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Fireproven - Future Diary review




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Reviewer:
7.9

21 users:
7.76
Band: Fireproven
Album: Future Diary
Release date: March 2018


01. Shine
02. The Tower
03. Sea Of Fear
04. Layers Of Time
05. Future Diary
06. Wrathful Beast
07. Shame
08. Empty Openings
09. Alone In The dark
10. The Interior Castle

Ain't it heart-breaking to find a great album with a sound that doesn't do it any justice?

Future Diary is Fireproven's debut album, but believe me or not, the band has actually been around for more than 10 years, which explains why the songwriting is fairly complex and mature for a debut album. Despite the band having released two more EPs in the past, Future Diary is independently released, which sadly can be felt in the album's sound quality, hence the opening rhetorical question.

Fireproven are from Finland and that can clearly be felt. The album does that specifically Nordic blend of progressive metal and melodic death metal, with keyboards galore, a mix of clean and harsh vocals, and even bits of more Gothenburg touches at times. As I said, the songwriting is complex and the band manages to fill an hour's worth of music without repeating themselves much. Even without pushing any envelope further, Fireproven do a damn good job at Amorphis- and Dan Swanö-inspired metal crafting. The vocals, guitars and keyboards stand out, obviously, and Fireproven have got the chops, alright.

But with Fireproven being both an independently released album and an incredibly layered album, the album's full listen becomes a chore at times. More often than not, it sounds decent, more akin to a bad rip than a badly produced album, but sometimes, the keyboards or a vocal line are much louder than they should be, which does lift the charm of the album. Also, I had to check whether the band has a bassist, but that was before the bridge in "Wrathful Beast", where I finally did hear some of it.

Sitting through an hour of Future Diary with its contradictory nature can be a bit of a chore, so Fireproven could've shed some weight to make it easier to digest, but I can't blame them for wanting to prove their worth after more than a decade of waiting. There is immense potential here.


Rating breakdown
Performance: 8
Songwriting: 9
Originality: 7
Production: 6





Written on 20.05.2018 by Doesn't matter that much to me if you agree with me, as long as you checked the album out.


Comments

Comments: 1   Visited by: 79 users
20.05.2018 - 22:01
Rating: 8
Risto
Wandering Midget
The point about production is valid in that it just has a bit too much stuff at times. As an example, the saxophone in "Layers Of Time" goes unnoticed for several listens unless someone points it out. In terms of writing prog metal that doesn't drag, you're hard pressed to find much better from this country.
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