Originally written by Gregory Bradley.
Symphorce is a band whose previous effort didn’t really impress me all that much. I like coming into an album not expecting much, then getting pleasantly surprised, as was the case with this album, Twice Second. Their 2002 release, Phorceful Ahead was somewhat of a generic prog offering; while good, I barely remembered the name Symphorce when I picked up this album. Twice Second is quite another story, it’s a great blend of heaviness, prog elements, and very strong vocals.
Andy Franck is the vocalist of both Brainstorm and Symphorce. Many of us were impressed by last year’s Brainstorm album, and it was only recently that I put these two together, realizing that it was the great vocals of both bands that really kept me interested. His work in Symphorce is nothing short of incredible, he gives a very riveting performance, and he’s basically the main reason to listen. He sounds like Rob Halford taken down a notch; that is, less over-the-top vocalism and more powerful gutsy belting of tunes.
As far as riffing and the music is concerned, it’s actually very straightforward. There’s not gonna be too much to surprise you, there’s more than a fair share of chugga-chugga riffs. They play well with the vocals, this isn’t your standard flowery prog band. They’re like the Grave Digger of their genre: where Grave Digger is just about as heavy and dark as you can get while still being called power metal, Symphorce does the same with the progressive metal genre. It’s no wonder they toured together!
All in all I would say that this album satisfied me. It’s not top 10 material, but I can’t imagine anyone who enjoys clean vocals giving this album a negative review. Never have I felt better giving this album a SOLID 4.5 in both songwriting and musicianship. This one has a great and consistent array of above-average songs. If you’re into the likes of Brainstorm, Dream Theatre, Devin Townsend, Grave Digger, and other such bands who play clean-vocaled metal with balls, then you’re going to really enjoy this album. I recommend it!
