Progressive power-metal band Redemption was formed in Los Angeles, California in late 2000 by guitarist/keyboardist/songwriter Nicolas van Dyk. Following a chance meeting at a live show in Hollywood, van Dyk became close friends with legendary vocalist Ray Alder (Fates Warning) and eventually collaborated on a song on Alder's first solo record with his band Engine. Van Dyk asked Alder to produce a CD of van Dyk's more progressive metal music, and the two of them assembled a group of players to record the project, including Bernie Versailles (Agent Steel, Engine) on guitar and Jason Rullo (Symphony X) on drums. Rick Mythiasin (Taraxacum / ex-Steel Prophet) signed on to be the vocalist for the project, and Alder along with Fates Warning drummer Mark Zonder contributed guest performances. The band was signed to Sensory Records and released its self-titled debut in the summer of 2002. The band quickly gathered a following in the progressive metal underground, and received rave reviews from the press, which recognized the band for its combination of intensity, progression and melody. The band was asked to perform at the Atlanta-based ProgPower festival, the most important progressive metal festival in the United States, in September 2002. Due to scheduling constraints, a different performing lineup was needed and van Dyk recruited drummer Chris Quirarte and bassist James Sherwood of southern California prog-metal act Prymary, along with vocalist Corey Brown (Magnitude 9). Alder also joined the band on stage as a guest performer. The rhythm section of Quirarte and Sherwood provided a strong creative boost to the band and van Dyk invited them to join as full-time members shortly thereafter. Van Dyk set to work writing and recording the follow-up, and upon hearing the completed music, Alder asked to join the band as its full-time vocalist in the summer of 2004.

THE FULLNESS OF TIME (2005) MASSACRE

The year 2005 was so filled with killer releases, I almost overlooked this gem. 'The Fullness Of Time' is Redemption's second release. And although the first one sported solid names, such as Rick Mythiasin (Steel Prophet), I still didn't bother to check it out. I'll sure try to remedy that soon though, as this second album is nothing short of a power/prog metal masterpiece. This time Ray Alder, of Fates Warning fame, are the main man on vocals. He is probably a better match for this kind of music. But I would not have guessed it was him if I didn't already know. He does a completely different thing here then what I'm used to from his main band. The music on this album is just superb! Every single note sounds thought through. And needless to say, the members of this band delivers some of the best playing around. I am enjoying songs like "Sapphire" and "The Fullness Of Time: Release" so immensely. And if I had more time to listen to it before the years end, it would probably wound up even higher on the top 20 for 2005 releases. Nick Van Dyk is a genius, and it's obvious that Redemption will go far within their genre. Dream Theater are still struggling to deliver something the fans will truly like, so they better watch out, because Redemption are ready to take over the prog-metal throne!

Killer tracks: Everything on this CD is outstanding!

THE ORIGINS OF RUIN (2007) INSIDEOUT/SPV

After discovering Redemption with 'The Fullness Of Time' I was very eager to hear more from this band. Redemption actually finished recording their 3rd album in 2006, but it took them a over a year to secure a new record deal. Thus 'The Origins Of Ruin' was released through InsideOut/SPV in 2007. Still it took me over a year to get this CD, and another year before I gave it extensive listening.

'The Origins Of Ruin' is a natural follow up to 'The Fullness Of Time'. It's the same quality prog/metal. Only the title track, a beautiful, somber, almost acoustic ballad, clocks in at under 3 minutes, while 2 of the other tracks are well over 9 minutes long. Compositions this long demand a good songwriter that keeps them from getting boring. Fortunately Nick Van Dyk is a unique talent. His songs are so well crafted. With lots of genre defining time changes, and other dynamics tools, every song take the listener on a musical journey. The complexity of the music goes almost unnoticed, because it is seemingly played with a natural ease. But if you dig a little deeper you'll discover some awe-inspiring riffs, stunning drum-fills and haunting vocals. All this is of course due to band line-up that is nothing short of breathtaking. The music is very atmospheric, but not on the expense of the heavy-ness. Songs like the opening "The Suffocating Silence" and "The Death Of Faith And Reason" are pretty darn aggressive, with a thick guitar tone that churns out riffs almost in the thrash metal realm! On top of that Ray Alders voice creates some beautiful vocal lines, and together with the keyboards they work almost as contrasts to the riff-heavy music. Not everything is fast and dark though. It is all balanced out both within songs, and with songs like the aforementioned title track. It is all held together with a clear production, that has captured all the musical aspects perfectly.

I'm not as blown away by "The Origins Of Ruin' as I was when I first heard 'The Fullness Of Time'. That is just natural though, as some grade of blasé will always occur. It's just virtually impossible to be taken with a band the same amount twice. So 'The Origin Of Ruin' is probably as strong as it's predecessor, and I am enjoying the heck out of this talented band once more.

Killer tracks: The Suffocating Silence, The Death Of Faith And Reason, Memory, Blind My Eyes, Used To Be

Bernie Versailles guest appearances:

Steel Prophet - 'Dark Hallucinations'

Fates Warning - 'Still Life'

Powergod - 'Bleed For The Godz: That's Metal - Lesson 1'

Related artists:

Fates Warning, Agent Steel, Taraxacum, New Eden, Steel Prophet, Symphony X, Magnitude 9