Storm Season by White Willow

White Willow's 2004 album, Storm Season, perhaps their best album to date, is sung in English like their others. It has no weak points and strikes a chord with fans of the most epic and intense progressive rock, with exquisitely crafted digressions into progressive metal and a stratospheric female voice, that of Sylvia Erichsen, but also with a song splendidly sung by Finn Coren, who collaborates on this album. This album enriches the lineup with a musician of great importance to the progressive rock of our time: Lars Fredrik Frøislie, whom I've spoken about extensively for his work with Wobbler and as a soloist , as well as for his project The Chronicles of Father Robin. On this album, he plays piano, Mellotron M400, Hammond B3, Minimoog, synths, Fender Rhodes, Wurlitzer, and glockenspiel. Ketil Vestrum Einarsen's wind instruments, Jacob Holm-Lupo's and Johannes Saebøe's guitars, Sigrun Eng's strings, and a great rhythm section featuring Marthe Berger Walthinsen on bass and Aage Moltke on drums and percussion are all beautiful.

A band I've already mentioned in relation to other works, and they were such a surprise from the first listen that I'm currently expanding my collection of their entire discography.

Seven tracks, about 47 minutes long,

- "Chemical Sunset," a very intense rock ballad, opens with a beautiful array of wind instruments and keyboards, a slow tempo, and is always accompanied by a very engaging, epic flute line. Then, Sylvia Erichsen's female voice enters, very light and intense, and the guitars delight us with a riff that builds the tension, along with the excellent synth work. The epic section gives way once again to the flute and a beautiful acoustic guitar arpeggio, before all the instruments, including the flute, forcefully return to the epic theme, with power and great emphasis. The drums and bass work is superb when the tempo shifts to almost medieval, and the guitar solo and the song's epic close are beautiful.

- Sally Left opens with a beautiful synth and vocal progression, over which the percussion traces a rhythm that is first essential and then becomes more compelling and tense with the drums. The song becomes increasingly dense, in a slow progression, featuring dissonant keyboards… this growth is cancelled out by the entrance of the strings in an emotional instrumental section with a rare spoken word in the background. Then comes the explosion, the electric guitar with its truly stunning solo. This instrumental section gives way to the opening theme, a soft section with vocals and a suffused atmosphere, which quickly becomes more decisive. An extraordinary piece on the border between rock and prog, with yet another great vocal.

- "Endless Science" begins with a beautiful bass and synth riff—progressive metal here—with a compelling riff and very dark atmospheres emanating from the keyboards. A distorted guitar solo immediately follows, and this time the vocals are male, that of Finn Coren, over a beautiful guitar and synth base. The song enters the rock phase, with female vocals providing counterpoint and a beautiful energy that alternates with lighter moments where the piano and guitar form the theme. The strings join in, intense and laden with melancholy, in a splendid progression until the return of progressive metal and then a descent back into the dream world. The vocals and the overall composition are splendid, full of variations and shifts in emotion until the final solo. Great synth and keyboard work, and the mellotron solo. A masterpiece.

- "Soulburn" opens side B with a light touch, a splendid guitar arpeggio, and splendid vocals. After the first tense tracks, a light, wide-ranging wind leads to a beautiful, nostalgic and romantic melody, with excellent acoustic and electric guitar parts arpeggiating with the bass, precise drums that provide just the right amount of emphasis, and keyboards that spread light sounds in the background. The vocals are the star here. Splendid.

- "Insomnia" begins with a cappella vocals and then unfolds into a prog ballad of excellent complexity with richly nuanced drumming. The melody is also beautiful, and the mood is classic rock: hard tones, odd-time drums, and a beautiful mellotron, for a haunting and decisive instrumental part. The central moment, featuring just piano and vocals, is beautiful and intense, culminating in a wild prog ride. The complexity increases, with drums and bass laying the foundation for guitar solos, along with a beautiful keyboard riff. Epic moments alternate with more stripped-back moments, with a distinctive use of keyboard and guitar sounds, culminating in the closing of this beautiful song.

- "Storm Season" begins with distorted synth sounds and vocals, sounds that accompany the entire song like a sort of syncopated rhythmic base. It's animated by an almost ecclesiastical sound, with intense, echo-filled vocals, strings, and synths playing with the atmosphere, all under the banner of emotion. The buildup is slow, with intensifying atmospheres alternating with tense phases, animated by sounds reminiscent of a music box, pendulum clocks, and a haunting backdrop. A beautiful song.

- "Nightside of Eden," the longest song that closes the album, begins with a great progressive metal intro, a powerful guitar riff that accompanies a tasteful guitar solo. The double guitar work is splendid, leading to truly compelling hard rock sensations, even when the keyboards explode into a beautiful solo, while precise, powerful drums and bass pave the way for rock. This song also features a magnificent contrast between the mellow vocals and the intensity of the rock sound. A great electric guitar solo is also featured. The song's complexity is remarkable, with its multiple variations, breaks, shifts in mood, and intensity. The instruments alternate at center stage without overdoing it. A magnificent close to the album.

All the songs have a purely prog structure, with impressive intros, epic moments, sometimes medieval sounds, hard rock, progressive metal, but also disturbing moments of almost ecclesiological "celebration" and passionate ballads. A truly great album with excellent production.

An excellent album that should not be missing from the collection of any aficionado of top-quality progressive rock.

Tracklist

1. Chemical Sunset (7:58)
2. Sally Left (6:33)
3. Endless Science (3:37)
4. Soulburn (9:21)
5. Insomnia (5:49)
6. Storm Season (4:21)
7. Nightside of Eden (9:44)

Running Time: 47:23

Lineup

- Sylvia Erichsen - vocals
- Jacob Holm-Lupo - electric, acoustic, and classical guitars, keyboards, producer
- Johannes Saebøe - electric guitars, electric baritone guitar
- Lars Fredrik Frøislie - piano, Mellotron M400, Hammond B3, Minimoog, synthesizers, Fender Rhodes, Wurlitzer, glockenspiel
- Ketil Vestrum Einarsen - flutes, Micro Synth, tambourine
- Sigrun Eng - cello
- Marthe Berger Walthinsen - 4- and 5-string basses, tambourine
- Aage Moltke Schou - drums and percussion

Featuring:
- Tirill Mohn - string arranger
- Finn Coren - vocals (4)
- Teresa K. Aslanian - ghost vocals (2)
- Christer Mathiesen - electric guitar solo (8)
- Steffen Isaksen - keyboards (9, 10)

Note: All links to the musicians' works are in the TAGS under the article title or on the "Artists" page.