Quo Vadis
Defiant Imagination

From Canada with fury, here they return four years after their previous "Day Into Night," the Quo Vadis, a band of great promise dedicated to technical Death metal with numerous melodic nuances. So in 2004, after a long period of work, the new "Defiant Imagination" was born, one of those works that immediately manages to capture the attention of the average tech-metal enthusiast, thanks to its ability to successfully combine the typical melody of Scandinavian death bands like At The Gates, early Arch Enemy, and the like, with the technique of immortal monsters such as Atheist, Cynic, and Death; in addition to all this is the desire of these young Canadians to infuse their music with elements distinctly derived from a certain American progressive metal which has brought so much fortune to guess who?? Yes, them... Dream Theater.

Individually, the members who take part in the album prove to be instrumentalists with abilities absolutely above average, starting from the deep and guttural growl (almost brutal-like) of the singer Stéphan Paré, to the riffs and solos of Bart Frydrychowicz, all seasoned by one of the best pairs in terms of the rhythm section, formed by Yanic Bercier on drums, who turns out to be absolutely one of the best drummers of the extreme scene with his ability to vary rhythms and fire off double bass drum patterns so naturally it makes his work seem like child's play even for beginners; on bass then (drum roll) none other than Steve DiGiorgio, the much-lauded bassist of Testament, Sebastian Bach, Death, and many other bands.

Musically, the album comes across as quite straightforward and never gets lost in useless instrumental flourishes that are typical of more "advanced" metal, and the songs all hover around medium lengths that never exceed 6 minutes except for "To The Bitter End," which hits 7 minutes; it is perhaps precisely the immediacy and general length of the tracks that is the group's secret weapon, condensing in a few minutes all the aforementioned characteristics, unleashing upon the listener a true sonic wall that offers no escape: pieces like the opener "Silence Calls The Storm," an extremely fast and "in your face" track, alternate excellently led by Stéphan, supported in turn by the group performing truly classy feats with astonishing methodical guitar riffs supported by a hair-raising rhythmic undercurrent; then the last episode of "Element Of The Ensemble part IV" where this time it is DiGiorgio who shines, firing off one complex solo after another, framed by powerful guitars and extremely rapid drumming in terms of footwork.

Also worth mentioning is the brief "In Articulo Mortis," which with its Latin chants and tomb-like atmosphere, brings us back to the bleakest atmospheres of the first "Forever." This brief musical interlude then opens the dance to perhaps the darkest track on the album, "Fate’s Descent," a real blow to the stomach, where the melodies and the rhythm section become decidedly heavier and Paré's growl reaches degrees of depth rarely touched before.

Without boring you with a track-by-track breakdown, the rest of the tracks flow by extremely smoothly, always keeping the tension high and never lowering the guard.

Ultimately, this "Defiant Imagination" is truly a remarkable work suitable for all those who seek characteristics such as aggression, elegance, and technical research in music, the latter never degenerating into mere exercise. Moreover, the album in question boasts a top-level production that does justice to the work done by each musician, highlighting their instrumental performances and giving the entire platter a clear and clean sound without seeming plasticized.

I think I've more or less presented what you should expect from this LP, all that remains is to wish you a good listen.

P.S. The only flaw of this album is that at times it feels a bit emotionally cold, especially when compared to the band's past works, slightly richer in soul.