DGM
FrAme

Today, I find myself reviewing the latest album by DGM, a truly underrated Italian Prog band that deserves much greater attention.

The name of the album in question is "FrAme".

DGM, for those who may not know them, is a local progressive metal group that also uses classical elements in their songs, giving it a slightly power twist.

The album has a truly clean, perfect sound and is excellently produced. Right from the first track, one can notice the quality of this work; even in their other albums, one could enjoy the perfection in the band's style, but when listening to songs like "Enhancement" (track no. 2), we realize it is truly a real progmetal album with many power, symphonic influences (see "Trapped..." and "...In A Movie") but also thrash if we are fans of percussion, at times really hard and rigid, which do not take away from the melodic and absolutely catchy singing. The technical and pleasant solos are not missing, particularly worth listening to are "Not In Need", "Away" and the beautiful "Brand New Blood", in my opinion, the best track on the album.

Another absolutely positive aspect that enriches the tracks is the singing by Mark Basile, versatile and capable of reaching high notes, engaging and expressive (as indeed are many prog singers!).

The riffs are very captivating and never predictable, not too rigid (so they don't ruin the melody) but still "very metal", that is, classic distortion with accompaniment throughout almost the entire duration of the tracks; the insertion of some samples to introduce majestic atmospheres is perfect, and to realize this, it is sufficient to listen to tracks 5 and 6 in succession... which in the end complement each other, two truly excellent tracks.

The songwriting is also not trivial but on the contrary rich in very interesting ideas concerning the singer's personality, which could be used as soundtracks for films or videos that perfectly represent each one's personal ascent (see Basile's singing and his high notes).

The tracks feature instrumentals of a truly high level, and you will immediately notice this when you listen to this marvelous album, recommended to everyone, both those who love metal and those who are not aficionados... the quality is perceptible to all!

This group really has nothing to envy from bands like Dream Theater.

Scorecard

Sound: 9

Atmosphere: 8

Guitars: 8

Voice: 9

Songwriting: 7

Catchiness: 8

Adherence to the genre: 8 (the album is progressive but there are many different influences that enrich the sound)

Personal judgment: 9