About the review

Title: Technicolor (Part 2)
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Artist: Fredrik Cole
Genre: Classical/New Age: New Age
Reviewed by: VOiD on September 06, 2010 (All reviews by VOiD)

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Review

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1Overall Description
Solid piece of melodic ambient synthpop executed with great focus and attention to detail. The song is not without its (minor) drawbacks, detailed below, but remains a compelling listen well worth visiting - and revisiting.
 
2Creativity Description
This song does belong under the demostyle/ambient/synthpop umbrella so popular among sceners, and offers very little that has not also been heard elsewhere. Hell, it even sounds a little like something this reviewer might have made at some point. I can hear echoes of Jarre and Vangelis, as well as Skaven and Purple Motion in this. Particularily the opening sounds quite a lot like something Skaven might have done. In its defense, though, the song is rich in detail and definitely feels like a unique piece of music in that respect rather than a rehash of other people's ideas.

Since this is a sequel, one has to consider how it works as a companion piece to the excellent Part 1. The first part is far more reverb-laden, particularily in the rhythm department. In contrast, this one is neater and more focused, yet retains a lot of the same atmosphere, mainly due to similar technique in the use of synths and effects. I guess it would have been relatively easy (and tempting) to do a continuation in the mold of the first instalment, so it's nice to hear a different piece of music that still manages to maintain a similar feel. It could be that it's simply a case of the composer's personal style shining through from one song to the next, but that in itself is no small achievement.
 
3Arrangement Description
The song itself is neatly divided into different sections. The first minute is a very effective buildup portion, introducing us to the mood and feel that will dominate proceedings throghout. After 1:00 the main (synth)piano melody kicks in, immediately followed by a softer lead playing over the same chord progression. After the 2:00 mark the rhythm subsides, introducing a a quieter and moodier middle section featuring some interesting sound effects. We are then treated to another buildup towards the main melody; this is done in a very similar fashion to the opening, yet contains enough variation to make it not feel like a retread. The main melody makes a reappearance towards the end and is soon doubled by the softer synth, making for a nice climax. Just when we are at the peak of things however, the song ends in a somewhat disappointing fadeout.

The overall arrangement, while by no means groundbreaking, is well executed. The listener is led through each transition effortlessly, and each subsequent section adds upon the preceding one. Very well done.
 
4Sound Quality Description
As can be expected in a tracker song from more than ten years ago, some of the samples are not quite top notch compared to today's standards. There is some hiss on the softer lead instrument used in the bridge before the middle section, and some of the choir samples are also a bit on the fuzzy side. However, apart from those two, and a silent hiss throughout, this is not as noticable as I first feared, and - apart from some key moments (around 1:45, for instance) - sound quality issues do not really detract significantly from the listening experience, even in headphones.
 
5Does it work as a piece of music Description
It does indeed! I guess I don't have to get too wordy in my explanation here, as I've detailed my reasons above. ;)
 
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