"Numinosum" CD by Ascension Of The Watchers

by Björn Thorsten Jaschinski (23.01.2008) Solo projects are artistically most essential if they strongly differ from the original band – like Greg Graffin's excursions from von Bad Religion. Commercially, this kind of escape is quite dangerous, though: how close are the creators to their creations and how much do the fans limit them to a particular genre? Currently very active in terms of side projects are the musicians around the original Fear Factory-line up: ex-guitarist Dino returns in several projects and the vocal chameleon, Burton C. Bell strokes his Division Bell: he sings relaxed and soft accompanying music that is provided with spherical, not danceable Pop ("Like falling snow") with a Pink Floyd-note and fragile, acoustic guitars breathing some Folk- and Singer/Songwriter-flair ("Violent morning"). Completely un-metallic and consequently much closer than Nevermore and Heir Apparent to the interpreted title of Simon and Garfunkel's, "Sounds of silence". Bell's expressions have nothing to do with the mechanisms of the Fear Factory-remixes – his step aside is as radical as Kevin Moore's turning away from Dream Theater towards Chroma Key.