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Factory of Dreams: A Strange Utopia
Factory of Dreams: A Strange Utopia
Symphonic/Progressive Metal
Rating: 3.5/5.0
ProgRock Records/SPV
www.strangeutopia.com
www.myspace.com/projectcreation
Review: Craig Hartranft, 11.15.2009
Factory of Dreams, the creation of Hugo Flores (g,b,k,v) and Jessica Lehto (v), returns with their sophomore release A Strange Utopia. Fans of the band should expect to challenged as Flores, the main composer, has made a much more complex and heavier work than their debut Poles. This feature has created a double edge sword for Factory of Dreams.
On the one hand, A Strange Utopia has some magnificent and compelling arrangements that tantalize the ears such as Inner Station or Sonic Sensations. Conversely, it also appears that Flores attempts to pack as much music into each song as possible. Songs like The Weight of the World or Voyage to Utopia are overly dense and, at times, sound as if there are two competing arrangements running on the same track. This makes the piece more confusing than entertaining. Most fans of any progressive format are used to listening carefully to the beauty and intricacy of a song, but the composition itself should not make this difficult.
Still, overall, A Strange Utopia is more the tantalizing epic than the dense sonic blur. Songs like E-Motions or Garden of All Seasons are huge songs exploring brilliant song craftsmanship. For her part, Jessica Lehto delivers her vocals with the usual passion which will continue to cause comparisons to most any other gothic or symphonic female lead (you know to whom I refer).
In Short
Often breathless and mesmerizing and unnecessarily dense and complex within the same song, Factory of Dreams' A Strange Utopia is a gargantuan sonic experience that will either thrill you or put you off.
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