EVERGREY – Recreation Day

Records like this make me hate the fact that I have chosen to give points to releases. (I should have done like my colleagues.) Fact is, this is Evergrey’s best CD so far, and another fact is; I give it one point less than its predecessor, which I completely loved at first but quickly grew a little tired of. Nothing wrong with In Search Of Truth, it was just not the hard-hitting riffy Evergrey I first started to like. It was a good concept album, had a good handful of more than decent songs, but when performed live, it was obvious that Evergrey needed to make a heavier album with their follow up.

And that, boys and girls, is just what the Swedish five-piece did. Recreation Day is full of the dark unique elements that define what Evergrey does best: heavy virtuoso guitar playing, expressive and at times aggressive vocals, nice melodies that slowly but surely tag to your brain, progressive yet so powerful that both metalheads and picky musicians get their fill. I have never pressed repeat this many times with an Evergrey CD, and it’s easy to list the four first songs, “I’m Sorry” (a stunning cover version of Swedish Dilba’s hit some 10 years ago), and “Your Darkest Hour” as the best material the band has ever come up with.

While In Search… was a concept album with a storyline to it, the songs on Recreation Day all deal with the same topic — death. How to explain to a child that everything will be fine although it won’t (cancer), how to deal with the loss of loved ones, etc., but most importantly, an issue the band wants to make a full concept about: how the catholic priests (and other religious leaders) use their power to rape innocent kids and make them believe this is the way it is supposed to be. I am sure lyricist/singer/guitarist Tom S. Englund has the aggression, willpower and ability to unleash the fury on those fucked up people if he can find the time to do it properly at a later stage.

Having already found the Metal Express site, you might also know Evergrey from their previous work. If not, I will briefly tell you that this is powerful, dark, progressive metal sung by a unique singer (ok, Tom reminds me a little of Tony Martin though he’s more raspy when needed), a band that had their own distinctive sound from their very first record. This band is able to please most listeners of heavy metal as they have put themselves in a position where they don’t limit themselves yet have their own expression.

I said all songs deal with death in different aspects, but one thing is certain: With Recreation Day – Evergrey kills!