Band:	Extrovert
Album:	Восхождение / Ascension
Style:	Progressive heavy metal
Release date:	April 2015

01. Восхождение часть I - Точка стремления
02. Восхождение часть II - Смятение
03. Молот будней
04. Tantrum
05. Magic Song
06. Безнадёжно болен
07. Крен судьбы
08. Sign Of Infinity
09. К сыну
10. Восхождение часть III - Отчаяние

Extrovert. Probably the finest band ever to have existed in Siberia.

These guys had been teasing their fans with a follow-up to their groundbreaking debut album Making The Ocean Awake since 2006, when they first played one of the new songs - the instrumental track "Tantrum". At a certain point, some of their fans even lost hope for a new release, but this year they have finally showed up with an unexpectedly brilliant album which certainly surpasses its predecessor.

If you're a prog fan, Ascension can easily land at the top of your musical charts this year, earning a permanent spot in your playlists. You're going to ask me "why?", aren't you?

Besides indisputable performance skills, which have always been an integral part of Extrovert's approach to music, the band have written some really diverse songs this time, constantly shifting moods within songs. I mean, these guys have always tended to sound like a prog rock band, but hey, they've even got blast beats on this album which was came as a total surprise and brought nothing but a smile to my face!

Most of the lyrics on Ascension were written in Russian, but there are two tracks on which they decided to use English. One of them is called "Magic Song" featuring Sieges Even's singer, Arno Menses, and I gotta tell you, this one is just beautiful and really catchy! I wish he could sign the other one, "Sign Of Infinity", because of the accent of the band's own singer.

However, I must admit that even if Extrovert is unique in its own way, not everything on this album sounds original. Some parts strongly resemble the works of bands like Dream Theater and Yes, and sometimes even Machine Head, though it's not much of a problem considering that prog as a genre had been depleting itself pretty quickly over the past few years. But the sound! The sound is something special here. I can even feel why it took them so long to get it finally released! Every instrument sounds clear and they don't really conflict with each other in the mix. Which is good, because their music often implies that different instruments should play slightly different parts, so your ears and brains should be okay.

I certainly won't go for a track-by-track review, but I just have to say that "Ascension Part III", the final track, is probably the best song they've ever written. It's a perfect combination of ethereal melodies in 7/8, some dramatic parts, as well as evil-sounding riffs a la Machine Head or Meshuggah. Ten minutes of constant pleasure guaranteed.

And finally, you know, a good album takes several spins before it starts "growing" on you, so don't give up if you didn't get it after the first spin! It also took me several times to play it before realizing that it's (currently) my favorite album of 2015.

And, of course, support the band and buy their stuff; be a good boy (or girl)!
Cheers