Band:	Ne Obliviscaris
Album:	Portal Of I
Style:	Extreme progressive metal
Release date:	May 2012

01. Tapestry Of The Starless Abstract
02. Xenoflux
03. Of The Leper Butterflies
04. Forget Not
05. And Plague Flowers The Kaleidoscope
06. As Icicles Fall
07. Of Petrichor Weaves Black Noise

Reading other people's opinions is a funny thing. Before I checked it out myself, I was convinced Ne Obliviscaris would sound like a bastard child of meloblack-infused Wintersun and Into Eternity on drugs. And I'm not going to lie to you, there's definitely a bit of that in Portal Of I, but that's only a part of the picture.

What's the complete picture like? The "visible" part of the package should give you a crude idea. Song names that start with prepositions. Lyrics that breathe romanticism, echoing with despair. Winged creatures and fire. Everything hints at the blues of youth, spilled soul-blood, vibrant sonic colors; everything tells you each song will be like pushing against an invisible wall separating you from what you desire most.

The music is always incredibly busy, with two vocalists (Tim Charles, in charge for slightly nasal and very pleasant cleans is also the band's violinist, which wins him bonus points for musical diversity), a guitarist that fires riff after riff at you (and occasionally engages in tasteful soloing) and a drummer with a penchant for black metal beats. The band's usage of violin is often debated - as far as I'm concerned, it's always more than appropriate. It's out of place enough to be quirky and never jarring, it's important enough to be necessary but not overpowering enough for Ne Obliviscaris to be referred to as "that band with a violin". And besides, how often do you get to hear guitar/violin unison solos?

Throughout the first half of the album, the songs get shorter and more focused until the short break in shape of the acoustic guitar and violin-driven ballad "Forget Not", and the ending three songs essentially repeat the "all guns blazing, all the time"-formula of the first three ones. Progressive music should, among other things, be about going places within an album and a single song. The buss driver of Ne Obliviscaris sometimes takes unnecessary detours and piss breaks that last too long. Sometimes, you can't exactly remember the place you came from and can't tell where you will arrive. But the ride is always scenic as hell. That's quite enough for a debut album, so pick it up!