Schysma
Idiosyncrasy

Italian bands often seem to showcase idiosyncrasies and that can probably be said to be true about the band Schysma as well, especially considering the title of their debut album. They have released an EP before this album, one that I I had forgotten that I had reviewed, kind of strange considering that it was a good one. Now again I have listened to this band many times over and am ready to review this idiosyncratic album with a funny looking cover artwork. It is kind of progressive looking, so what about the musical idiosyncrasies then?

Well, they are progressive so sure there are some of them but not really that many. They play it pretty safe, you tend to think Dream Theater when listening to their music which is a bit complex but still fairly simplistic with several catchy tunes to grab the listeners early attention and then hold it long enough to get into the more complex parts of the album. The production is very good, their soundscape is exciting and has a lot of depth while still refraining from the overcomplicated self-glorifying stuff that many Dream Theater copycats tend to delve into. These guys are not copycats but thoughts do go in the direction of said band. Their variation is strong as is the vocalist and they keep it fairly short with 53 minutes of playing time which is well restrained for a progressive band. I think this bears the marks of a real quality production.

And it is a quality album as well, and I really like it. There are no big weaknesses in the album; it has all the progressive fan can desire. If I am to point out something that could be improved I would have liked the band to have a bit more of an identity, something that makes Schysma into Schysma, that makes you think that this is Schysma and not thinking that they sound like some other band I have heard. But that is a small weakness in the bigger picture that shows an album that is well recommended, well recommended for anyone that is into the more progressive side of the metal genre. Which is good because many times Italian idiosyncrasies are a bit hit or miss, some bands are so ridiculous that you don’t know if you should laugh or cry, Schysma is definitely not one of those silly bands as they are a hit and one that I am sure we will see more of in the future.

All the songs are good but there is a quartet I think is worthy of a honourable mention. One of this is the opening track Lost in the Maze that sets a good tone for the album and is a great catchy song. Another one of those worthy of mention is Pendulum that is a bit more complex but very exciting and interesting, and very good. Then we have the ending pair with Sinner that has some wonderful melodies and Time Man that has some brilliant hooks and ends the album in a great way. Very strong album, I think it is one that is very much worth checking out. Excellent debut album!

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