When you’re musicians with huge technical prowess and a penchant for Symphony X and Dream Theater, the natural thing is to record a debut album in that vein, and that’s exactly what Prospekt have done here. Whether they should be lauded or lambasted for that is a matter for debate, but it does seem a gross waste of talent that they’ve chosen to mimic rather than innovate.
It’s like a cutting edge web designer trying to devise a website like Facebook – it’s already been done. Indeed, it’s precisely that lack of ambition, when compared to their captivating level of musicianship, that makes this album so frustrating.
In particular, guitarist Lee Luland is capable of producing some memorable riffs and solos, most notably on the title track and The Great Awakening. The vocals occasionally sound a touch thin but the band still have all the chops needed. Hunting Poseidon and Dissident Priests are incisive, and the laid back Visions and Eternal Memories are welcome intermissions from the metallic velocity.
There are enough lovers of boilerplate progressive metal to ensure a fanbase for Prospekt, but a dose of originality would be sure to drastically help their cause.
