Customer Reviews

Extension Of The Wish

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The only reason im writing the review your reading is the title track's instrumental break and motif. Few rock bands ever do something like that! The riff takes you through a journey that climaxs into a struggle that captivates your imagination and heart all at once (then the freakin ending guitar solo screws it up!) As most immortalized commentaries go (like with bach and mozart) You can only see that kind of variation genius in classical masterpieces. I hope new futuristic genre composers(hopefully me)take note...Dream theater's learning to live made them famous. Andromeda's Extention of a Wish instrumental break was all that was needed to make Andromeda forever in my mind.

This band has insane and terribly precise technicality and riffage. This is technical, but not Spiral Architect technical.
Sounds like drop D tuning, which explains the heavy riffs they produce. The melodies are unique and not recycled progressive pieces you hear so much of. Each musician is excellent in their area of the band. They meld together and form a liquidy, heavy sound. an EXCELLNT album.

Extension Of The Wish(2001). Andromeda's debut studio album.

When it comes to progressive metal, most people can agree that Dream Theater was one of the most influential acts of the 90s, literally spawning LOTS of bands popping up from all different parts of the world. Many of them such as Symphony X, Threshhold, Symphorce, Madsword, and countless others have taken DT's sound from their Images & Words album and came up with their own way of interpretting that style. Even still, these bands did little to set themselves apart from their contemporaries, thereby canceling out the term "progressive." What progressive really means is that a band is able to come up with a fresh and original sound that they can call their own, and have very little to no comparison to other bands. Andromeda is one of the few who I can honestly say that pull it off. Not only that, but they do it with such ease as well.

The band is made up of Johan Reinholds(guitars), Martin Hedin(keyboards), Gert Daun(bass), and Thomas Lejon(drums). Also included is session vocalist Lawrence Mackrory. These guys all come from Sweden, which is home to a number of outstanding metal bands like Sonata Artica. All the members play with such precision and complexity, but manage to also feature very INNOVATIVE songwriting. But here is the best part: THEY ARE ALL IN THEIR EARLY 20'S AND THIS IS JUST THE FIRST ALBUM! No debut album ever has this good of musicianship and production from most any band I've ever heard. Reinholds manages the guitars in a very dexteritous manner, and in doing so creates a lot of memorable riffs and melodies. Hedin's keyboard textures are all very melodic and once in a while he pops in a few cool solos here and there. The background synths are all a nice compliment for the songs. The drumming is also very well performed as are the bass guitar parts. Even though Mackrory was only a temporary vocalist for the band, he still pulled off a memorable and varied performance. He's a bit different than most and his range is incredible. Altogether, the five make one hellova progressive metal band.

The albums starts off with ONE OF THE BEST OPENER GUITAR RIFFS I'VE EVER HEARD in 'The Words Unspoken'. This riff has a catchy hook which could easily pull in a whale. The song alternates from midpaced to doubletime between the verses and chorus. Next is my favorite track off the album, 'Crescendo Of Thoughts'. Very melodic with a perfect chemistry between guitars and keyboards. This is one song where you can say it is both simple and complex all in one. 'In The Deepest Of Waters' is more of a fast paced romp, and one of the album's heavier tracks. At the very least, this track perfectly demonstrates that the guitarist can play FAST. 'Chameleon Carnival' is simply an instrumental jam session that lets the band go to town with their playing. My least favorite track on here, though it is still awesome. Then there is 'Star Shooter Supreme', the album's heaviest track, letting the guitars take charge and letting the vocals become more intense in this all-out headbanger muscle number. The title track clocks in at 10 minutes and is arguably the most melodic track on the album. Several timechanges and memorable melodies make this song stand out to me. 'Arch Angel' is another favorite of mine, closing out the album with a combination of a catchy melodic sense and technicality.

Overall, Extension Of The Wish is a milestone release of the new millenium which shows great hope for the future of prog metal. I still haven't heard any of their new album yet, but if this is any indication, then they will only continue to become greater over time. The only two gripes I have with the album are that at only seven songs, the album is simply too short leaving the listener wanting more, and that the drums are difficult to hear during the heavier songs. Still, quality over quantity always pays off for those willing to give it a chance. Andromeda certainly knows how to invest their time in creating quality music. If you're tired of hearing the same progressive metal style which copies Dream Theater and want something new and fresh, then Extension Of The Wish is the perfect album for you. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Other recommendations:
-'Burn The Sun' by Ark
-'II=I' by Andromeda
-'Blink Of An Eye' by Enchant

this is a good album. i'll have to disagree with some people here and admit that the production is kinda shoddy. the sound isn't quite "crisp", although there are some very "lush" soundscapes created between the guitars and keys. the drumming on this record just does not sound as good as it does on Andromeda's second album. it's very murky sounding, and it's not very tight either. in response to one reviewer; Symphony X is worlds apart from Yngwie. Yngwie is neo-classical, Sy X is heavy on the prog tip. you can't tell me that The Odyssey, Divine Wings, and V have been done before, especially not by Yngwie. it's just not true. also, Romeo's guitar playing isn't confined to classical scales and/or blues.

so here is a young swedish progressive metal band, lots of talent, kind of borrowing from others as far as the song structures are concerned. you've heard stuff like this before if you've listened to progressive metal. in the vein of prog bands like DT, Sy X, and other prog-metal acts that sound heavily influenced by Yes and other early progressive rock bands. the solos shred and bounce all over the fretboard, as this young guitar virtuoso flexes his muscles for the first time on a worldwide scale. this album focuses more on guitar wizardry than anything else. if you're looking for something a bit more musical, Andromeda's second album is a good place to start. the writing is tighter and more original, focuses less on guitar, and as i said, better production. this is a great album, but _II=I_ is a better place to start for new listeners. if you like Symphony X, you'll like this band too. it comes with the territory.

