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Пятый альбом английских прогрессивщиков меня здорово удивил. Он совершенно не похож на ранние творчество группы («Songs From The Lion's Cage» и «Pride»), но не сильно видно и родство с более поздними вещами («The Visitor» и «Immortal?»). Троица в виде Нолана-Пойнтера-Митчела создала действительно оригинальное и интересное творение, к тому же в более современных тонах, нежели это было в предыдущем диске, направленном на классический Пинк Флойд. Качество записи просто великолепно, аранжировки, как всегда, профессиональны, а мелодически линии очень разнообразны. Итак, начнем... Открывает альбом совсем нетипичная для Арены песня «Witch Hunt», она чертовски агрессивна и с упором на хард роковую тяжесть, нежели на прогрессивную – собственно, это очень похвально, ведь именно таким качественным забоем я представляю идеальную прог пластинку, вокальные партии Роба Соудена здесь раскрываются во всей своей красе, он отлично показывает, что может петь резко, но в тоже время эмоционально. Второй трек «An Angels Falls» - это маленькая интерлюдия с мрачной атмосферой, так сказать, первая часть, которая продолжиться далее с использованием уже гитары и ударных, а также дивных клавишных мелодий в «Never Ending Night». «Painted Man» – тоже, в принципе, боевик, но с более сложной структурой чем «Witch Hunt». «This Way Madness Lies» – это что-то невероятное, первый инструментальный номер на пластинке, с чертовски жуткой атмосферой безумия и мистичности, признаюсь честно, не ожидал я такого, ведь ранние инструменталы банды не отличались ни оригинальностью, ни цепляемостью. Ещё одним бесспорным хитом нужно назвать «A Spectre At The Feast» с изменчивым ритмом и поразительными по своей мелодике гитарными риффами. Композиция «Skin Game» тоже оставляет за собой приятное впечатление – очень мелодичный неторопливый тяжёлый боевик, обладающий красивейшим соло и чисто по-прогрессивному - сбивками в ритме и изменчивой сложной мелодикой, возможно, именно в ней и представляется шанс увидеть корни старой Арены, лично мне этот трек показался продолжением суперхитового боевика «Midas Vision» с дебютного альбома команды. Ещё один номер «Salamander» поражает своими клавишами, выполненными в стиле восточных мелодий. А вот остальные две инструментальные вещи совсем меня не порадовали, так как представляют из себя обыкновенное клавишное поливалово «Riding The Tide» и гитарное пиление «On The Box». Хороша баллада «Mea Culpa» - весьма чувственная и запоминающаяся. Ну и последними треками заслуживающими внимания являются прогрессивные боевики «Bitter Harvest», «Cutting The Cards» и «Ascension» – абсолютные стопроцентные суперхиты, несколько странно, но при их прослушивании у меня возникает впечатление знакомой мелодики со ссылкой на ещё одну интересную прогрессив спид метал группу Angel Dust – возможно, это из-за близости тембрального окраса вокала Роба, или же именно из-за такой же похожем духе музыки. В целом, диск представляет собой достаточно шикарное полотно, музыкально целое и прочное, ничего не выпадает из его концепции и каждая вещь заслуживает самого пристального внимания, особенно вселяет уважение тот факт, что коллектив не стоит на месте, а развивается, делая это реально качественно и оригинально. Конечно, может старые поклонники Арены и не оценят так высоко данную работу, но я же считаю что «Contagion» – один из самых интересных дисков в прогрессиве и вообще в роке. |
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Exile! You've crossed the line this time
You've thrown it all away
And you can drag this new pariah down
'Till the lifeless body breaks
I can see it in their angry faces
They're opening the flood gates
Shout loud that burning mantra
With the unity of fear
Let it be me
Who sets you free
Exile! You show no mercy
You're living in a mindless state
Exile! You've crossed the line this time
You've thrown it all away
Exile! You show no mercy
You're living in a mindless state
Exile! You've crossed the line this time
You've thrown it all away
An angel falls
(Mitchell/Nolan)
An angel falls, so fragile and exposed
Soon lies crushed and wasted, too delicate to hold
A soulful melody, innocent and pure
Rises to the sky and is lost forever more
As guilt rains down
And scars the faith of man
It flows into the ground
We will never wipe the bloodstains from our hands
A failing heart, vulnerable and weak
Waiting for the moment to beat the final beat
Surely there is someone who'll reach out
Surely there is someone who'll reach out
Painted man
(Nolan/Pointer)
I am the painted man with a frown on my face
And a language you don't understand
A wild refugee
That is all you people can see
I am the painted man with a smile on my lips
And a living tattoo on my hand
That's no guarantee
Of the truth you people can see
Why? With poison so strong in our hearts
And the world torn apart
Why? When our actions bring nothing but pain
Can't you see that we're painted the same?
