Title - 'The Face of Life'
Artist - Kinetic Element
For those not in the know, Kinetic Element is a neo/symphonic progressive rock band from Richmond, Virginia that harbors musical roots in classic artists like Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Yes, Asia and Genesis and blends those influences with philosophical and spiritually powerful and uplifting lyrics.
Kinetic Element was formed to perform the music of Mike Visaggio's solo CD, Starship Universe which was released in 2006 after Mike was selected to perform at the 2006 Pop Montreal festival.
On their second album, titled Travelog, released on June 1, 2015, vocals were recorded by guests Dimetrius LaFavors of Odin's Court, Michelle Schrotz of Brave, and solo artist Mike Florio.(St. John Coleman had not yet joined the group.)
Kinetic Element - comprised of St. John Coleman (Vocals), Mike Visaggio (Keyboards & Vocals), Mark Tupko (Bass), Michael Murray (Drums & Backing Vocals) and Peter Matuchniak (Guitar) - are now back with their third album, entitled The Face of Life out February 28th, 2019 via Melodic Revolution Records.
1. 'Epistle' (7:06)
2. 'All Open Eyes' (15:52)
3. 'The Face of Life' (19:35)
4. 'Last Words' (4:07)
5. 'Lost Words' (2:55) - Bonus Track
The album, subtitled A Symphony in E Major, is quite the undertaking, of that have no doubt.
Opening with the seven minute prog beauty, 'Epistle,' after a quick spoken word intro we're off and soaring with some incredible musicianship.
Another of my personal favorites is the 15 minute opus 'All Open Eyes' which ebbs and flows with stunning precision. The crescendoing guitars are breathtaking and lead seamlessly into a more acoustic mid section, before launching once more into a fearless musical adventure.
That's Side One of the CD, much like a vinyl album would have it, and so Side Two kicks things off brilliantly by diving straight into the heart of the project with the near 20 minute epic 'The Face of Life.'
Interesting, the final track 'Last Words' (save for the CD bonus cut, 'Lost Words') was actually written back in the '70s and, according to Visaggio, had always been nagging at him from that dark space in the back of his mind.
"And I got this idea to do the first verse as a string quartet which sound is a preset on the new synth I had bought. So we now have something totally out of left field. We recorded the quartet as three tracks (cello, two violas and violin)."
As with the album art for the two previous Kinetic Element albums, Travelog (2015) and Powered by Light (2009), the artwork for The Face of Life has been created by Martin Kornick of Man In The Mountain.
The Face of Life will be released on CD and High-Resolution Digital and for the first time in the band’s history on Vinyl!
www.KineticElement.com
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