Flashback DVD Review #2 - Pain of Salvation - "Be - Live"

This was originally written for the Rock Is Life.com website back in 2005. (2011 Update: After the review went up, I got a very nasty response from POS leader Daniel Gildenlow in which I was essentially called an unintelligent American.)

Pain of Salvation

Be - Live

Inside Out Music - 2005

http://www.painofsalvation.com

What's The 4-1-1?

Band founder and mastermind Daniel Gildenlow unveils his conceptual piece which is described as a modern fairy tale about the genesis of life. The disc, recorded in 5.1 digital, contains the entire 15 song live performance, short films, slide shows, commentary tracks, hidden messages and "messages to god".

Genre

Progressive metal

The Good

The overall tone/design of the performance is superbly done. There is a great mixture of voiceovers, visuals and additional musicians used to creat what it is that Gildenlow envisions for his musical vision. I enjoyed the portions of the show where he sounded like a wandering minstrel putting on a show in a far-flung tavern for the locals. It may sound like an odd way of describing something of the progressive metal genre, but that's what I took from it. I liked most of the instrumental pieces as well.

The Bad

The problems I had with the disc revolve around the fact that I simply either didn't get or was not drawn in enough to WANT to get whatever the message was that Gildenlow was trying to get across. While I would assume that its appropriate for the story being conveyed, his Jesus Christ-like pose was very irritating.

A lot of the material was just not what I would want to go out of my way to listen to again. The whole Latin song titles conceit was off-putting. The harder you make it for people to know what the heck you are talking about, the less they are going to be interested in whatever it is you are trying to get across to them.

The bonus features are a total waste of time. Unless you are a bonus features addict, there is no earthly reason to waste your time watching them. I did and now I'm this much closer to death with less time to accomplish anything of note.

The Verdict

While I did find myself enjoying different parts of the show, as a whole I was kind of disappointed in this disc. I have a friend that has been touting this group to me for months and sadly, I don't see what's so special about them. As I got closer and closer to the end of the show, I found myself feeling like I did when I saw the movie "Fargo". I was just PRAYING for it to be over so I could try and figure out a way to get back the time I just used up so foolishly.

Did You Know?

The DVD was actually performed and recorded before the band went into the studio to lay down the album itself. They had a special stage built in Eskilstuna, Sweden in order to put on just a few special public performances.

Rating: 2 out of 5