EIDETIC — Promotion Tape 1995 (review)

EIDETIC — Promotion Tape 1995 album cover

Promos, fans club and other releases (no bootlegs) · 1995 · Progressive Metal

4.5/5 · 2013-10-15
Time Signature

Transcending all space and time...

Genre: progressive metal

Much had happened in the Eidetic camp since the release of “Mirror Passway”. Importantly, the primary songwriter guitarist Dan Andersen had left the band as had the other guitarist Evan Tejre. In turn Jacob Hansen of Invocator and Anubis Gate fame had joined the band, and bassist Jonas Rendbo had taken over vocal duties while Jakob Gravlund from Force Majeure had joined as the new bassist. Fellow ex-Force Majeure member Michael Rasmussen had joined as the second guitarist.

The result of this line-up change is an Eidetic that sounds very different from the band that recorded “Non Conspicious Warning” and “Mirror Passway”. Jonas Rendbo is a more traditional rock singer than the vocalists who performed on the previous demos, but he is also a technically much better singer. With the departure of Dan Andersen the thrash metal elements also went out the door, meaning that the Voivod and Realm references from the two other demos are absent from this one. Thus the progressive thrash metal sound is replaced with a much more melodic and hard rock oriented type of progressive metal – because the progressive element is definitely not gone.

The first track 'Prove Me Wrong' opens in a mellow fashion with clean guitars and melancholic vocal lines, and it sounds like a source of inspiration might have been Fates Warning's “Parallels”. After a cycle of mellow verses and distorted choruses (and don't worry, this is not a lame power ballad), the listener is treated to a series of odd-metered sections and a heavy bridge accompanied by a melodic guitar solo. To begin with, 'Transcend All Space and Time' sound slike something from “90125” by Yes, but, as the intensity increases, the song takes on the character of a alternative metal-inspired progressive hard rocker with some nods towards Dream Theater and some Queensrÿche-inspired passages. Perhaps it is Jacob Hansen's love of “Empire” that shines through here; if so, then I can't say I blame them, as I love that album, too. 'Time Covers Cries' stays within the realm of melodic metal and hard rock and also seems slightly inspired by Queensrÿche. Blending rhythmically challenging drum patterns with melodic riffs and vocal lines, this song successfully combines catchiness with sophistication.

The production on this demo is infinitely better than on the previous ones, with the instruments being much more evenly distributed in the mix, and the guitars sounds much fatter and less volatile. This owes to the development of technology in the couple of years that passed since the release of “Mirror Passway” and probably also Jacob Hansen's presence. In terms of musicianship, this is the tightest performance by Eidetic in a studio recording, with not beat being missed here. While the music is very different and perhaps more accessible, this version of Eidetic still show that they are excellent songwriters who, like Queensrÿche and Fates Warning, master the art of creating catchy yet progressive music.

The thrash elements are completely gone, as are the dissonant chords and quirky guitar figures of “Non Conspicuous Warning” and “Mirror Passway”. This is a very different Eidetic, but that does not mean that this demo is not good. It is in fact very good, I think, and the three songs are really enjoyable, successfully combining progressive metal and catchy hard rock into high quality and, despite my references to Queensrÿche and Fates Warning, original music. It is really a shame that this band never made it big. Perhaps it is time for a reunion now that the musical landscape is so very different from what it was like in the mid 90s. Fans of progressive metal should definitely track down a copy of this tape. Alternatively, you can check out the Danish Demo Dungeon website for legal download of the three songs.