http://www.dprp.net/reviews/200757.php#animations

What a pleasant discovery. I'm not usually a great fan of instrumental albums, but this debut from new Polish band Animations is pretty darn impressive. Hailing from Jaworzno, this quartet initially worked under the name labyrinth.pl, releasing 100 copies of a two-song promo in June 2006 featuring the tracks Lost In Infinity and 911. It received good feedback from the Polish media and was also downloadable from the band's website, with several thousand listens to date.

Encouraged by the response, the band decided to record a full-length studio album. The recording process started last October, and was completed by the end of March. It was then that the band changed its name to Animations and played a concert, due to be released as a live DVD official bootleg soon. With no record label interest, the band has decided to release the album itself. But don't let that put you off, as once you've got it in your hands, you'll see it is actually better than most label releases. The whole thing is beautifully presented, thanks to Polish artist Maciek Zielinski, and being produced in the band's own studio, it sounds pretty good too.

Musically, this album really overflows with ideas. There is some great harmony in the playing with plenty of unexpected details which makes listening to the album great fun. There is plenty of power across the songs that generally fall into the ProgMetal category. I like the way that the multi-parted tracks have a very classical feel to their compositions, with the keyboards adding plenty of light and shade to the intense burns of guitar energy. This will be of great interest to fans of Planet X and Liquid Tension Experiment, plus for the jazz fusion influences, Canvas Solaris, although I feel that there is a lighter, more song-orientated direction to Animations.

The band consists of bassist Bartek Bisaga, guitarist Kuba Debski and drummer Pawel Larysz. Most impressive are the keyboards of Tomek Konopka. Never overwhelming, or just showing off a set of fast fingers, his playing really adds a lovely texture to the songs.

The one thing I'd say, is that with a playing time of 70-odd minutes, it can be a bit overwhelming to take it all in one listen. As a debut album, a more manageable portion would I feel, have left an even greater impact.

In short, this is a young band with huge potential and an album that deserves worldwide attention. For anyone who enjoys intelligently composed and played progressive instrumental music, this is well worth searching out.

Andy Read

Ocena: 8/10