Search - Poets of the Fall :: Signs of Life

I'm not gonna leave a title for this review...no short, crea

Dave | USA | 08/02/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Nowadays, it seems custom for popular bands (modern ones, I'm not talking about bands that remain popular due to sucess in the past resulting in cult followings and stuff like that) to follow a certain formula for making a CD.



1. Think of one above-average song.

2. Think of a great song.

3. Think of a good song.

4. Have all of the songs start with either bass or drums. If it starts with drums, add in bass next. If it starts with bass, add in drums next.

5. Have a lead singer that sounds like a teenager who's voice suddenly ceased to mature. Make sure he's good looking.

6. Add in a bunch of filler tracks with little or no effort put into them in hopes that record companies will only pay attention to the previous three items and allow for the securing of a record deal.



I don't know if all Finland bands are like Poets of the Fall, but these guys are determined to stay away from this sell-out-and-bring-in-the-dinero-so-we-can-go-home attitude and they succeed by any standard one could think of. Most noticably in two areas:

The instrumental ssection is certainly played brilliantly in all songs, but where this band has accepted a fact that many people are in deniable about right now: the lead singer's voice can be good AND sound fully grown, and not like a boy going through puberty. The lead singer, if you were to classify him by his vocal range/sound, is a baritone who *nearly* can make the tenor range. And, to all of those who have not heard the lead singer's voice and are worried about potential European accents or mannerisms, his English sounds impeccable despite the fact that he's Finnish. You'd think he's a US native. A faint, barley noticable "southern twang" is evident in his voice because that's how non-British Europeans sound when they sing in English, but I thought these guys were US until I found out they were based in Finalnd. He is just what the music-starved soul ordered: a beutiful albeit an unusual voice.

Secondly, absolutley every single song sounds like it came from a "Greatest Hits" album, so well-thought out and enjoyable to listen to. What's more, these guys are one of the most versatile rock...no, *music* groups that I have ever seen. I use rock with hesitancy, but if I absolutley had to classify them, that's what I'd call them. But, unlike every rock group out there now, they have figured out almost all demographics of music possible and made 2-3 songs for each of them.



For the faint-of-heart love-song and lullaby suckers:

"Sleep"

"Late Goodbye"

"Someone Special"



For the Tough Guys and Electric Guitar Junkies:

"Lift"

"Overboard"

"Don't Mess With Me"



For the Sit-Back-And-Relaxe Slackers and Road Trip Drivers:

"3AM"

"Shallow"

"Stay"



For the Poets and Pondering Intellectuals (admirerers of lyrics):

"Illusion & Dream"

"Seek You Out"

"Everything Fades"



The second-most amazing part of this band: THIS IS THEIR DEBUT ALBUM!

The most amazing part of this band: THEY HAVE NOT SECURED A US RECORD DEAL DESPITE AMAZING SUCESS IN FINLAND AND AN EVIDENT TALENT THAT SURPASSES ALMOST IF NOT EVERY CURRENT MAINSTREAM ROCK BAND!



If you are ready for twelve tracks worth of amazing and perhaps unparalleled music, buy this CD. Better yet, if yo're in the recording industry in the US, SIGN THESE GUYS AND GIVE THEM THE RECOGNITION THEY DESERVE!!!"

This CD is so-o-o good!

John L. Berger | Pennsylvania | 07/03/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I took a gamble with this CD, having only known "Late Goodbye" from the "Max Payne 2" video game, but this gamble paid off with a royal flush! This album is so incredibly good!



The style falls into what I call "ambient rock". No, it's not New Age or anything close. It's style relies a lot on powerful, rock instruments and background sustain, which makes the music seem to suspend itself, with very little dependency on synthesizers. That gives it a raw yet tempered sound that is incredibly genuine and unique.



Each track is powerful yet smooth at the same time -- sort of like a combination of Dave Matthews, Pat Benatar, Matchbox 20, and Creed, yet at the same time nothing like any of them. Each track is pure rock that completely envelopes your senses. Listening to this CD with quality headphones is absolutely amazing. It's baffling why this group is not more popular than they are.



Buy this CD. Seriously. It's that good. This is the best CD purchase that I've made in years."

Finally you can order this in the U.S.!

davil | Washington, DC USA | 09/07/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This album is a fantastic debut. I had to hunt around for awhile and ended up buying it via a distributor in Finland. I paid over $40 including shipping. Crazy price for a CD, but no one in the U.S. was importing it at the time.



I'm so pleased to see that finally someone state-side has discovered this band.



If they ever tour in the U.S. (I hope they do), I'm betting they would be an instant hit.



Their music reminds me of a blend of U2, Collective Soul, and Sting. I know that sounds weird, but all I can say is they have the umph of U2, the soul of Collective, and the articulate lyrics of Sting.



One of the best premier CDs that I've ever heard and well worth the price - even what I paid for it! :)



If you'd like a free taste of their talent, and you happen to be a PC gamer, fire up the recently released Battlefield 2 game and goto the credits. POTF's hit "Lift" is the background music.



The album is mostly a mix of uplifting rock (with some hint of late 80's to early 90' style) and what I'd best describe as ballads. A couple of the songs' lyrics are borderline Christian rock, but that's partly what makes this album so appealing. It is a unique blend of talent and music which always sounds refreshing."