PAIN OF SALVATION — BE (review)

Album · 2004 · Progressive Metal

5/5 · 2010-03-25
J-Man

Pain of Salvation's Third Consecutive Masterpiece!

Every now and again, an album comes around that is so different from anything previously released. An album that pushes the boundaries of a genre, doing something so ambitious that it will get criticized from people not willing to hear a band take a new direction.

BE is Pain of Salvation's attempt to make the most unique progressive metal album I have ever heard. And they most certainly do not fail. The unique blend of Pain of Salvation's already original prog metal formula, folk music, classical, and orchestrations work perfectly on this ambitious concept piece. If you're just looking for the average prog metal album, this is not it. You must go into BE with an open mind and you won't be disappointed.

Another thing that make BE so excellent in my opinion is that this is a very concept-driven piece. Every other Pain of Salvation album is also a concept album, but this focuses much more on lyrics than any of their previous efforts. Any one song on this album isn't a masterpiece on its own, but in the concept of the album, everything flows together perfectly. If you're looking for a really accessible album, you might not want to turn to BE either, simply because in its conceptual nature you won't "get it" at first listen.

THE MUSIC:

"Animae Partus (I Am)"- This incredible journey of an album opens up with a dark spoken word passage. It contains some excellent lines that accurately set the dark mood of the album.

"Deus Nova"- The second song opens with a very dark piano, low string, and woodwind melody. It contains some nice harmonies, and it actually sounds a little avant. Soon an odd rhythm enters with spoken word stating the world population at different times. In the background is one of the main musical themes to the album. This is followed by the same speakers in the previous track.

"Imago (Homines Partus)"- An Arabic sounding acoustic guitar and flute riff opens up the third track, and the first real song on the album. The riff is very dark and moody. Pain of Salvation proves that they don't need metal to create powerful music. The chorus is absolutely beautiful, and is later reprised in the album. The instrumentation here is absolutely perfect.

"Pluvius Aestivus"- This is a very classical inspired piano piece. It has other orchestral instruments. It is a truly beautiful instrumental, and it builds wonderfully without you even realizing it. Every time I try to focus when listening to this song I soon get lost and my mind drifts in all of its beauty. Words obviously fail, but this is one of the best instrumentals of its type I've ever heard.

"Lilium Cruentus (Deus Nova)"- A light guitar melody serves as a short opener, but soon an excellent woodwind melody serves excellent contrast with the guitar riff. A syncopated riff soon enters and sets a darker tone. Both of these themes are used later in the song. This is a very powerful song, and I absolutely love the woodwinds here. I just can't get enough of the melody! Another great song.

"Nauticus (Drifting)"- This song is very bluesy. It contains an acoustic guitar and baritone vocals. It has some nice harmonies in parts, and the main section is very good. This isn't a song you won't to focus too hard on. Just let it's repetitiveness slowly pull you away. Near the end there is a humor-tinged spoken word section between a man and a woman.

"Dae Pecuniae"- This song continues where the previous left off. It has a very funky main riff, with a nice electric piano melody. It is very catchy and has a light and moody feeling throughout the song. It has some nice progressions from section to section. It actually reminds me a little bit of Paul McCartney at times.

"Vocari Dei"- This song mostly builds off of the same melodies and riffs and spoken word. This is very classically influenced, and again I love the oboe. I think the woodwinds are a good amount of why I think so highly of this album.

"Diffidentia (Breaching The Core)"- This opens up with repeated piano chords, and this contains some of the most metal on this entire album. A heavy riff contrasts the piano chords. This sounds like a pretty standard Pain of Salvation song off of previous albums. A light emotional piano and guitar melody soon enters, and Daniel Gildenlow has an excellent vocal melody. It goes back to the previous section, but near the end it goes back to that lovely piano melody. The rest of the song builds off of that perfectly.

"Nihil Morari"- An ominous low guitar and string melody starts the tenth song off. This has some excellent metal sections with beautiful orchestral melodies. This also has a reprise of the second song on the album near the end. The ending is absolutely perfect.

"Latericius Valete"- This song is entirely instrumental, and it never once tires. The main instruments are acoustic guitars and piano, but near the end there is an oboe and strings. When the song is at it's climax drums are present, and it gives the song a very powerful feeling.

"Omni"- This song starts with a relatively dark organ melody, but it turns very emotional when Daniel's vocals enter. The entire song is just his vocals and the church organ,yet somehow it's one of the most powerful and emotional songs on the album. This really shows what an excellent vocalist Daniel Gildenlow is.

"Iter Impius"- An ominous piano melody opens up this song. This is another excellent vocal performance from Daniel Gildenlow. The song builds mostly off of the same chord progression, and this is a beautiful song, and is a perfect way to prelude the perfect closing song that soon follows.

"Martius/Nauticus II"- A march like drum beat follows the complex harpsichord melody. A beautiful vocal, string, and woodwind melody naturally contrasts the drum and harpsichord beat. Soon, a tribal guitar and flute melody enters that is the same as in the third track. Another tribal riff with a great drum beat enters until we have a lighthearted (what sounds like) a banjo melody. This is the same beautiful chorus used earlier in the third song. This is the perfect way to end such an epic album, and it just builds beautifully. It creates an indescribable feeling, and that feeling is what makes a great concept album. A heavy percussion section ends the song.

"Animae Partus"- This isn't really a "song", but more so of a way to sum up the concept. After you hear one of the speakers say "I AM", it is followed by silence. At the very end there is a short dialogue, and then this epic album is over.

Conclusion:

This album is as close to perfect as you can get. I still think The Perfect Element, Pt. 1 may be my favorite Pain of Salvation album, but this album is still one of the greatest I've heard, and in my top 10 albums ever released easily. This is a great way to begin listening to Pain of Salvation, and it is worth hearing for any fan. If you're looking for metal, you're not going to find too much of that here. If you're looking for one of the greatest concept albums ever released- you're going to find that here.

5 stars.

(Originally written for ProgArchives.com)