Italian Lucid Dream are newcomers, but know their instruments, if not inside out, then well at least. So no wonder their style is this kind of proggy hard rock and heavy metal melted together.

Lucid Dream are no typical, if you can use that term, prog metal/rock band, as they don't sound like Dream Theater. Dream Theater are so aped nowadays, that I think it was valid to use the word "typical", right? Lucid Dream are about feel-good music, not about dark feelings. Guitarist/composer Simone Terigi's songs flow of positive energy and good vibes. His playing reminds me of Joe Satriani (I've heard about two Satriani albums; 'Flying in a Blue Dream' [1989] and 'The Extremist' [1992]). It could be described as fluidy, but still tough when needed. Prog element is mainly about more unusual time signatures used. However, this is still a rock album, and another bands I heard at times are Rush, Montrose, even Iron Maiden (or NWOBHM in general). Okay, there's some blues here, too...

Playing-wise this is just nice album to listen to. It all sounds so easy. The vocals, however, can lift you up to nirvana or split your head. Alessio Calandriello's voice is very high-pitched. It's not nasal like Rush's Geddy Lee's voice, nor is it as feminine as Vision Divine ex-vocalist Michele Luppi's, nor as soft as Dream Theater's James LaBrie's voice. But it does contain a lot of vibration for sure. Lyrics circle around real-life themes. Three of the songs are instrumentals, by the way, some feeling very Satriani-esque.

The production job is professional. The sound could be a tad more punchy, if you ask me, but still it's quite strong for this kind of music anyways. There's something about the cover art that entices me about it. Maybe it is how I feel myself being a part of cosmos. The lyrics are printed, and the package looks professional. And this is a self-released album.

'Visions from Cosmos 11' is a nice debut album from Lucid Dream. I find it a bit too unvarying, even though there is more diversity than a typical rock/metal album. I think it's Simone's melodies, that sound so similar throughout the album. But if you want to check out some spirit-lifting music, you could win with this.

Rating: 6+ (out of 10) ratings explained

Reviewed by Lane
07/17/2012 19:28