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DISTRICT 97 – “Live for the End”
DISTRICT 97 – “Live for the End”
By Dark Starr
I honestly think DISTRICT 97 is one of the most innovative and unique sounding modern progressive rock bands out there. I like them a lot and think everything they do is great. This new live album fits well into the description. If you like their hard-edged, innovative flavor of prog, you will certainly enjoy this.
The opener is titled “Stay For The Ending.” After a short introduction, they launch out into killer hard rocking prog. This is along the lines of DREAM THEATER type stuff, but it has its own distinct identity. It’s packed full of drama, awesome prog and some great changes. Mellower guitar gets us going on “Mirror.” Keyboards join after a time, and the track seems to be growing gradually. Then it’s reborn as a rhythm section based thing. From there it shifts toward fusion with a movement that has some intriguing timing. This thing evolves into some smoking hot progressive rock as it continues.
More of a soulful rock sound is on the menu on the mellower opening section of “Many New Things.” It’s basically just keyboards and vocals. Some fusion vibes come in with the other instruments after a time, and the cut works forward well from there.
“Crossover” is such a cool track. It has a lot of variety and a real sense of quirky drama. There is a lot of jazz in the mix. There is also some seriously hard rocking guitar at points. It’s all merged into something that’s cohesive, unpredictable and tasty. There is some seriously metallic guitar built into the beast that bears the title “Divided We Fall.” The track has some great prog changes and a lot of energy, too. “Keyboard Interlude” is basically a piano solo. It’s dramatic and quite pretty. It carries us into the next track. Starting with the piano from the previous piece, “Life Cycle” builds upward gradually from there. The vocals come in over a mellow musical arrangement. This whole thing continues to grow and evolve in intriguing ways. There is a healthy helping of jazz in the mix at times.
“X” is a unique instrumental break that leads into the next track. Continuing the vibes from the last one, “X Faded” works out to a harder rocking, nearly metallic at times, jam that is a powerhouse tune. It has some really potent sections. I really love the groove on “Deck Is Stacked.” The track is another that’s very metallic. It’s also another prog stomper. The riffing is so cool. There are some more purely prog moments later. This also includes a drum solo.
“The Watcher” is next, and I absolutely love this thing. It has so much drama and style. It also has some great twists and turns. It’s dark and makes me think of PENTWATER to some degree for some reason. There are some modern KING CRIMSON like vibes at times. Next, they give us their version of “Matte Kudasai.” The KING CRIMSON track gets a great live telling here. It’s both similar to the original and also fresh and decidedly DISTRICT 97 like. “On Paper” comes in with a rather bluesy guitar sound. It works out to a pretty standard DISTRICT 97 arrangement. After a time it shifts toward more metallic sounds. Then they turn that into frantic prog jamming. It is a powerhouse stomper.
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