Fountain of Tears may have begun life as a Christian band, but "Fate" seems to have more in common with the progressive rock side of things. Their music is closely aligned with other femme fronted bands that lean on progressive but also mingle on gothic grounds, such as Lacuna Coil.
Swelling keyboards, buzzing electric guitars, mid tempo pacing and a careful progressive etching, much like the slower selections of
Symphony X or the intricate reflections of
Dream Theater from "Awake". The haughty pompous feel is strengthened by the voice of female lead singer, Vonnie King. Her voice is flexible, bending and curving around the songs, giving voice to the gamut of stirring emotions that are awakened within the music.
Mike Didonato's guitars have a buzzing warmth to them, often a little fuzzy around the electrified edges, this softens the impact and makes for a pleasant metallic surge. Solos are fitting and clean, hitting the higher registers of the instrument and milking the rhythm for all its worth.
Smooth layered guitar that blends nicely with the abundance of keyboards that fill in the sonic landscape. Jeff King is the keyboard player and the band leader in general, contributing the lion's share of material and ideas.
Fountain of Tears' "Fate" is very much a musical exposition of the human condition. The tight grip of forbidden desires, the psychological scarring of panic attacks, broken battered relationships... all of these human feelings and states of mind are probed. The lyrics are written simply with descriptions that etch out the topic without going overboard. There's just enough words to support the music, and with King singing them, their outward appearance of meager simplicity is given another level of depth.
"What Lies Ahead" looks forward to the future after a relationship that has crumbled to dust. Flowing, moving, it twists and turns like a living breathing entity. Swelling and expanding periodically to move and fluctuate with the music's pacing. King's voice is strong, like a hollow rock, appearing to be a solid foundation but you can hear the cracks in the exterior that hint at a pain that lies far deeper.
"Corruption" peels away to the core, revealing a darker direction. An individual's struggle with addiction (likely of the illegal substance kind, but could be interpreted differently if one has an open mind) is limelighted and the music crunches along with it. An awesome rhythmic pacing gives this one an addictive quality, ironic considering the lyrical material at hand.
Fates Warning comes crawling to mind during "Ten", a breathless mix of keys and thundering drums that wander down a labyrinth of a musical making.
Twisting and turning, guided by the voice, it reaches a sublime level allowing the music to make its mark.
The graveyard of romance relations has another corpse dug up for "Forever Lost". Its about drifting from someone despite the desperation to hold it together, all the wishes and hopes of could be's and should be's turning from a lively beating heart of love into burnt ashes before your very eyes.
The vocals build to this conclusion, ghostly, wanting, but somehow detached.
A hailstorm of metallic music patters away to a melancholy splattering of piano. The keys come sprinkling out of darkened skies like raindrops, creating the structure of the song. A nicely laid guitar solo and striking chorus give the track closure.
"Falling" is a frightening snapshot of the desperate terror and mind bending irrationality from panic attacks. These brain imbalanced adrenaline rushes muddle the mind and devours the soul. Often they centered on a physical attachment to someone and the lyrics tell all, simple verses yet poignant to the point of pain. "If I could I would tear through and crawl from my skin.
Until you come and save me like you always do." Then there's the soothing finality of the attack winding down with "I can breathe only if you are here next to me..."
There are a handful of instrumentals scattered through (three to be exact) and are just short little blips between songs to give a breather or an extended opening for the following song. Others fare well here too such as the up tempo craving of "Desire" with a curious rising and falling rhythm and spiky guitars that prick and bite like petting a porcupine, the drumming will take you right back to that
Fates Warning feel too. This is a song that feeds off of the haunted instrumental "Descent Into the Maelstrom".
There is also worth mentioning the title track. It clocks in at over the seven minute mark and goes the pompy prog route by leading in with ringing bells. A bit of a fresh inspirational quality here amongst the lovely soul searching vocals and prickling rhythm guitars.
Fountain of Tears have delivered an rich and fulfilling progressive metal album. The gothic overtones are there, but seem to take a shadowed backseat to the
Fates Warning,
Dream Theater and
Symphony X comparisons. Of course its hard not to mention Lacuna Coil in the same breath too, but there's something more elaborate and melancholically soothing about this disc.
"Fate" is a real winner of an album, one that is a thrill to listen to and evokes a whirlwind of emotions as the disc invites you to pick apart their human nature while reflecting upon your own.
Written by
Alanna Tuesday, April 24, 2007
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