Wobbler - Rites At Dawn - Review

Welcome to the world of Prog. That is the line that should serve as a warning for all those who enter the realm of Wobbler. The new album from these Norwegian "lost in time" gentlemen is nothing short of pure, unadulterated love of Prog. First things first, they are fans of Genesis, Yes, Gentle Giant and a couple of more Prog rock bands that have been instrumental in making Prog one of the most adored styles in history.

That being said, the music that Wobbler presents us with in Rites At Dawn is nothing more than a magnificent tribute. Lars Fredrik Frøislie has a voice that could be in Jon Anderson’s throat. The keyboards are reminiscent of early Yes. The Hammond keyboard that so many Prog fans like, the use of the Mellotron by Lars, they are all little precious gems that make me feel like I’m listening to a timeless album. However, to be completely honest, all of the band is quite capable, there is not one musician there who is not, in is own right, a master at what they do. Still, it is the keyboards that take us into a different world.

Rites At Dawn is a voyage through the wormhole that takes us to the early 70’s, late 60’s. Each music taking us through different places and emotions while keeping us completely calm. For example, the track Lá Bealtaine gives us that wonderful felling of being introduced to some magical, calm forest. The guitar work, along with the drums, gives us a peaceful scenery, while the keyboards are the ones that set the mood for that feeling that all Prog lovers look for: the mystery hidden in each track.

The entire album stays with you for days. There is not a single bad track in Rites At Dawn, but there is one magnificent track that must be acknowledged. In Orbit is a voyage through time and space. Right about the start of the 6th minute you're transported to a psychedelic planet made of keyboard melodies that make you feel like you're in the 60's or 70's while flying high, bound by nothing, capable of dreaming of everything... if you get the idea...

I recommend this album to anyone who likes to sit in the grass, in the sun, listening to something that feels out of this world, out of this time, a beautiful album, with stunning passages, with a song that will remain immortal for me. Yes, In Orbit is that damn good.

8/10

Limp Bizkit - Gold Cobra - Review

It is soooo hard to review Limp Bizkit, mainly because most of us thought that one or two musics (even an whole album) are pretty damn good when we were younger. Hell, I even know a couple of metalheads who claim to hate them, even though every now and then their music pops up in their Last.fm profiles, their mix-cd’s in cars and in their Mp3 players… face it, Limp Bizkit is a guilty pleasure for a lot of people. Having said that…

This will not be a long review, mainly because there is not much to say about this piece of “work” by Limp Bizkit. Gold Cobra is an average album by their standards. We get DJ’s, we get rapping, we get the same guitar and bass sound we always got and we get the same Fred Durst we ever got over the years.
Here is the thing that bugs me. We’re in 2012 and these are guys are playing the same thing they played over, and over, and over again between 1998 and 2002. Fred Durst is still screaming into the microphone that he “doesen’t give a fuck”, he is still talking about shotguns being in his neighborhood, despite probably living in a mansion in the richest part of whatever town he is living in.

It gets boring. There is nothing new in this album. I wish I had something better to say, something more substantial, but the Limp Bizkit attitude died too long ago for anyone to care, and their music did not evolve in the slightest. Who cares if Wes Borland is back? Did he brought anything new? No, he brought the old Limp Bizkit back.

My advice? If you want to listen to Limp Bizkit, stick to the classics (yeah, I just used the word classics when talking about LP). This album is a waste of time, not because it is bad, but because it is completely unnecessary and boring. Average at best. Only die-hard fans (about 12 of them) will be interested enough not to go listen to the old tracks after hearing these.
Not recommended.

4/10