Inhalo is a Dutch progressive rock quartet consisting of Fons Herder (vocals), Roy Willems (guitars), Peter Cats (bass guitar) and Pepijn Gros (drums) and some of these musicians have played in A Liquid Landscape, Ivy's Dream and The Heaven's Devils. The sound of Inhalo kind of reminds me of Riverside and Opeth, meaning, alternative prog rock with heavy guitars and dark moods and musical landscapes. Take for example the instrumental opening track Omniscent Being which is a piano based song with lots of atmosphere, while the energetic and remarkably diverse Sisyphean features some obvious Tool and Opeth influences. The song Pretenders has a beautiful melody while the guitar solo of Willems is rather “raw” and sometimes weird... Eventide features the Hindi snare instrument the sarangi, played by Vincent Swiersma, giving this song an extra Asian feeling. Last Vestige, the longest track of the album, also features the most variety and even features some musical references to bands like Porcupine Tree and The Pineapple Thief, especially during the interplay between loud and soft passages! Last song, being the title track, is again an instrumental one which even features some metal-like sounds. So, overall, not a bad debut by Inhalo, but you need to listen to Sever a couple of times to really appreciate it. Give it a try indeed! ***+ Martien Koolen (edited by Tracy van Os van den Abeelen) Where to buy? |
