Style: Traditional progressive metal, progressive rock (clean vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Symphony X, Haken, Vision Divine
Country: Italy
Release date: 18 October 2024
It doesn’t seem to have been a quiet year for DGM: the Italian prog metallers are back at it again after eleven short months with their latest release Endless, a bombastic and energetic offering in their unmistakable, inimitable style. The almost hour-long experience draws on influences from progressive rock, jazz fusion, and folk, maintaining a sound that sits well within the progressive metal spectrum overall. With soaring vocals, twisty-turny guitar licks, memorable hooks and emotional instrumental passages, DGM pulls no punches on this performance, delivering what I consider to be one of their best works to date.
From the start of the first track “Promises”, to the end of the album closer “…Of Endless Echoes,” DGM’s Endless flows almost effortlessly as the songs lead expertly into one another. The pounding aggression of “The Wake” followed with a much needed reprieve in the reverberant acoustic guitar with jazz flute accompaniment that is the intro to “Solitude;” a piece that crescendos into one of the best choruses on the album, and ends with the same moody acoustic, flute, and piano that were featured in the intro – before the energy picks up with the speedy keyboard passage that establishes the pace of “From Ashes.” There’s something about Endless that gives a summery vibe; for me, it’s the way guitarist Simone Mularoni uses bright major chord voicings over vibrant synth patches and melodic, up-tempo violin phrases. It lends an optimistic and hopeful sound to the music that makes it the kind of album I want to blast while driving my convertible to the beach through Italy’s winding mountain roads.
Endless blends progressive metal with some prog rock, jazz fusion, and folk influence with the inclusion of some interspersed flute and violin passages, both played by DGM’s keyboard wizard Emanuele Casali. This folk element is most notable during the break in the middle of the track “Final Call,” where an orientalist musical theme is introduced, while a jazz flute component is evident throughout; the flute often playing staccato notes behind heavy, palm-muted guitar as in the track “Solitude.” Emanuele also loves to make use of bright piano tones, using them to accentuate more emotive passages like the latter half of “Solitude” and throughout the album’s ballad “Blank Pages.” Prior to release, DGM teased that they would be experimenting with a new sound, and although I’d call it quite a conservative experimentation, I’d say it worked out: the classic DGM sound is solidly established but these instrumental flourishes breathe wonderful new life into it.
The songwriting prowess of guitarist Simone and keyboardist Emanuele, both listed as composers, cannot be understated here. The album’s quality doesn’t waver from start to finish and holds up well on subsequent listens. Even the album’s power ballad “Blank Pages”—and I usually hate ballads (all great metal power ballads have already been written by 80s hair bands)—I could find no fault in, especially when singer Mark Basile delivers each line with exceptional clarity and masterfully makes you feel every emotion and every experience he’s been through. His is a voice so emotive and so capable, and I can think of no better suited vocalist for this band.
As I listen back, I find myself wishing they’d thrown a couple of songs in Italian into the mix. Italy has such a rich and diverse musical culture and the language has by so many people often been described as being musical, that it’s almost a shame when another Italian group chooses to sing in English. I suppose it’s done for International audiences, but would an established group such as DGM really falter if they took a chance like that? Is it ‘progressive’ to play the safe bet and stick to English? This has long been my gripe with Italian metal bands as a whole. There’s only a handful who will release works in Italian; usually lesser-known outfits whose market is primarily if not wholly located within the boundaries of the peninsula, e.g. Folkstone (folk metal) or Wounded Knee (prog rock/metal). Some better-known international acts like DGM themselves tend to stick to English. What part of Italian culture are you exporting at that point? A strong Italian progressive rock music scene (aptly titled rock progressivo Italiano) has been around since the 70s, and no doubt has influenced countless groups within the current Italian rock and metal scene. I would love for modern progressive bands from Italy to embrace that history rather than the trend of singing in a foreign tongue that practically the whole of Europe (with [mostly] the exception of Spain) does. But I digress.
This is an album worthy of high praise, with DGM doing what they do best at the highest level, and innovating with new and original elements that add shine and polish to an already well-oiled machine. Despite the short wait time, it doesn’t feel like a rushed production. From the two singles “The Great Unknown” and “Final Call”, to the 14-minute album closer “…Of Endless Echoes,” each song brings a unique energy that causes the album to ebb and flow; its peaks and valleys recalling the seven hills of Rome. Endless is one of the best Italian prog metal releases of the last four years.
Recommended tracks: Final Call, The Great Unknown, From Ashes
You may also like: Labyrinth, Inner Vitriol, New Horizons
Final verdict: 9.9/10
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Facebook | Instagram | Metal-Archives page | Official Website
Label: Frontiers Records – Facebook | Official Website
DGM is:
– Marco Basile (vocals)
– Simone Mularoni (guitars)
– Emanuele Casali (keyboards)
– Andrea Arcangeli – (bass)
– Fabio Constantino (drums)
