(Heavy Prog) After@all - A.C.I.D. - 2001, APE (image+.cue), lossless

after@all aims to renew progressive music and widen its borders. The young Hungarian band with its debut album called A.C.I.D. proves that progressive music is still able to regenerate and develop. They create their compositions establishing and individual, but also eclectic style which can define the music of the 21st century. They mix the classical elements to progressive rock with modern and futuristic musical solutions on the album and these truly reflect the unique conception and musicality of the band (futurock). The great predecessors influence - especially King Crimson, Yes Led Zeppelin, Dream Theater - also appears on the album but contemporary bands like Tool, Soundgarden, Alice In Chains, Deftones, Faith No More can be descovered in their music as well. Neverthless, the songs of the album are mature, unique and thought-provoking in terms of music and lyrics, too...
"...King Crimson in 2010..."

Summary
After releasing Chameleon on single this is the debut of this Hungarian band on, of course, Stereo Periferic. The title of their record is sometimes misunderstood, and listed as a variation of NCID or whatever.

The music
After a harrowing introduction we are connected to net.com. Net.com (upload) is a hazy ballad like track supported on acoustic guitar amd with plenty of tension in there. I am thinking of Queensryche Suite Sister Mary here. In a way the music reminds me more of Dream Theater, but I like the vocals a lot better. Some of the vocals remind even of grunge bands, and the rhythm guitars soon take over. The vocal melodies are really good on this track, with plenty of variation and some interesting vocal effects. A great song, inventive and appealing. Piano takes over in Net.com (system shutdown), so in a way this is more or less the ballad part.

Although the opening sounds familiar for different reasons, it is clear that the opening of Chameleon (the single) is very much in the 80ies King Crimson vein. Repetitive guitar and piano patterns and varied rhythms make for an up-beat track in which progmetal and the progrock of King Crimson are neatly combined. The vocal parts owe both to Dream Theater (but without the screaming) and the grunge bands. In fact, the middle part reminds of Dream Theater in a good way. Energetic stuff with quite a bit of swing.

Freakazoid (m. to v.g.) is a rather weird tune in which I hear references to Faith No More and King Crimson with a kind of jazzy feel as well. The vocals can be kind of rough on this one. In the middle part the guitars rock away in a riff dominated passage. Time for some bass then, and a bit of grooviness.

Next up is the title track (kind of). Again, the band does not avoid experimentation and are certainly not out to make a standardized kind of progmetal, but succeeds in integrating it with the sound of modern rock bands. Mostly spoken words and synth effects on this psychedelic sounding sinister track.

A sense of humour is also present as the title of the following two tracks exemplify. Dust In... is a groovy but short vocal tune. One might think of King's X here: heavy and groovy on the guitars, but accessible vocal parts. Okay, maybe I should also mention the screams in the middle. It does make the song more interesting. Moving right into ...Hoffman, the song does not change that much, except that the bass takes over the groove. The synths and rhythms are quite modern and at times a little estranging, but I like it. The band fiddles around, but does so in a, to me, meaningful way. This part turns out to be quite a heavy one.

L'Image D'Une Etoile is ballad time. Low bass, ethereal guitars, later turning acoustic dominate this moody track. The verses are not that appealing, but I do like the chorus, especially the intertwining with the French lines. At the end time for a little bit of moody sax as well.

After Reconnecting to the album, Synthetic is again one of those hard hitting rock tracks in which the band again uses hiccupping vocal effects. The style on this song is that of a varied kind of claustophobic rock with a catchy chorus. Bloom opens in Crimson style with repetitive Discipline inspired guitar lines, the vocals are rather hazy and at times have a sixties feel.

Ain't is a rather easy going track, a pop love song with synth strings. The vocal melody is good. Disconnecting is a desperate sounding track and the conclusion of the album sec. The bonus track is Kedves, it is the Hungarian version of Ain't.

Conclusion
This is not an easy album. Not because the music is so complex, but the variation is large and some of the vocals may be a bit too harsh for some. Think of King Crimson (but not too much), think of Dream Theater (both music and vocals), think of the modern rock bands, add to all of this a total ignorance of what you can and can not do in music (think Faith No More) and I hope you get the picture. In spite of all this, the band succeeds in making an integrated sounding album, without any real weak points. I loved it.© Jurriaan Hage

Is there such a thing as techno prog metal? Well there is now. Hailing from Hungary, After@All are on one hand incredibly unique and eclectic, melding razor sharp riffs and electronically altered vocals with complex "proggy" song structures and surging synth melodies. On the other, many of the influences here are not exactly those I wouldn't normally associate with "progressive" rock, and that's not a good thing. The vocal timbre (when not altered) has a distinct post-grunge feel, and the choruses use the same kind of stock, generic mosh riffs that recall heinous radio rock like Godsmack and Nickelback. On a more positive note, there is a striking King's X influence on a number of tracks, particularly in the crafting of catchy, bright choruses and impeccable hooks in with their heavy, morose blend. After@All almost seems like a cacophonous stew of all kinds of 90s alternative and industrial rock, slammed together and underpinned with a straight up prog rock love for eclecticism and all things in odd time signatures.

That said, there are plenty of moments on here that make me cringe, not because they're bad necessarily, but because the influences lifted often seem superficial, and just as often come from bands I don't like. I love Tool, but the token Maynard-ish ranting in "...hoffman" just seems contrived and unnecessary. Same for the Alice in Chains-like "l'image_d'une_etoile". At other times, when incorporating influences from third wave alternative rock like the aforementioned Godsmack, the band simply makes me want to take my own life. That's not to say this isn't a well done album, it is. The playing is top-notch. The entire affair is sharp, crisply produced and accessible, and in a perfect world, it would probably be a hit album. Ultimately though, one wonders what kind of audience this will hit with. Prog fans will likely be turned off by the obvious alt-rock influences, while 13 year old grunge kids will probably be lost by the complexity and dense arrangements (assuming they got the chance to hear it). Overall, while not necessarily to my liking, I'll say the album is certainly successful in what it seems to be trying to accomplish.© Greg Northrup [April 2002]

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after all / a.c.i.d.

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