You are not going to get the most original sounding progressive metal on the debut from Norwegian act Withem, but damn, these guys certainly know how to craft catchy, adventurous songs that pay homage to some of the greats of the genre like Dream Theater, Symphony X, Circus Maximus, Vanden Plas, Pagan's Mind, and Seventh Wonder. Finding their home on Sensory Records (a great place to be!), Withem boast vocalist Ole Aleksander Wagenius, guitarist Oyvind V Larsen, bassist Miguel Pereira, keyboard player Ketil Ronold, and drummer Frank Nordeng Roe, each one a masterful player and together they've pretty much hit a home run throughout The Point of You.
Production wise, this CD sounds spectacular, with all the instruments bright and powerful in the mix, but allowing for Ole's stellar vocals to soar to the heavens. There's no battling it out for supremacy here, as tune like "Phrenesis" and "Miracle" allow for all the band members to truly shine. Riffs are plenty, keyboards sumptuous, rhythms intricate, and those vocals...top notch. Withem don't go overboard with complex passages & chops, and like Circus Maximus concentrate heavily on melodic, memorable hooks, but fear not, there are plenty of stunning, virtuoso sections to be found here. "Point of View" and "Burned By Senses" certainly contain some jaw dropping dexterity (Larsen is a monster player folks), and "Mr Miruz" is a gorgeous slice of symphonic progressive metal thanks to some exquisite keyboard layerings from Ronold. "Born to Live" might just be one of the more catchy numbers on the album, as the band deliver a hook laden melodic power metal gem that rivals some of the best of Kamelot.
In the end, that's really the great thing about The Point of You; this is one hell of a catchy batch of songs, with the stellar instrumentation complementing rather than taking over the album. Wagenius is an amazing singer with great range, and he's just the icing on the cake for this extremely talented band. Tons of hook laden choruses, heavy riffs, blazing leads, symphonic keyboards, tight rhythms, plenty of progressive passages...what more can we ask for? A terrific debut from Withem, and once again the Sensory folks have delivered another sparkling new band to the progressive metal scene.
Track Listing
1) Point of View
2) Miracle
3) Phrenesis
4) Burned By Senses
5) Mr Miruz
6) Born to Live
7) The Paramount of Lies
8) Driven By a Blessing
9) Why Me?
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