Lion Music has been discovering some pretty impressive progressive metal bands the last few years, and this little five-piece called Fartherpaint (odd name though) from Italy is no exception. Fronted by the lovely Monia Rossi, Fartherpaint show the world that female vocals have a place in genres other than gothic, symphonic metal. The music on Lose Control is highly melodic, almost commercial sounding in spots, but contains plenty of technical passages and moments of really heavy crunch, two elements essential to progressive metal.
This 42 minute CD contains just eight tracks, many of which are in the 5-7 minute range. It's a nice change of pace to hear Rossi's gorgeous vocals soaring over songs of this nature-just listen to her soulful crooning floating atop the intricate metal and prog arrangements of "No One's Around Me", or her poppy, almost jazzy delivery on the symphonic "Hold Me" for two examples of what she brings to the table here. On the brief "Chains", it's just her gentle voice over some majestic piano & synths from Gabriele Manocchi, which leads into the CDs longest track, "Illusion In My Hands", a real dramatic number that is just as much prog as it is metal, Francesco Federici laying down some impressive guitar solos, nimble harmony lines, lush chords, and walls of crunch. The drum work of Luca Prima is very nimble here, and Manocchi provides plenty of symphonic keys. The band rip into full blown technical prog-metal on "Anger", Prima and bassist Thomas Bianchi really digging into some serious grooves over which Manocchi and Federici blaze over on this excellent instrumental piece. The eclectic "Inside the Cage" has an almost funk/jazz/metal feel to it, complete with some quirky vocals from Monia, and the CD ends with the techno-metal sounds of "My Noise", a track that has plenty of groove, heavy riffs, and loads of futuristic synth arrangements. Be on the lookout for a jaw-dropping guitar solo from Federici towards the end of this wild number.
Ultimately Lose Control proves to be a unique listening experience, showing a band that is tapping into some different sounds and styles that should be able to find an audience that is out for something that strays from the norm in the prog-metal genre.
Track Listing
1) Lose Control
2) Hold Me
3) No One is Around Me
4) Chains
5) Illusion in My Hands
6) Anger
7) Inside the Cage
8) My Noise
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