Edenbridge - Dynamind - 2CD DIGIPAK

As we all know, music is at its best when it addresses its listeners at a number of levels. And that’s precisely what Edenbridge do: the Austrian melodic metal act’s material always features – along with its symphonic qualities – an important emotional-spiritual side. This applies not only to the band’s thirteen recordings to date, but also to their latest album Dynamind, scheduled for release on Steamhammer/SPV on 25 October 2019. The atmospherically dense compositions, directed once again mainly by creative mastermind/multi-instrumentalist Lanvall and vocalist Sabine Edelsbacher, combine melodies and grooves, toughness and sensitivity, emotions and intellect, spirit and the subconscious mind. Which better way to document this talent than with a programmatic play on words such as Dynamind? “There’s an interesting quote which summarises the deeper meaning of the album title,” Sabine Edelsbacher explains. “It says: ‘The muscle of consciousness develops through the stress ratio of opposites.’” You should allow this thesis to work on you because it perfectly describes Edenbridge’s holistic approach on Dynamind.

The best example is the album’s breathtaking finale, consisting of the epic ‘The Last Of His Kind’ with its more than twelve minutes of playing time and the subsequent quiet, almost intimate title track, ‘Dynamind’. To Lanvall, it’s ‘The Last Of His Kind’ in particular which has an overriding meaning: “From my point of view, this is part three of the title tracks on The Grand Design and Myearthdream, which broach the issue of our irresponsible treatment of our planet,” he explains and proudly points out a number of guitar parts which were inspired by David Gilmour (Pink Floyd), giving the song a sublime flair.

Dynamind’s complexity and amazing compositional maturity impress its listeners well before its awesome finale. The Irish-inspired theme on ‘On The Other Side’, for example, has been at the back of Lanvall’s mind for some 15 years. “I had the idea as far back as Aphelion, but at that time there were still some important parts missing. This time the verse and chorus suddenly came to me out of nowhere when I returned from a walk. Suddenly, in one moment, it was all there, making ‘On The Other Side’ the song in Edenbridge’s history that took the least time to compose.” The lyrics, by the way, are about that familiar phenomenon that makes the grass on the other side always appear to be greener, in other words: No matter what their own situation is, people tend to think that things are better somewhere else.

There can be no doubt: Dynamind sees Lanvall succeed once again in lending a clear, comprehensible structure to his ten new compositions, despite their complexity. At the same time, Edenbridge have created a homogeneous, self-contained offering from the different temperaments on their toughest album to date (Lanvall: “Even the comparatively quiet number ‘Tauerngold’ has a doom-laden central part”), which seems destined for a dynamic live presentation.

Dynamind will be available on double CD, vinyl double album and for digital download. Like its predecessors The Grand Design (2006), Myearthdream (2008), Solitaire (2010) The Bonding (2013) and The Great Momentum (2017, the new album was mixed by Karl Groom (Threshold). “Karl and I complement each other perfectly,” comments Lanvall, who spent two weeks with Groom at the British Thin Ice Studios, applying the final touches to the album. “While I always have a very clear idea of the sound of a new Edenbridge album, he has the necessary expertise as a sound engineer.” Talking of expertise: Mika Jussila (Stratovarius, among others) mastered the recording at the renowned Finnvox Studios once again, and guest vocalist Thomas Strübler contributed the haunting choir parts and part singing. The latest addition to the Edenbridge fold is bassist Stefan Gimpl, who is also a member of Bavarian act Crystallion and completes, together with Dominik Sebastian (lead & rhythm guitars) and Johannes Jungreithmeier (drums), the current Edenbridge line-up. A very lively line-up, as it happens, perfectly described by the term “Dynamind”.