I am the painted man with bile in my veins
From a dark and sinister plan
Blind and deceived
That is all you people believe
I am the painted man, no thought for the world
I was here when the nightmare began
Wrongly conceived
That is all you people believe
Why? With poison so strong in our hearts
And the world torn apart
Why? When our actions bring nothing but pain
Can't you see that we're painted the same?
Come down from your ivory towers
Corruption devours us all
Come down from your ivory towers
The hunger devours us all
(This way) madness lies
(Nolan/Pointer)
Instrumental track
A spectre at the feast
(Mitchell/Nolan/Pointer)
There's a spectre at the feast
Feeding on my soul and drinking my hopes away
There's a wind from the east
My heart grows cold, my rainbows turn to grey
There's a spectre at the feast
Tearing me up and tossing my bones to the wolves
On the brink of defeat
We're moving the goals and changing the rules
Hey, don't fall asleep!
Don't close your eyes
And drift away to some foreign land
I know who you are
My fate is in your hands
There's a spectre at the feast
Panic has a face, it's looking at me right now
There's the shadow of defeat
Got to rise and bring those demons down
Hey, don't fall asleep!
Don't close your eyes
And drift away to some foreign land
I know who you are
My fate is in your hands
Are they so pure that they should judge me everyday?
Am I so low in estimation that none will hear a word I say?
Are they so sure the human race should turn away?
In every home to be unwelcome and none will hear a word I say
This brave new world
Has fallen and decayed
Are there no heroes?
Just men with feet of clay
Are they so weak that they despise me everyday?
A painful demonstration that none will hear a word I say
This brave new world
Has fallen and decayed
Are there no heroes?
Just men with feet of clay
Are you so pure?
Are you so pure?
Are you so pure?
Are you so pure?
This brave new world
Has fallen and decayed
Are there no heroes?
Just men with feet of clay
Never ending night
(Mitchell/Nolan/Pointer)
Just a simple thought, cast into the light
Leads to such destruction, never ending night
In my blind obsession to avoid the fools I've seen
How could I not recognize the fool was always me?
As guilt rains down
And scars the faith of man
It flows into the ground
I will never wipe the bloodstains from my hands
This seed of hate was carried in my soul
Waiting for the moment when it could take control
Surely there is someone who'll reach out
Surely there is someone who'll reach out
A failing heart, vulnerable and weak
Waiting for the moment to beat the final beat
As guilt rains down
And scars the faith of man
It flows into the ground
I will never wipe the bloodstains from my hands
Is there someone who'll reach out?
Surely there is someone who'll reach out
Skin game
(Mitchell/Nolan/Pointer)
Knowing what I know
I'm never free to come and go
But when I try to open doors
I burn when daylight hits the floor
Playing the skin game
Breathing the blue flame
Playing the skin game
In sight, insane
Knowing what I know
I've been looking for a space to grow
And maybe I can set you free
Yes, maybe I can set you free
Playing the skin game
Breathing the blue flame
Playing the skin game
In sight, insane
I'm content to live in the vacuum I have made
A comfortable existence on my own
The problems of the world are there for others to debate
I prefer to face my days alone
Kneeling down before I sleep
Never said a prayer that I believed
One day you'll understand
Why have I become this way?
Maybe it's another quirk of fate
Yielding to my DNA
Try to live on my own
Reborn once more as a whisper on the telephone
Unafraid of it all
Every thought, every dream, I will call, I will call
Now I'm living alone
And all I am is a whisper on the telephone
Making sense of it all
Every thought, every dream, I will call, I will call
Salamander
(Nolan)
Blue fire spreading across
From my finger tips, a powerful chaos
Ice cold consuming all
Unstoppable advancing wall of
Radiance marching forth
For the final throws of a world war
Bow down before the truth
I hear the cry, too late to stop you
Burn like a moth to the flame
We'll burn as the fire calls us by name
Burn like a moth to the flame
Blue fire spreading across
From the farthest shore, the final cost
Go back to the other place
Another side of a well known face
Blinding light, the world falls down
I will draw you in to the slightest sound
Reach out, follow your heart
To the end of time, you will not be the last
Burn like a moth to the flame
We'll burn as the fire calls us by name
Burn like a moth to the flame
Blue fire, a creeping curse
There is nowhere safe in the universe
Too late, you are hypnotised
By the gentle waves as they dive and rise
One strike of a single match
And the human race is reduced to ash
Bow down before the truth
I hear the cry, too late to stop you
Burn like a moth to the flame
We'll burn as the fire calls us by name
Burn like a moth to the flame
We'll burn as the fire calls us by name
On the box
(Nolan)
Instrumental track
Tsunami
(Nolan/Pointer)
A wave that rushes headlong through the darkness
