Synoptic – This Is What I’m Saying / 2005 Self / 14 Tracks / http://www.synopticmusic.com / [email protected] / Reviewed 05 June 2005

Synoptic plays a mixture of classic and indie rock, throwing in a large dollop of emo to seal the deal. The tempo in which they start off the disc (during “Claudia” really shows a band that is comfortable with each member and with what things will be received warmly by their audience. The mastering on “This Is What I’m Saying” is far from professional but does really allow the band to shine without hampering them too much.

While the music is cultured and cultivated (even going so far as having a track lik e”Ghost of My Immortal” broach the twin gates of goth-rock and progressive rock), the vocals seem to be on their own plane of existence. The slightly-nasal vocals of Jason really work on a different frequency than any other section of Synoptic, and this fissure really makes the disc accomplish less than would normally be possible. However, the differing time signature achieved by the guitars of Trey during “Hearts of Diamonds”, blowing directly in the face of the more traditional sound achieved by the rest of the band really shows a band that can strive for a number of different goals and succeed despite the dissonance. The straight-forward sound of Josh’s drums during “And Time Will Choose” really feeds into the scratching and sampling presented on the track by Chris.

The present, semi-midi sounding synths present on tracks like “Don’t Delay” has an other-worldliness imbued on it by the spastic arrangement of these electronically-created sound; in that track alone, one can hear salsa music just as easy as the indie-rock that dominates throughout the rest of the disc. By far, the disc’s strongest track has to be the emotive and drawn-out “The Funeral”, which recreates a Santana-like guitar solo on Trey’s keyboard. In this track, the vocals that have felt so alien throughout really coalesce into something that actually fits with the rest of the music on the track. Synoptic has found their song after the vast majority of the CD in which one can just hear the evolution of their sound. Synoptic is a vibrant and lush-sounding band that makes a very distinct sound for themselves during the runtime of “This Is What I’m Saying”. The band has room to grow, but the talent exhibited on this disc (in both instrumental and arrangement senses) makes it highly likely that the band will succeed in the years to come. Top Tracks: The Funeral, Claudia Rating: 6.0/10