Short Reviews [Realisea - 2020 - "Mantelpeace"]

Realisea started life back in 2011 as a collaboration between Silhouette singer, guitarist and keyboard player Brian de Graeve and singer/flautist Marjolein de Graeve. After writing and performing many songs they decided it was time to pull a band together to record an album, and they were joined by Silhouette drummer Rob van Nieuwenhuijzen, Brian’s eldest son Geoffrey de Graeve (bass) and keyboard player Christophe Rapenne. There is also a whole host of guest musicians on the album which adds a great deal more breadth to the overall sound, especially with the use of violin. I will not mention them all here, but Mysterons Jean Pageau and Michel St-Pere both provide contributions. It is a very easy album to listen to, but a great deal of thought has gone into all the elements. For example, the name of the band brings together “reality” and “sea” as while everyone may perceive a different reality in this world of fake news, the sea is always there although it is changing and never the same. As for the album title, that is paying homage to Crowded House and “Weather With You” while also stating we need to support each other, especially with so many people suffering invisibly with mental health issues. Musically this is very typical of 90’s Dutch progressive rock, in that it has roots in both crossover prog and melodic rock, which means it has depth but is also full of light and buoyancy. Bart Laan (Skylake) provides a superb guitar solo on “Strong Enough”, just when one thinks that the combination of Marjolein’s vocals and violin can’t take it any higher, but it does. Polished and enjoyable from start to end, this is a wonderful debut.