Logic Mess: Element Of The Grid

Logic Mess?? How apt...

With a slightly different line-up the basis of this outfit released the album Safe in 2009 as Crystal Lake. However Element Of The Grid is the first album from the Polish band now called Logic Mess and what a confused release it is.

Sitting somewhere between the out and out traditional prog-metal of Dream Theater and the darker prog of Riverside that seems to be coming to more to the fore these days, Element Of The Grid is a concept album about, well, who knows really? Mind games seem to come into it, corporations and government deception? Honestly I've tried and tried to unravel the contrived lyrics here, but to say they are naive, would be a grand understatement. Add to that the most clumsy of spoken sections, where American accents and slang are stumbled over in the most atrocious manner and what could be an interesting tale becomes a complete and utter distraction. Especially on an album that needs a strong focus to take your mind off accented, rushed vocals and well worn musical ideas. Harsh? Maybe, but in the end we are getting to a stage where simply being super proficient on your chosen instrument and being able to write songs with multiple time changes and musical interplays just isn't enough to raise a band above the morass of prog-metal wannabes.

I can't stress enough that Logic Mess are talented musicians, capable of a dazzling display of technical prowess and no little skill. They also weave together a mix of mighty riffs, powerfully pummelled drums, biting solos on a variety of instruments and keyboard crescendos that both set the atmosphere and drive the music along at searing pace. However will you reach for Logic Mess before the huge amount of prog metal already cramming your shelves, i-pod, or phone? I doubt it very much, as this is definitely been there, done that territory. Had the concept been decipherable, or the narrated sections not veered into toe curlingly cringe worthy, then maybe Logic Mess would have had a chance. In their current state, going back to the drawing board looks like the most obvious option.

Track Listing
1. Intro
2. Welcome To The Pandemic States
WALL I
3. Arcadia
WALL II
4. The Guards Of Integration
WALL III
5. Recall Of A Memory
WALL IV
6. Systematic Cube
WALL V
7. Over The Giant Wall
WALL VI
8. Surrender
9. Outro

Added: April 5th 2013
Reviewer: Steven Reid
Score:
Related Link: Logic Mess Online
Hits: 2203
Language: english

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