To many people Machiavel will be mostly associated with their early period and albums like Mechanical Moonbeams (1978) or New Lines (1980). Nothing wrong with that, as those are great albums which every serious lover of things progressive ought to own. But what probably not enough people are aware of, is that the band are still releasing new material every now and then. And in my ears, these albums all are up to par with their back catalogue. So let´s try to raise awareness for this great Belgian outfit and talk a bit about their 2011 release eleven.
Opening with Here Comes The Crash, I am reminded of Billy Sherwood area Yes, especially in the fantastic chorus. Vocal harmonies are plain beautiful. Which can be heard throughout the album as there are several accomplished singers in the band. Feel The Sun is mid paced and the e-bow guitar gives it a bit of a U2 atmosphere. Again a song that is easy on the ears and will appeal to a large audience. Machiavel excel in writing short songs with great melodies. In that sense one could say that they take a pop approach and the pure symphonic rock of their early days seems far gone. Yet here and there their roots are still audible. And of course their songs go way beyond the formulaic approach of modern music as these are real musicians that play real instruments. For me there is little point in discussing all the songs on offer. Trust me when I say this is another highly recommended release!
