Proteque - Screaming silently

Proteque is is the solo project of Gjoran Saether, a Norwegian who writes experimental music. 'Screaming Silently' is a seven track album which is currently available as a free download from the artist's Bandcamp page.

The album was recorded on analog tape, inside an old nazi fortress in Norway, which gives the whole album a very interesting sense of space and reverb. While that's a very interesting way to record an album, I think that the actual sound misses the mark somewhat. Let's have a listen...

The first track "Nocturnal Sins" starts off well, reminding me of some of David Thrussel's work with Soma. There's a metallic drone that explores some interesting chordal progressions. Sometimes the choice of chords is just a bit too experimental for my tastes - a major chord suddenly thrown into a brooding dark ambient track can be a bit off putting. It sounds as though it is just a bit too 'one fingered synth' for my liking, as though the chord structures need to really flow a lot more smoothly. But the textures are good.

"The Last Dance from an Old Man" starts off very well, with an ethereal choir like sound filling out the background. However, a few minutes in there's a sharp scraping noise that enters the sound field. It's a good sound, it just seems a little too jarring to have it jump out of the mix like that. I'm sure that was the intention, but to my ears it just spoils the mood. Each to their own, I guess.

"Careless Restrictions" begins as though it is a child playing with some of the wackier experimental acoustic patches in the soft synth Omnisphere. Not a fan of this track at all, although as usual the choirs in the background are very well done.

This album is OK. I've been listening to it for a while now, and I mostly enjoy it. I think that the artist definitely has the potential to refine the sound and create something that flows far better. The basics of texture and sound design are all there, I think what is needed is more emphasis on composition and fine tuning the sounds to work well together. Then we'd have something that could be very, very good. May 20 2013