OSI — Office Of Strategic Influence (review)

OSI — Office Of Strategic Influence album cover Album · 2003 · Progressive Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
4/5 ·
martindavey87
Now I love Dream Theater! And I love Fates Warning! And I kinda like Chroma Key too! So when Mike Portnoy, Jim Matheos and Kevin Moore banded together to form OSI and release their debut album 'Office of Strategic Influence', I knew it was an album I had to have!

OSI blends all the elements of each individuals respective bands perfectly. Jim Matheos' unique guitar riffs are as impressive as always, especially when backed by the insane drum skills of Mike Portnoy. And Kevin Moore's eerie keyboards add so much depth and ambience to the album, and whilst his vocals do, at times, seem to drone on, they do suit the music very well. It's a very experimental, at times electronic-sounding take on progressive metal, and it works well!

Highlights include 'The New Math (What He Said)', 'When You're Ready', 'Hello, Helicopter' and the haunting 'Shutdown'. It's evident in the songwriting that these guys all know each other well and have a great chemistry when it comes to working together.

But that's not all! If you own the special edition version which comes with a bonus disc, you're in for a treat! While bonus discs are usually nothing more than excuses to release various different versions of an album at higher prices, this one really is worth the price. 'Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun' and 'New Mama' are both nice little ambient pieces, but the real gem is 'The Thing that Never Was', a 17-minute instrumental track that comprises of all the best parts of the album. Doesn't sound like much, but it's actually a pretty decent little extra.

Overall this is a great album for fans who like their progressive metal to be a little more experimental, and if you're a fan of any of the individual members or their respective bands, you will not be disappointed.
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martindavey87 wrote:
more than 2 years ago
@aglasshouse: I like Chroma Key, but haven't really heard any Moore-related stuff in a long time to really remember any of it. It's quite different than the other main bands of OSI's members here (Dream Theater and Fates Warning).
UMUR wrote:
more than 2 years ago
I enjoyed this album a lot when it was released, but I haven´t listened to it much in recent years. I´ll give a listen Again some day and write a review.
aglasshouse wrote:
more than 2 years ago
I just got You Go Now by Chroma Key from a garage sale just the other day. I don't think it's too bad. What are your thoughts on Moore's project, Martin?
siLLy puPPy wrote:
more than 2 years ago
Porcupine Tree ripoff! These guys should be investigated for style theft!

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