Sylvan: Leaving Backstage

Wake up America! Sylvan is a awesome band!!!! If you don't listen to this album and Posthumous Silence, you are missing out on some great music!

In this live recording, Sylvan captures the elegance and power found in their studio recordings. The performance is tight and the sound is crisp and clean. Singer Marco Gluhmann's voice displays great emotion of soft passages and he powerfully delivers incredible passion when belting out songs like "In Chains" and Posthumous Silence". This is a two disc set with more than 70 minutes of music on each disc. Disc one covers the entire Posthumous Silence album and disc 2 covers material from Presets, Artificial Paradise and X-rayed. Incredible music - what a treat!!!

This isn't a bad live CD, not bad at all, and certainly a step back up from their last studio effort, "Presets" (WHAT happened to the band on that album?!?! And to follow-up Posthumous Silence with it no-less!!) WHAT a disappointment!) Anyway, 2 disc set, one of them a live recreation of their best album, the above mentioned conceptual album Posthumous Silence, with guest musicians including a string section. If you know the album, then you know the songs but the ones that stand out to me are `In Chains', `Forgotten Virtue', `The Colors Changed' and `Questions'. The 2nd disc - songs from their other albums beginning with one of my top favorites `Lost', the nearly 20 minute `Artificial Paradise' and, thankfully, only 2 from Presets!My only real complaint is, in my opinion, the sound could have been a little better, it's kinda muddy sounding compared to the best live albums that are out there, and does sound better on a CD player than in a computer. The first time I listened to it was at work and I was PISSED that it sounded that bad. But, listening to some of disc 2 in the car on the way home it sounded better and I realized it's another one of those GARBAGE CDs that has some kind of protection on them so they don't sound quite the same in a computer - I wish they'd STOP that crap. If I paid for the CD I ought to be able to play it through the computer at work (or at home), without sound degradation, if I want to!!And I wonder how the sound on the DVD is? I debated between the CD and DVD but, after reading some of the reviews of the DVD, decided against it mainly because I HATE fast-cut editing that looks like the whole thing was done by a 5 year-old with ADS!!! Just another thing we have to thank the demons at MTV for I guess. But who knows, with copies now as low as $14, I might just have to break down and find out for myself!Bottom line: If you like Sylvan and want a live album, it's not bad. If you aren't familiar with them, and want a good place to start, this isn't a bad introduction if you can live with less than studio production sound - and a pretty good selection of songs from their various albums too!

Alles bestens

Sylvan est une belle découverte pour moi, merci SPOTIFY pour les mix rock progressif mis à disposition à mon attention.Je suis agréablement surpris par ce groupe qui n'en fait pas trop , de belles mélodies avec de beaux solos de guitare, un très bon chanteur même si parfois son tremolo me dérange.Bref je recommande ce disque à écouter sans modérations.

"Leaving Backstage" is a 2 cd simultaneous release with the band's dvd "Posthumous Silence - The Show" which marks their 10th Anniversary tour culminating in this performance at Kampnagel in Hamburg. As the title of the dvd indicates, Disc One of the cd is a full rendition of their 2006 album "Posthumous Silence". Disc Two is a collection of fan favourites from their very first 1999 album "Deliverance" through to "Presets" from 2007.The first thing that strikes you are the production values. My goodness: flawless and exceptional are two words that come to mind. It is very hard to capture live concert sound and convey it in a manner which really does justice to the life and energy of a live show. The quality of the recording is at times breath-taking; close your eyes and you are effortlessly transported to the Kampnagel, to the vibrancy of the band, the clear resonance with the audience, and the sounds of an enraptured set of fans engaging with the emotional and heart-breaking themes raised in the inspired song writing and delivered with such passion and focus on the night.Indeed, the second thing that strikes you is the sheer passion of the band. "Posthumous Silence" is a haunting album. What has been captured on this live release betters the original cd by far by conveying the open, heart rending trauma of the subject matter combined with the committed and focused musicianship which cradles the delicate moments with uplifting melody and supportive keyboards and then driving the troubled and dark moments through tightly controlled drumming, amazing responsive bass work and steadying guitar riffs to keep the central theme clearly at the fore front.The band are outstanding; Volker Sohl on keyboards is ever present, lifting, uplifting, and leading each transition. Sebastian Harnack on bass is a revelation; on dvd always in the background, on cd always the supreme touch whose interventions drive the momentum and the spirit of the performance forward. Jan Petersen on lead guitar is mesmeric - rising to the moment, ripping off spell weaving riffs but never losing control or over-embellishing. Matthias Harder on drums; the heart of the band - exuberant when needed, restrained in equal measure but always spot on in setting the tone and calibre of the music. Finally, and by no means last. Marco Gluhmann on vocals. He lives every word, feels his way through every nuance and implication; the consummate front man and to be applauded for the performance of his life.This is quite a superb album; not only is it a tribute to 10 years of writing and recording, it is also a loud and clear testament that Sylvan are a band of depth, substance, imaginative creativity and heart felt inspiration. 2009 is already looking good for progressive rock - "Leaving Backstage" is the shining star that leads the way for others to follow. A simply amazing recording.

JE recommande cet excellent live du groupe de rock progressif allemands Sylvan qui est aussi passé dernièrement par la Lorraine ....

Sylvan feiert Geburtstag. Und sie haben Gäste eingeladen.Zelebriert wird das komplette "Posthumous Silence" auf CD 1, auf CD 2 gibt es dann noch einen Überblick über das bisherige Schaffen der Band, nur das erste Album wird leider weg gelassen."Posthumous Silence" kommt besser als auf der Studio-CD rüber. Das Album wird live noch mit Streichern und Background-Gesang verstärkt und man fragt sich, warum man das nicht schon im Studio gemacht hat. Hierdurch gewinnt das Konzept noch an Atmosphäre. Der Sound ist perfekt, die Musik ist perfekt gespielt. Wie lange haben die Jungs für diesen Abend geprobt?Am Rande sei noch erwähnt: Das ist der coolste Bass-Sound, den ich seit langem live gehört habe!Gegen diese Prog-Breitseite kann CD2 nur verlieren, zumal die Songauswahl in meinen Augen etwas unglücklich ist. Es werden viele ruhige Songs gespielt, die sich zudem nur wenig von den Studio-Versionen unterscheiden und "Artificial Paradise" war schon immer zu lang.CD2 ist also schmückendes Beiwerk, aber alleine CD1 rechtfertigt den Kauf.