Different Strings is a prog rock band from the Maltese Islands and the new album The Great Divide is a concept album dealing, among others, with mental illness and alienation. Different Strings is in fact only Chris Mallia, who is responsible for the music and the lyrics, and he played all the instruments on all the tracks. The songs Apathy Symphony and Rhapsody In Grey feature vocals of guest singer Alex Granato and the instrumental song Words Unspoken features no one less than Derek Sherinian on keyboards of course. The Great Divide is a blend of prog rock, classical music, cinematic music and art rock music and bands like IQ, Pendragon, Gazpacho and Arena come to my mind while listening to this album. The two epic tracks, opener The Cuckoo's Nest and closer Rhapsody In Grey are probably the most non-accessible songs, as they are really complex and you have to hear them more often to truly appreciate them; although Rhapsody In Grey is at least ten minutes too long in my humble opinion..... The instrumental track Words Unspoken is my favourite song of the album and Apathy Symphony, a rather "heavy" song, is also one of the better tracks here. Overall, The Great Divide is a good prog rock album with lots of diversity, but it hardly stands out to the rest of great prog rock albums, so I am afraid that this album will not reach the large audience it probably deserves.... Listening tip: Words Unspoken! ***+ Martien Koolen (edited by Tracy van Os van den Abeelen) Where to buy? |
