What we got here is a real curveball of progressive metal. 'The Fields of Trauma' is the debut album from Norwegian band Frail Grounds, who formed back in 2005. They had one release under their belts prior to this, 2008's 'Corrosion' EP. 'The Fields...' is a story album about an expedition travelling to Siberia, and coping, or trying so, with extreme conditions. Certainly something different! Sadly, no lyrics followed with the promotional CD, so let's dive into icy sea and submerge into music.

Frail Grounds claim their genre by several means: They have complex compositions, and their performances are technical and unusual, so they aren't afraid to experiment a bit. Extraordinary way to compose becomes clear shortly on 8½ minutes long 'The Expedition', the first proper song. The band start off with melodic death metal and prog metal intertwined, then get into a lengthy, atmospheric stringed instrument part accompanied with bass guitar. While the following song, 'Freeze Me', begins with very catchy stuff, the progressiveness still rules in this almost 5-minute song. Throughout the album, the band won't join the hit parade, but offer tangled songs. Frail Grounds need not to feel ashamed next to Dream Theater, Manticora and such. However, 'The Fields of Trauma' is still a metal album, never going too far from it. Prog rock, neo-classical metal and modern metal can be heard along with melodic prog metal and melodic death metal.

There are breathtaking melodies to be found here, as well as riffing and other pieces of music. It's just those guitar melodies, that make me stand awe-struck. This album requires will to take a journey into it, as the music is of flowing kind. This isn't at all suitable for background listening. Even when observing it, the album is far from being easy to get into. I've tried to get into the songs, but during some parts I simply lost my attention. I do not know, whether the lyrics would have helped to find the red thread, to find out what is going on in the songs and in the music. Now it generally feels distant, but I believe there is a good album somewhere to be found. I should point out, that most of the music was composed by the vocalist Morten Andre Søbyskogen.

The clean vocals are a majority on the album. They reminds me of Communic's, but the voice here is a tad more high-pitched. Growled vocals biting and the lyrics are comprehensible. The instrumentalists are excellent players, for sure. While this was awesomely performed, it doesn't sound like pompous self-adoration, but it sounds like the guys really do enjoy what they are doing.

I suggest Frail Grounds for the fans of Communic, Manticora, Evergrey, Pagans Mind and the likes, plus those who enjoy story driven prog metal. But remember, one needs to be truly willing to give this journey time, because it surely requires that. I find this genre to be a tough one, and only a few albums have actually opened to me. I couldn't really get into the story and moods here, but do not let that stop you from checking these fellas out. Surely not for everyone, this. The album was self-produced, but the production is fine. Being clear and airy, it emits the cold atmosphere of Siberian winter, rather than salty sea winds on a tropical island.

Rating: 6 (out of 10) ratings explained

Reviewed by Lane
03/06/2013 18:37