Metal
We’d run out of adjectives trying to praise one of the greatest drummers rock has ever produced. Mike Mangini (stand up) releases his first solo album after leaving Dream Theater when Mr Mike Portnoy (stand up) returned to that band.
So, under the artist name Mangini, “Invisible Sings” is released. Curiously, after a long career as a musician (Annihilator, Extreme, Steve Vai, and the already-mentioned Dream Theater) and as a teacher at Boston’s Berklee College of Music, the largest and most important music school in the world, this marks his first solo venture.
To make it, he brought in Tony Dickinson (Trans-Siberian Orchestra) on bass, Gus G on lead guitar (Ozzy Osbourne), Ivan Keller on rhythm guitar (Jelusick) and Jen Majura (ex-Evanescence) on vocals.
Don’t expect a progressive-rock record, or a string of drumming muscle-flexing displays. Well, there’s the occasional one, and some guitar showing off too. Most of it measured and restrained.
“Freak of Nature” offers a solid calling card. Powerful riffs, careful harmonies on a dynamic track that’s typical of the style, without overdoing the clichés. It even features some fun filtered drums in its interlude.
The title track, “Invisible Sings”, plays out a more linear, mid-tempo composition that works fine as filler. It’s worth paying attention to the bass. “Habit to Change”, on the other hand, offers an introduction with a keyboard sequence that gives it a nice character, with a powerful band, especially after the guitar solo and the drum mischief.
“Not Drowning” is a track with plenty of tempo changes and a heavy, dense-rhythm chorus. These contrasts keep it entertaining, and once the Gus G–Mangini “duet” arrives, it becomes a lot of fun. On “Deep Inside” we get excellent consistency between Dickinson and Keller, giving our necks a bit of a workout.
A lovely song like “Saying Sorry” is perhaps one of the standouts. Very rhythmic, with a really interesting chord progression too. Here we could give Mike Mangini a bit of a scolding, since this wasn’t the moment to indulge in his usual mischief. I mean, he’s the boss and he calls the shots, but it does dampen the mood a little.
“So Alive” might just qualify as progressive rock, since it’s a fairly strange composition for what we’ve heard on this record so far, with plenty of changes given its short length. Personally, it’s the one I’ve liked most. But we’re back to classic rock territory on “Glamorous Shades”, with a bit of bicep-flexing from the usual two suspects, which, from sheer repetition, ends up looking almost comic.
“It’s Noise” is, in truth, nothing noisy at all. A fairly standard track in concept, with excellent work from Majura, showcasing the different vocal ranges that can often make you mistake her voice for a man’s given its depth and power, though her backing vocals can also turn subtle.
A bit superfluous is “Let Me Shine”, which doesn’t have much to stand out. A correct, very well-played track, but nothing more. Just as correct is “Seek and Find”, where we can at least point to a well-judged drum intro and a good rock track.
We close with “Black Box”, which, despite being played aggressively, ends up feeling a bit weak due to an excess of layered backing vocals that make it too pretty-metal. That said, the bass production here is the good kind of creamy.
In summary, it’s a good rock-metal record without any tracks likely to become anthems, so you put it on while tidying up the house and have a genuinely good time. And as a curious detail, through his website you can request a personalised video greeting from good old Mike.
Writer: David Sàez