MUSIC REVIEW: Power of Metal [compilation]

"Awesome live Conception tracks."

I am a sick, sick Conception fan, evidenced by the fact that I paid an insane amount of money just to get the five Conception songs on this disc. Now this release is totally obscure and out of print. But if you can get lucky enough to find it, AND you are a mad Conception fiend, you need it. Hearing Conception live just affirms their stature as one of my favorite bands. Vocalist Khan doesn't seem like the kind of guy who'd be powerful in the live forum, but he rocks. All of these overt metal tracks are from the band's CD, Parallel Minds, which rocks, although the studio versions seem tepid in comparison to the awesome live ones. I know nothing about the other bands, so I won't comment, but I don't listen to them anyway. If you're a sick, twisted Conception fan like myself, get this. I will use the argument of intimidation: If you don't this, you aren't a *real* Conception fan (hehe).

MUSIC REVIEW: Conception - Parallel Minds

"Great, but less ingenious than other Conception albums."

I didn't discover Conception until recently, and it was quite a discovery. The Last Sunset, Conception's impressive debut, featured many typical characteristics of a band's first record. While it shows a bit of youthful naiveté and enthusiasm, sometimes an imbalance between ambition and songwriting, but nonetheless, it is an excellent, distinctive release. Parallel Minds, Conception's second release, shows the band's budding maturity that would come to full bloom on the subsequent In Your Multitude and especially Flow.

Parallel Minds' rhythms are fairly straightforward, and song diversity is a slight problem, but it's still a great metal album. It has a solid punch of insatiable riffing, fiery tempos, and impassioned vocals (Roy Khan is one of the best voices in metal, in my opinion). The progressive tendencies demonstrated in the debut are more interesting this time around, especially in the 9-minute piece "Soliloquy," which offers a ferocious mix of ardent guitars, piano, and a mix of loud and quiet passages. Other than the largely acoustic ballad "Silent Crying," most of the tracks are carnivorous metal cuts. Check out the menacing riffs of "Wolf's Lair," the chugging viciousness of "Roll the Fire," or the crushing title track. You'll see what I mean.

I believe all Conception albums are now out of print. Even if it takes a bit more work than normal, I recommend hunting down all four of their releases.

Conception - In Your Multitude

"NORWAY'S FINEST EXPORT."

Conception's incredible album Flow blew me away, so naturally the next step was getting the rest of their catalogue. Compared to Flow, In Your Multitude is heavier sonically but lighter in terms of song diversity, and I don't like it as much overall, but insofar as metal band is concerned, you rarely find music this good.

The band draws from a variety of influences. However, this is not balls-to-the-wall prog metal...it's metal with a progressive flavor. Guitarist Tore Ostby's technique is heavy, fast and clean, although the agressive riffs sometimes take a backseat to more florid pieces. If you'd only heard Flow before this, the opener "Under a Mourning Star" will knock you on your ass. It's so heavy! Other songs run the aural gamut, from beautiful acoustic and classical guitar solos to vicious, fast searing guitar riffs, to slow, heavy grinds. The drummer? Topnotch...he's true percussionist. The bassist is very tight; sometimes the songs leave him to establish the rhythm and he fares very well. The most notable aspect of Conception is their vocalist Roy S. Khan. In a world where most European metal singers plague their music with overbearing accents and terrible pronunciation, Khan stands head and shoulders above his peers. His accent is prominent, but it never compromises his pronunciation...it actually complements his sound. His unique sound is decidedly refreshing, and his emotional power -- combined with his excellent lyrics -- are superlative. Oh yeah, those lyrics...they're good, really good. The band examines interesting themes, like the lugubrious "Santuary" or the insightful "A Million Gods." Good stuff...it proves that "metal" and "intelligence" can exist in the same sentence.

Get all of Conception's CDs...they f'ing RULE. The band's catalogue also includes The Last Sunset, which is their eclectic debut. If you like these guys its worth picking up. As well as their second album, Parallel Minds. Problem is I think all these albums are out of print. Too bad. Good luck getting your hands on this awesome music.

Conception - Flow

Phenomenal Songwriting

I'm sure many Conception fans gave this album one spin and screamed, "They sold out!" Leading up to this release, Conception had been a _heavy_ metal band with some progressive qualities and an outstanding vocalist. So it may have shocked from longtime fans to hear Flow's opening track, "Gethsemane" (which means "a place of suffering"). Instead of the typical fast, fierce & crunchy opener, Flow begins subtle. A mid-tempo riff, ethereal synthesizers, quiet verses, and a soaring chorus.

On the whole, Flow is less heavy than its predecessors, but at the same time the Ostby/Khan writing core has improved tenfold over previous albums. Although many refer to them as a "prog-metal" band, they don't really have many of those qualities. However, the diversity from song to song has increased a great deal, which keeps the album markedly fresh: the industrial inflections of "Reach Out"; the Soundgarden-like "Tell Me When I'm Gone"; the emotional and slow-building power ballad "Cry."

Flow seems less about being metal and just writing great songs. There's no doubt that it is metal, but this isn't the threatening, aggressive sort of music the band was formerly known for. Ostby's outstanding solos are short, sweet and melodic. "Cardinal Sin," its heavy main riff a trumpet-like blare, sports a hook-laden chorus and rapid-fire percussion. A song like this would actually be popular on the radio, I think. The gorgeous ballad "Hold On" is quiet, just violin, harpsichord (I think), and Khan's incredible voice. And what a voice! Definitely one of the best singers in metal, his unique low timbre, Norwegien accent, and phrasing made him possibly the most distinctive part of Conception's sound. (Conception is no more, but Khan has recently joined the melodic power metal outfit Kamelot, improving that band by a ridiculous level thanks to his songwriting skills and voice.)

It's sad that talent like this goes unrecognized. Conception broke up after recording Flow, and the bandmembers left to pursue different avenues to demonstrate their ability. As I mentioned, Khan joined with Kamelot, and Tore Ostby has formed a new band called Ark. Both are excellent, but I do miss Conception. This is one of the most perfect albums I've heard, where production and songwriting unite for absolute greatness.