Sun Caged - "Sun Caged" Review

Artist: SUn Caged

Title: Sun Caged

Produced by:

Label/ Date: Lion Music/ 2003

Tracks:

1. Sedation

2. Sun Caged

3. Home

4. Soil

5. Hollow

6. Closing In

7. The Eighth Day

8. Secrets of Flight

9. Unchanging

The Review:

Sun Caged is the latest entry in the vast genre of prog-metal but with some alt/modern rock leanings. Hailing from The Netherlands, they rose from the ashes of Lemur Voice, they could prove to be Lion Music’s best selling cd to date. Musically they can compared to the likes of Symphony X, Fates Warning and Enchant.

Marcel Coenen provides the hard and heavy guitar riffs that he displayed on his solo album Guitartalk, but here he is backed by a full band including Joost van der Broek (keyboards), Rob van der Loo (bass), Dennis Leeflang (drums).

Joost, just off the Star One tour, provides some solid keyboard work whicj=h is sometimes over shadowed by Marcel. Hopefully on future releases, they’ll unleash Joost.

The singer, Andre Vuurboom, vocals can be classified, as a cross between James LaBrie (DT) and Ted Leonard (Enchant).

I was pleasantly surprised by this release being that most of Lion Music’s bands are all guitar based and put much hit or miss in my opinion. O and for you Ayreon/Star One fans, the man behind the mixing is none other than Arjen himself.

This is a highly recommended release for fans of the afore mentioned bands. Sun Caged brings new hope to the somewhat stale Dream Theater clones that plague the prog metal genre.

Hopefully more bands will follow suit.

~Ron for ProgNaut.com [November 11th, 2003]

To get to the artist's website, please click on the CD cover.

Band Members:

Andre Vuurboom - Vocals

Marcel Coenen - Guitars

Joost van den Broek - Keyboards

Rob van der Loo - Bass

Dennis Leelang - Drums, percussion