Vertigo Steps: The Melancholy Hour

Back with their sophomore effort, the brain child of Bruno A., (from the cult band, Arcane Wisdom) Portugal's Ambient Progressive outfit, Vertigo Steps, are back with a 57 minute/12 track opus entitled, The Melancholy Hour. This release is a very mature and atmospheric, while heavily leaning towards their songwriting. Fans of the styling's of Katatonia and Porcupine Tree will be drawn to The Melancholy Hour, as the varied emotions and less angst are much more prevalent on this release. The great melodic and crafty songwriting that was a clear cut winner on their debut is still very evident, while the metallic sheen is a bit less the overall vibe is still the same.

Clocking in at just under an hour in length, The Melancholy Hour has been benefitted by a much better production than that of the first Vertigo Steps record, which instantly puts this new effort into a class of its own. New songs like; "The Spider & The Weaving", "Under Burning Waters" and "Through Sham Lenses" all show the growth that has occurred within the band with a bigger focus on creating larger landscapes with more and more ambient sounds and textures creeping in.

Gone is some of the heaviness but is replaced with more Prog sensibilities, with the vocal performances still being a feature vehicle. But it is still the melodic lines that these guys come up with that makes this band. More mature, engagingly catchy and sonically superb, Vertigo Steps' The Melancholy Hour is a fine follow up release to a great debut. While much more musically vast than its predecessor, The Melancholy Hour finds Vertigo Steps at a creative point in their young career, but it is the same vastness that makes this record a bit tamer and less focused. While still a good 2nd effort, it is not as compelling as their 1st CD, but it is still well worth giving a spin.

Track Listing

1. The Spider & The Weaving
2. Vacant Stare
3. Desperation Lair
4. INhale
5. Silentground
6. Under Burning Waters
7. Reel World
8. Through Sham Lenses
9. Red Haze
10. Redemption River, Dividing Ocean
11. Sweet, Sweet Rain
12. Burial Light

Added: December 8th 2010
Reviewer: Butch Jones
Score:
Related Link: Band MySpace Page
Hits: 3131
Language: english

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