Band:	Skypho
Album:	Nowhere Neverland
Style:	Adult Oriented rock
Release date:	2007

01. Walking In A Time Line
02. My Last Words
03. Nowhere Neverland
04. My Insomnia
05. Alone (Die Alone)

Skypho hail from Portugal and have apparently been around for a few years already, as their first recording can be traced as far back as 2001. After three demos, they've decided to grace us with the recording of this EP, entitled Nowhere Neverland. First thing to be said, the package is pretty cool, with a very nice artwork. Now, we all know that, although important, the visual aspect of a record is nothing if the music behind it actually sucks? which is not the case here. Oh, ok, those of you who are totally impervious to any music genre starting with "alternative" will simply turn their backs on this EP. The rest, read further.

After a short, electronic and disposable introduction, Skypho's alternative metallized rock kicks in with "My Last Words". At first sight, this sounds a lot like Incubus (the alt rock band, not the death metal one) during their Science/Make Yourself period: this is good rock music with pretty simple guitarwork and structures, but quite efficient at hitting the catchy mark. The vocals remind me a lot of that Brandon guy of Incubus too (that is a good point in my book, as he's one of my favourite alt rock singers). The percussions and the didgeridoo add a pretty nice and original tribal touch, as do the singing in Portuguese over a psychedelic jazzy break in the middle of the title track. There's really a lot of good things on this EP.

But, while Skypho are really decent when playing alternative rock, they unfortunately fail almost every time at being metal (except on the great sludgy main riff of "My Insomnia", easily the standout track). Unfortunately, whenever they try to have a stab at metal, they somehow resort to using the most annoying nu metal clichés like predictable stop/start riffs and annoying useless screams - this is all the more annoying as Carlos Tavares really has an otherwise good voice, so why he would scream for no reason is beyond me. Good thing the metal parts don't add up to more than one fifth of the album.

This is recommended to anyone who likes Incubus and alternative rock and metal. I personally found it to be a very decent listen. I just think they would be wise to shake off the not so good metal elements and stick to alternative rock, because they actually do it really well. Maybe next time.

Highlights: My Insomnia, My Last Words