Distant Dream – The End of the World We Know

The last time I checked out Distant Dream, I was pleasantly surprised. Their latest album, “Point of View“, was released over 4 years ago, and I’ll admit, during that time I pretty much forgot about the band. But just as 2024 was nearing its end, they made a return with “The End of The World We Know“. Quite an ominous title isn’t it? Well, I guess it depends how you look at it. And that already gets me to one of my favourite points (of view… hehe) about this band, which is that there’s something about visual artworks and song titles that hits differently when the music is instrumental. It gives you some sparks of imagination and then lets you make of that what you will, as you’re hearing the music. A rocket hurling through space over a potentially ruined planet, but also a wondrous and colorful cosmic backdrop bring the listener into a sort of dreamscape, as the first song creeps its way in with a peaceful keyboard theme.

The music is built on 3 main components: chonky riffs and grooves, soaring melodic sections, and peaceful atmospheric elements. All songs are built on a smooth flow between these elements, some tilting more towards the rhythmic side (‘When Life Meets The Void’, ‘Whispers’) while others leaning fully into atmosphere and melody (‘Fragments of Eden’). Many of the riffs follow a slightly djenty, sliced pattern, but they are not overly mathematical, nor is the sound that electronic and digital. Instead, they seem to be sitting somewhere half way between djent on one side and post rock or shoegaze on another, which I think is a great balance. The drum patterns mostly follow the riffs, but there are some special moments saved for cool transitions or build-ups offering some very satisfying tom work. Every now and then, the layer of keys or clear guitar melodies ceases, letting an engaging groove take over the full soundscape. There are even some songs where I’m willing to guess they used 7-string or 8-string guitars, or at least lower tuning (‘Whispers’). However, the overall vibe isn’t that heavy or aggressive.

Distant Dream – Spotlight (feat. Marco Sfogli)

The atmosphere is created through an interesting combination of keys and sound design as well as clean guitars. I wouldn’t know whether there is actual keyboard recorded or just very clever use of samples, but regardless, a lot of the melodic choices and sound textures work wonders in immersing the listener into a very specific vibe. It’s the kind of music to which you can contemplatively look out the car window or walk through busy streets, imagining you’re in the music video. I know. I tried.

To top it off, Distant Dream one again featured a number of guest guitarists to spice up the songs with some amazing solos. And the variety in style between these performers is great for giving each song a unique twist. Jeff Loomis brings a fiery melo-death approach with a lot of shredding on ‘When Life Meets the Void’ while Yiannis Papadopoulos delivers an equally shreddy but considerably more joyful solo section on ‘Celestial Horizon’. Henrik Danhage offered a flashy and bendy take on ‘Whispers’. Marco Sfogli took a more relaxed, melodic and light approach on ‘Spotllight’ and Maciej Meller amped up the spacey and dreamy vibes, possibly using a slide or some interesting flanger effect.

Distant Dream – Fragments of Eden

Distant Dream isn’t trying to blow minds, break records or reinvent the wheel in any way. They’re more in the business of providing pleasant emotional value and superb sound quality, for a fully immersive listening experience, that you’re free to interpret in any way you want. And for that, I need to give it a strong Thumbs Up and highly recommend you check out this album.

Track List:

1. 1. When Life Meets the Void (feat. Jeff Loomis) (04:47)
   2. Spotlight (feat. Marco Sfogli) (04:34)
   3. Celestial Horizon (feat. Yiannis Papadopoulos) (04:36)
   4. Fragments of Eden (05:16)
   5. Dark Matter (01:42)
   6. Pulse of the Fading Light (feat. Maciej Meller) (04:50)
   7. Whispers (feat. Henrik Danhage) (05:17)
   8. Quantum Sky (05:13)
   9. Where All Things End (05:12)