Inside Out

Inside Out is a mature-period progressive-metal record on which FATES WARNING, rather than showing off complex meters and detailed ensemble, quietly dissolved them into the flow of the song. Ray Alder’s restrained singing binds the cold texture of the guitars to tension. The odd meters and fine rhythmic shifts are used not for difficulty but to support a sense that emotion does not land easily. On “Outside Looking In,” “Pale Fire,” “The Strand” and “Afterglow,” a construction that is heavy yet unafraid of space and never separates technique from emotion runs throughout. A song like “Monument” carries an introspective depth. The record’s appeal lies not only in prominent phrases but in the places where the drums and guitar shift angle slightly, and where the singing leaves an afterglow. Gaining expression the longer you listen, it is a flavorful record showing the band deepening in a more introspective direction after the previous album’s success.