Labyrinth
No Limits

The year 1996 marked the birth of two of the greatest phenomena the Italian metal scene has ever known: 1) The rise of one of the best power/progressive bands, Labyrinth. 2) The beginning of the dazzling career of one of the most admired vocalists in the metal realm, Fabio Lione. It's precisely in 1996 that the band composed and released their debut album, "No Limits": a unique, original, daring debut, something never heard before, metal music where technical prowess perfectly coexisted with melody and emotional impact, and to which keyboards with strong techno influences were linked; criticism did not take long to arrive, with some judging them as a techno group using distorted guitars, others completely disparaging them claiming they were a very commercial group, while others praised the immense effort these young musicians had accomplished.

The album, consisting of 13 tracks, was something new especially in the stagnant Italian scene, bringing a breath of fresh air to a market that had been stuck and anchored to dead traditions for too long. The record opens with "Mortal Sin," a track introduced by electric keyboards to which distorted guitars latch on, a drum that marks uncatchable rhythms, and not least a powerful and crystalline voice, which does not shy away from hints of aggressive and deep tones; the chorus is splendid where Lione gives his best, accompanied by all his companions who weave an enviable melodic base. "Midnight Resistance" moves on the same lines as the previous song, thus showing us a capable band secure in the tools at their disposal: the rhythmic section this time is more detailed and complex, presenting various irregular rhythm bars and numerous time changes; we also notice a greater theatricality from the vocalist, who abandons the more aggressive tones to better exploit decidedly high vocal peaks. We then move to "Dreamland," a song where you begin to see the musical path Labyrinth will treat in the next two records: the abundance of double bass, very fast and complex solos, give the impression of being in front of a track that came out of "Return To Heaven Denied." Excellent is Lione's high note in the middle of the song, accompanied by high-quality atmospheres.
We thus come to what can easily be considered the best track of the entire album: "Piece Of Time", a fast piece, rich in time changes, lightning solos from guitar and bass, double bass bursts, and lots of melody. Once again, the truly high-level vocal interpretation is to be praised. An excellent choice was to compose a short-duration song, thanks to which the song became a highly requested live hit. The following track is represented by "Vertigo," a metal version of a '90s techno dance song: the final result is once again exquisite, with an overabundance of double bass marking very fast tempos, accompanied by a bass that doesn't miss a note and guitars framing it, setting a quick and highly effective melody. The vocal lines this time are quite useless, adding nothing or detracting from the song.
The subsequent "In The Shade" steps on the accelerator once again: speed, clean and rapid passages, overwhelming melodies, and a powerfully aggressive voice accompany us through decidedly fascinating verses, attached to truly unique choruses in terms of beauty. We then move to the title track, a song that well develops the musical themes addressed so far, but showing more of the progressive side of the group; we also find an extreme melodic incongruence between the verses, extremely controlled and reflective, and a much more aggressive and cutting chorus. Praiseworthy is the theatricality used in the vocal phase by Lione. "The Right Sign" represents the weak point of the album, instead, due to keyboards used disastrously, the track is quickly forgotten. Still aggressive and technically proficient in "Red Zone," a song that makes speed and excellent keyboard use its main weapons. The instrumental part is splendid. Great emotion and delicacy are expressed instead in the following "Time Has Come," a sweet and aggressive track at the same time. The abundance of time changes and a general complexity make this song one of the most complicated on the album, which must be listened to several times before being understood. We then arrive at the only truly unsuccessful experiment on the entire album: "Lookin' For," a dull and weak track, which doesn't make sense to exist amid so much beauty.

"Call Me," the penultimate track of the album, delivers the last blow of energy and power, presenting itself as a track that uses speed and rhythm changes to stand up to the final track of the album: I am talking about the beautiful "Miles Away," a delicate and atmospheric song in which, thanks to a great Fabio Lione on microphone and a certain Olaf Thorsen on guitars, we find all the elements useful in elevating the song to a masterpiece (incidentally, it will be played and adapted again in "Sons Of Thunder"). The album is finished and it is now necessary to spend a few words on the production of the album, which I found truly awful, almost annoying: it is impossible to ruin such a work, which could deserve much more, due to last-rate production. Besides, I don't think it's useful to spend too many words (as I've already extensively argued in the track-by-track review) on the extreme technical prowess of the musicians.