An eternal flood that violates our minds
A mighty river thirsty for our sanity
A waterfall that crashes down upon mankind
The foam that smashes deep into the shoreline
A tidal force that's pumping through our veins
A wordless voice that echoes in our beating hearts
Driving every living soul insane
Ooh, there's nowhere to hide now
Ooh, there's nowhere to run
A skyline that is changed beyond redemption
The planet with it's back against the wall
Man was overflowing with self confidence
The time was overdue that he would take the fall
Ooh, there's nowhere to hide now
Ooh, there's nowhere to run
Ooh, there's nowhere to hide now
Ooh, there's nowhere to run
Bitter harvest
(Mitchell/Nolan/Pointer)
We've sown the seeds now
Don't know where they may fall
Just lonely ghost towns
Empty churches, empty town halls
We've travelled far now
And so into the wilderness we crawl
I'm floating through the debris
Of reference books and catalogues
Climbing over sun baked bones
Of kings and queens and demigods
You can take away my crown
But you'll never bring my spirit down
I won't give in
Try to push me off the rope
I will float down on the wings of hope
I won't give in
I wander through the dead lands
Computer chips and stereos
Powerless technology
Instruction books and videos
You can take away my crown
But you'll never bring my spirit down
I won't give in
Try to push me off the rope
I will float down on the wings of hope
I won't give in
Time may fly
And I will search the world for you
Rainbow skies
And I will cross the seven seas for you
Race on by
And I will find my way to you
Rainbow skies
And I will cross the universe for you
The city of lanterns
(Mitchell/Nolan)
Oh, my brother! Kneel with me
And share this dream of paradise
Through this cold and freezing night
We will survive
Oh, my sister! Walk with me
And share this dream of paradise
Through this unforgiving night
We will survive
As the lantern city lights
Burn ever bright
Riding the tide
(Nolan)
Instrumental track
Mea culpa
(Nolan)
So here I am
Sitting on a pile of stones
Waiting for the rain to fall
To wash away the dust from my hands
So here I am
Sitting on a pile of broken bones
Waiting for the sun to shine
Just to find my way to another day
I hear you call to me
But there's nothing I can do
I hear you call to me
But I can't help you
So here I am
Nothing more to give the world
Hoping for another chance
As I try to make a stand against the tide
And now I walk in fire
I see the flames are grower stronger, dancing higher
And voices from the blue
Their screams will not be silenced as I stand accused
I look for mercy in their eyes
But only find despising gazes
So here I am
Wasted and torn apart
Waiting for the end to come
Release me from the guilt I've had to bear
So here I am
Sitting on a pile of broken hearts
Waiting for the end to come
And take away the burden of my fear
I hear you call to me
But there's nothing I can do
I hear you call to me
But I can't help you
I can't help you
But I can't help you
So here I am
Sitting on a pile of stones
Cutting the cards
(Mitchell/Nolan/Pointer)
Some bitter puppeteer
Tore away my right to choose
Dealt me shit instead of cards
Watched me bluffing from the start
Some warring cavalier
Rode the truth into the ground
Dragged me screaming by the feet
Left me sprawling in defeat
Right, right to the end
We are joined 'till the universe fades into darkness again
Some deep deluded author
Wrote new chapters in my life
Threw my hat into the ring
Let the lady start to sing
So here we face each other
In the blackness of the night
I don't care how it appears
This ends now, this ends here
Right, right to the end
We are joined 'till the universe fades into darkness again
I can read your mind
Your future's so defined
Beware! You've crossed the line this time
Are you so sure of what you'll find?
A victim of your lies
A witness to your own demise
There's nowhere else to turn
Right, right to the end
We are joined 'till the universe fades into darkness again
I can feel your craving
The way that you behave
I can hear the thunder roll
The pleading of a million souls
You've done this to yourself
You've done this to yourself
There's nowhere else to turn
Right, right to the end
We are joined 'till the universe fades into darkness again
And you know, yes, you know
We can't survive alone on our own
Ascension
(Mitchell/Nolan/Pointer)
I feel vindicated
Looking back on what I've done
Not so complicated
When moments meet as one
Are you ready to part the veil?
And write a new beginning to this tale
Rising up
I see creation from the sky
I'm learning to fly
Rising up
I see creation from the sky
This freedom is mine
Standing on the mountain
The olive leaf in hand
Drinking at that fountain
So that I might understand
Are you ready to start once more?
With no idea of what's in store
Are you ready to part the veil?
And write a new beginning to this tale
Rising up
I see creation from the sky
I'm learning to fly
Rising up
I see creation from the sky
This freedom is mine
Rising up
I see creation from the stars
We've travelled so far
Rising up
I see creation from the stars
We've travelled so far
Rising up
I am rising up