Short Reviews [The Aurora Project - 2019 - "grey_world_live"]

The album title pretty much gives this away, as apart from two acoustic numbers what we have here is a live rendition of their 2016 album ‘World of Grey’. Formed in 1998, the Dutch band released their debut in 2005 and so far, have put out four studio albums. There is no doubt that the crowd there on the night enjoyed what they were hearing, but for me I’m not so sure. There is a melancholy within their sound, and far more space than is normal. It feels fragile, as if it is going to break at any minute, and there were times when I felt reminded of Marillion, but not in a good way. This is a band which seems to be built around the singer as opposed to being about the music, and consequently it relies on him having a real presence and authority on what is being undertaken yet it just isn’t there. There are times when it can be haunting and almost beautiful, but these sections are few and far between and the result is something which is interesting but just really isn’t for me. I note this will be the first review for this album to appear on PA, yet the album has been out for months, so maybe that in itself says something. I haven’t heard any of the studio albums so can’t say if this is indicative of their normal sound, but I can’t see myself seeking them out. It feels self-indulgent as if they were playing for themselves instead of an audience, but maybe you need to be in a certain frame of mind to appreciate this and I am obviously not.