This album is not bad but suffers from the same disease as so many heavy metal bands: too fast. I like real fast guitar
playing but somehow not heavy metal style; I rather turn to the good old Mahavishnu Orchestra for speed guitar. I also like
heavy metal but more the Axel Rudi Pell style. This German guy, largely unknown in america, replaces speed by skilful
compositions and his singer Goeili sounds so much more powerful
than the andromeda fellow. As you may see from my other reviews, I don't mind nonhelpful votes but before bombarding me with yours, just do me a favor. Listen to some 30 second sound bytes from Axel Rudi Pell (in particular Oceans of time, shadow zone) and t h e n decide.

To start off, if you are into progressive metal, you MUST GET THIS ALBUM!!! It transcends the genre to something beyond any category. I have been listening to music with a critics and musicians ear (I play guitar - or at least try to) since I was a kid, and I think I am pretty hard to please, but these guys blew me away.

I like to think of Andromeda as a modern day Mahavishnu Orchestra (a prog rock/jazz group from the '70's featuring the amazing guitarist John Mclaughlin) because they incorporate so many modern styles and are so talented. I don't need to say it, but the guitarist is mindblowing, and the drumming gives the songs an incredibly immense sound - sort of like you are sitting in a huge cathedral. These guys sound and write more powerful music than Dream Theatre, and I have to agree that the present state of U.S. prog metal is pretty sad - Symphony X is very talented, and I appreciate the fine product they produce, but its all been done before (see Yngwie, etc. from the eighties).

I hope Andromeda continues on, and hopefuly they catch on in the states. I will certainly spread the word. Meanwhile, I can't say it enough, get this album!!!

I had only listened to the intros from Amazon's music samples but from what I heard I could not have imagined this album was going to be that big! It is truly very satisfying, with complex riffs and nice melodies, but the most important thing is these guys do it without losing heart and spirit and it never gets boring like many other so called prog metal bands. It never turns into mindless display of technique and everytime I listen to it I discover a tiny detail here and there.

I usually listen to every album I buy at least 3 times before I have an opinion- to be fair-. Some of them I can not bear to listen more than twice like Iron Maiden's last album Dance of Death, or some Symphony X song which do not inspire anything in me, sounds so robotic and have a feeling like they are put together in an automated fashion with pe-determined rules.

Well you are not going to see any of that in this album. Listen to the samples and you'll see what I mean.

It's no suprise to me this talented young group is yet another band from Sweden, where countless other legendary metal bands have emerged from. I'm not even going to name any because you're more than likely into Swedish metal already if you're reading this.

This is an incredible debut that contains some of the best guitar playing you could ask for, a unique, talented vocalist, and technical, melodic, heavy songs with just the right amount of mellower parts, (not really much) and containing enough interesting instrumental passages for a whole instrumental album.

This album contains more guitar solos than you can count, and they are awesome, wild, fun, winding, and very technical. Some even have unique, shifting distortions, especially in the instrumental track "Chameleon Carneval." For some reason that song title is fitting, for when I listen to it, I picture some Chameleons having a carnival... This song is extremely groovy and upbeat, not one bland part.

I'd say this CD seems very comparible to Spiral Architect, with much more interesting song structures and instrumental passages, a better vocalist, and just mostly better in general. I really didn't mean to diss Spiral Architect but they sound really similar to me and I can't help it.

The songwriting is excellent, none of the songs are repetitive at all, most are considerably diverse from each other, and they progressively flow in between sections perfectly. The songs could be quite catchy and easy to get into for people new to the genre.

Some might say the vocalist isn't that great but he does sing in a few different styles - including very melodic and powerful such as in "Arch Angel," and more harsh and less melodic like in "Star Shooter Supreme." His normal singing voice isn't exactly excellent but it fits the music perfectly, and most people won't think a thing of it.

Production is absolutely top-notch, suprisingly for a debut album. There are a lot of electro-experimental guitar distortions, keyboard sounds, and vocal distortions, and the overall lush sound couldn't be more crisp.

now for a few of my favorite songs:
The epic title track begins with the most enchanting riff you can't ever skip or ignore. Its lush melody lures you in, slowly adding more instruments, then eventually the awesome vocal melodies. This song is probably my favorite on the album, it has an epic feeling and just demonstrates pretty much everything I said about the album in one song.

"Arch Angel" just makes you feel like you're ascending through the sky, it has some intense contrast between heavy rhythmic chunks, powerful, harmonious singing and very pleasing softer parts.

Other favorites are "Cresendo of Thoughts," "In the Deepest of Waters," and "Chameleon Carneval" ...I might as well just name every song. This album is definately going down on my imaginary "new metal albums from sweden that will be legendary (at least for me)" list.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this band when I decided to pick this album. I ended up loving it. This being Andromeda's first album is enough to surprise me...the best debut album I have heard in years without question. My favorites are the instrumental "Chameleon Carneval", "Star Shooter Supreme" which to me sounds like a cross between Rob Zombie and Dream Theater, and "The Words Unspoken" is excellent as well. I'm looking forward to their future projects from this young band.

this album is just too good to be true. ages would go by before i would give a record five stars. but im giving this one five stars cause i cant give it six. songs 1 - 7 are totally magical. lotsa LTE in there, and classic heavy metal too. what happens with prog metal bands these days... they cant stay out of power metal. this one managed,until the second realease of this same album came out, which features 2 more tracks where sadly, the magic is gone. i just think that those "hey, listen to me, i can sing!!!" vocals just dont go with good quality prog. it just violates the composition, makes it weaker. and thats what happens in II = I. so stick to extension of the wish, which is trully one of the best albums ive ever heard. theres full soul, heart and mainly brains in this album. this baby is making history for sure!