PATHOSRAY - PATHOSRAY - 2007

During a year in which precious few new progressive-metal bands have shown signs of potential longevity, along comes Pathosray. Granted, the band has been festering in its native Italy since 2000, but never recorded a full-length studio album until now. The resulting disc is a savvy swirl of aggression and melody that draws equally from Symphony X, Nevermore, Kamelot, TNT and — thanks to the clean and clear register of vocalist Marco Sandron — another outstanding newcomer, Circus Maximus.

The album opens with "Free of Doubt," a stunning solo-piano piece that segues into "Faded Crystals," the album's most aggressive song that magnificently morphs into one of the highest-flying, best-sounding metal hymns of the year. "Lines to Follow" maintains the same invigorating pace, while the soaring mid-tempo ballads "Scent of Snow" and "Sorrow Never Dies" boast widespread appeal to help Pathosray find its broadest audience. Not a foul track can be heard, and the band's technical finesse, melodic sensibilities and razor's-edge execution make this a thoroughly enjoyable and classy debut. These guys, on their own, will no doubt make next September's ProgPower USA IX in Atlanta worth the trip.
http://www.seaoftranquility.org


This has been a good year for prog (with the exception of Pagan's Mind's atrocious new release). Symphony X and Anubis Gate have both released excellent albums, and now newcomers Pathosray add their debut to the list. I have no idea what 'Pathosray' means, but this is an Italian band making their debut on Sensory records, and it's easily the best thing this label has yet released.

Pathosray are of the more traditional school of prog metal, with heavy use of keys, open melodic vocal lines, and a lot of shifts and changes in the music. They wear their Dream Theater and Pagan's Mind influence proudly, and they don't sound a million miles removed from other modern prog bands like Anubis Gate or Circus Maximus. But what they do, they do very well. Pathosray indulge in all the expected prog excesses, like keyboard/guitar dialogues and multiple time shifts, but they do it all with a sense for memorable melodies and more hooks than prog bands usually bother with; thus this band gets their high rating not just through grudging admiration for instrumental density, but through being compulsively listenable. The catchiest song on here is undoubtedly "Scent Of Snow", but it's not the best one, and repeated listens will reveal the esoteric pleasures of "Faded Crystals" and "Strange Kind Of Energy". This is definitely the strongest prog metal debut I have heard in years, and fans of the style should make room for Pathosray on the shelf, as this band has the potential to be huge. Highly recommended.
http://www.metalcrypt.com