Band: VANDEN PLAS
Album: "The Ghost Xperiment: Awakening"
VÖ: 11.10.2019
Label: Frontiers Music/Soulfood
Die deutsche Prog-Metal Institution VANDEN PLAS geht auf #80 in die offiziellen Top 100 Albumcharts.
11.10. VANDEN PLAS – "The Ghost Xperiment: Awakening"
Vanden Plas – "Cold December Night" (Lyric Video)
https://youtu.be/SH-N1w8i8Gk
Vanden Plas – "The Ghost Xperiment" (Official Music Video)
https://youtu.be/23BzcW8-zAY
Rocks 9/10: "…ein forsches, atmosphärisch immens dichtes und voller Drama steckendes Prog-Metal-Album voller technischer Finessen…"
Rock Hard 8/10: "„The Ghost Xperiment – Awakening“ ist ein weiterer überzeugender Nachweis symphonisch-bombastischer Prog-Metal-Qualitätsarbeit der alten Schule (wieder mal überragender Gesang von Andy Kuntz!), bei dem vor allem der Song im Vordergrund steht."
Rock It 8/10 (Soundcheck #4): "Im Prog-Bereich ist dieses Opus bis dato definitiv die Veröffentlichung des Jahres."
Metal Hammer 5/7: "Darauf können sich alle Fans des klassischen, variantenreichen und ausdrucksstarken Prog Metal wieder freuen."
It wasn’t very long ago that the grandiose two-part epic “Chronicles of the Immortals” was released and already prog metallers Vanden Plas are pleased to present their newest album, “The Ghost Xperiment: AwakenIng.” The release of the quintet’s ninth studio album highlights the high artistic level of creativity that they have sustained for so long.
Musically, Vanden Plas once again offers a perfect combination of hard and melodic, while the orchestral arrangements here are more in the background compared to the last album. At the same time, the quintet comes close to its original roots, such as “The God Thing” or “Far Off Grace.” There are more progressive elements in the songs, similar to what one knows from earlier releases. The six, mostly long, pieces achieve an impressive and fascinating effect through a very band-oriented arrangement, so that the clear and intensive urgency of the songs shines through naturally and unpretentiously. The listener is captivated from the start, first by the songs, that each deserve to be called epic, and then the lyrics, which one is drawn into the story and begins to experience the same emotional adventure as the protagonist, Gideon Grace.
“The Ghost Xperiment – AwakenIng” is based on an actual documented paranormal experiment. The main character in the story, created by frontman Andy Kuntz, is Gideon Grace, who must constantly fight for his life against the relentless shadows of the “House of Rain” as he wanders through France. Burdened with a heavy weight of sorrow following the agonizing death of his beloved Ivy, Gideon’s pain is also the driving force in a war with his demons. He expands his knowledge with books he finds in the library of a German school of metaphysics and it is there that he reads about secret teachers and parapsychological experiments, which become an important foundation from which he can fight against the creatures of darkness. After the first showdown with these demons, rather than finding peace, the insights Gideon learns from this fight tear open a hole deep into the abyss of Hell…
The album was once again a product of the trusted collaboration with sound engineer Markus Teske at Bazement Studios.
The addition of “:Awakening” in the album title hints that this album is the first part of an exciting concept. The continuation, “The Ghost Xperiment: IIIumination,” is expected to be released in fall 2020.
Between their last two studio releases, Vanden Plas composed the highly successful rock opera “Everyman,” performing it over 60 times at theaters in Kaiserslautern, Münster, Innsbruck, and Pforzheim. In addition, 2017 saw the release of the live CD/DVD “The Seraphic Live Works,” and in July 2019 the elegantly designed boxset “The Epic Works 1991-2015” appeared, containing every album produced in that time period. In between, Vanden Plas performed in the Wiesbaden Staatstheater’s 2017-18 production of the rock opera “Jesus Christ Superstar.” The band’s engine is running at top speed, to say the least.
“The Ghost Xperiment: AwakenIng” is a phenomenal album where Vanden Plas once again shows that they belong among the elite bands of the Prog Metal scene.
Tracklist:
Cold December Night
The Phantoms Of Prends-Toi-Gardes
Three Ghosts
Devils´ Poetry
Fall From The Skies
The Ghost Xperiment
Line-up:
Andy Kuntz – Vocals
Stephan Lill – Guitar
Günter Werno – Keyboards
Andreas Lill – Drums
Torsten Reichert – Bass
