Excitement. The least I can say that I felt when I received the last album of Evergrey. A beloved band that came back dynamically before some years after some mediocre releases (and an almost break-up) and continues to confirm its quality. “The Atlantic” is the third part of a trilogy about the adventure of life. It started with “Hymns For The Broken” (2014) and went on with “The Storm Within” (2016). Relationships, beauty, darkness, joy, grief, love, hate and everything connected with our journey travel through its lyrics.
On the music part, the album starts with the amazing “A Silent Arc”. Very intense and unusually heavy until the keyboards, the excellent guitar melodies and the refrain come to elevate the song. “Weightless” is a classic (for them) groovy tune that sounds great, no matter how many like this they have wrote. “Departure” is pure magic with the bass and keys on the frontline and of course “The Beacon”, one of the best songs in the album. As for weak moments? Not at all. It is probably the least catchy compared to their previous two, but let’s be honest, this isn’t something negative. “The Atlantic” is amazing in every way and shows the quality of these musicians.
Of course, a big advantage is the steady (and better than ever) line-up that they have for years now. The great guitar work of the captain Tom Englund and Henrik Danhage, the shattering bass of Johan Niemann, the drumming of Jonas Ekdahl, the keys of Rikard Zander who send chills down the spine one more time and the unique voice of Tom that colors everything, combined they make an immersive release. The eleventh album of the prog/power metallers will not only satisfy their fans, but also will gain new ones.
Last but not least, I have to mention the amazing cover art by Giannis Nakos of Remedy Art Design and vocalist of Mortal Torment. By far the better they ever had in their history. Search for it in big resolution and see all the amazing work he has done and all the details he put in there. A work of art that fits perfectly in this special band with the outstanding music.
