Riverside – ID.Entity
Origin: Poland
Release: 20.01.2023
Label: InsideOut Music / Sony Music
Duration: 53:11
Genre: Progressive Rock
To be honest, were Riverside in the last few years, as far as the studio output is concerned, something has gone down for me. Of course, following the end of the global pandemic restrictions, the Poles resumed their touring activities, however, the last studio activities were from the singer, bassist and main songwriter Mariusz Duda solo and as part of his side project Lunatic Soul more present
But now the four progressive rockers are finally coming out with a new album. ID.Entity is the good piece. It comes on the market in different versions including chic vinyl and also offers one or the other novelty.
What is certainly new is that the songs are partly like in the early days of the band, so something like that Second Life Syndrome listen and feel. Coming to terms with the loss of her old friend and companion Piotr Grudzinski, the basis for the two previous works, is now coming to an end. And despite the melancholy that is of course still present, you confidently tackle current topics and take your head back from your lap. The very title of the album and its reference to both a digital identity and a spiritual superego is a typically ambiguous indication of what constitutes the subject matter of the album.
Personal orientation and technocracy as a thematic guide
The opener Friend or Foe?you HERE you can see in a video starts with albeit electronic gimmicks that clearly reference the 1980s or what Duda in its Lockdown Trilogy as a musical device, only to gradually evolve into a classic Riverside song. A track that immediately catches your ear and contains all the ingredients that fans of this exceptional band appreciate so much. Of course, that would be the distinctive bass runs, the distinctive whispering vocals and the Hammond organ sounds.
Big Tech Brother has a funny brass sound in the first few minutes, then mutates into a beautifully symphonic rock song. A central piece is the long track The Place Where I Belongwhich immerses the listener in mid-tempo rhythms and razor-sharp keyboard sounds.
I went out into the street, Wasn’t here for a long time, Everyone’s divided, Extreme right or extreme left, That’s the only choice. This line of lyrics from the song is up to date and describes one of the social rifts quite well. You have left the vale of mourning and meanwhile the world has moved on, unfortunately not in all aspects for the better.
Confident, modern progressive rock
Long-term friends turn wrong as a result of their own disorientation, fear, hopelessness or whatever their mindset is, leaving a big gap, but leaving no other option than to end with them. This describes the second single I’m Done With Youwhich you HERE can hear.
The band is as self-confident as ever, coming out stronger, yet they remain the emo proggers they’ve always been. The songs are all strong from the first listen, but Riverside albums take a while to get going Test of Time to pass. The predecessor Wasteland holds up so tolerably as far as that is concerned, it will be interesting to see how it is ID.Entity he goes.
Conclusion
Riverside are with their new work ID.Entity come back to themselves and release a self-confident, modern progressive rock album. It grows very typically with every listening session. 8 / 10
Line Up
Mariusz Duda – vocals, bass, guitars
Piotr Kozieradzki – drums
Michał Łapaj – Keyboards, Synthesizer, Piano, Orgel
Maciej Meller – electric guitars
Tracklist
01. Friend or Foe?
02. Landmine Blast
03. Big Tech Brother
04. Post-Truth
05. The Place Where I Belong
06. I’m Done With You
07. Self-Aware
Links
Facebook Riverside
Riverside website
Also on Soundmagnet.eu
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