard for the album.

Time Signature Escape...

Genre: modern melodic metal

Spheric Universe Experience are slated as a progressive metal band but, to be honest, I have had a hard time hearing exactly what is so progressive about this album.

Fortunately, adg211288's review of the same album pins down exactly what the progressive aspect of this album is, so allow me to quote from his review:

"On The New Eve Spheric Universe Experience plays the kind of progressive metal that is more song based without excessively long drawn out instrumental breaks and is made most progressive due to the multi-faceted approach to creating their music, drawing on a number of styles both within and outside of the spectrum of metal music, but keeping it formed around the traditional concept of how to make a song."

That is exactly the thing here. Not only are the songs on this album, well, song-based, they are also incredibly straightforward, building on grooves and melodies rather than technical intricacies and other typical progressive metal elements. Just take the opening track "Shut Up", which is a melodic and groovy straight forward modern metal rocker and very much a statement of sorts cementing that this is very accessible music.

As adg211288 points out, the progressive aspect of this album lies in Spheric Universe Experience's eclectic approach, as they draw on a variety of modern metal genres as well as non-metal genres, most prominently electronica and pop music. The interesting thing here is that what causes this album to ultimately be non-progressive to my ears is the progressive and exploratory mindset of the musicians. On this album Spheric Universe Experience have more in common with bands like Amaranthe, Raintime, Engel and Sonic Syndicate, because, like these bands, Spheric Universe Experience take the Gothenburg-sound, normally associated with melodeath, and redress it in more melodic and pop-oriented music. That being said, there are instances of more complex song structuring as well as rhythmic ambiguities and the more typical prog metal keyboard solos.

Anyway, while I really do enjoy the many very strong groovy and metallic riffs on this album, the electronica-oriented elements as well as the slightly formulaic melodic choruses do not sit well with me. The album is, overall, very enjoyable to me, though, and there is no denying that we are dealing with top notch musicianship.

If you are into accessible modern metal with a twist of pop - such as Amaranthe and Engel - then, by all means, give Spheric Universe Experience's latest album a listen. It is accessible and melodic, and the songs it features are very solid and well put together.

adg211288 The New Eve is the fourth album by French progressive metal act Spheric Universe Experience. The album is released in September 2012. On The New Eve Spheric Universe Experience plays the kind of progressive metal that is more song based without excessively long drawn out instrumental breaks and is made most progressive due to the multi-faceted approach to creating their music, drawing on a number of styles both within and outside of the spectrum of metal music, but keeping it formed around the traditional concept of how to make a song.

That’s kind of what makes The New Eve a difficult album for me. The band clearly has no qualms about including just about anything in their music (nor should they as a progressive metal act), but this does mean that although on one hand they are including stuff I like, such as symphonic parts, or a bit of power metal style speed, on the other we also get some electronic keyboard parts, which take the album in a direction I’m sure many metalheads won’t be so keen on. It is therefore most certainly an album that requires the most open of minds to get the most out of it. There were definitely parts in the album that had my eyebrows raised during my initial listen. However given a couple more I began to appreciate the work that Spheric Universe Experience had crafted with The New Eve.

Indeed once given time to properly sink in The New Eve is actually quite the addictive album from Spheric Universe Experience. The musicianship is interesting and Franck Garcia provides a solid vocal for the lyrics which are not without their hooks. To my own surprise the electronic parts within the album work really well and really add to the variety to be found within the release, and it is an album that has plenty of variation between its nine tracks, so much so that the album’s close to fifty minute duration seems to pass by much faster than it actually is, and the album often leaves me wanting to play it again straight away after its conclusion. The band’s riffs are also very much top grade, so there is plenty to sink your teeth into on that front.

The New Eve is certainly not an album to be judged based off one listen (no album is really, but this especially so). It is probably not an album to be judged based off a second or even a third listen to be honest because with the amount of different influences Spheric Universe Experience have drawn on to create it means that most listeners will likely find a section or two that isn’t quite to their taste. Whether that means the electronic keyboards as with me (which I think are the most major of influences from outside what is the accepted norm for metal) or something else remains to be seen but I was surprised to find myself enjoying stuff I normally don’t in The New Eve.

What I like about the album most though is that it’s a progressive metal album that, although it uses mostly clean vocals (there are few growls in Self Abuse) and perhaps on paper could be grouped with the so called ‘vanilla’ or ‘traditional’ progressive metal acts, it just doesn’t fit my conception of such artists well enough that I’d consider the band to be of the same breed of progressive metal act. They are different in a good way, and they have most definitely made a fan out of me with The New Eve. An exceptional grade rating is easily deserved.

9.3/10

(Originally written for Heavy Metal Haven (http://metaltube.freeforums.org))