Timeless Departure

As consistent as Skyfire's catalogue may be, their debut, Timeless Departure is the antithesis of the sonic balance displayed on their later material. The keys are overbearing and upfront, with the vocals weak and buried in the mix. With all of these shortcomings stacked against Timeless Departure, it still perhaps reigns supreme as Skyfire's best work.

The orchestral bluster of the short intro readies the listener's ears for the opening of the bombastic gates, and "Fragments of Time" does well to introduce virgin ears to the amalgam of styles being pioneered here. Chugging, powerchord-driven guitar passages give way to classy leadwork set in front of mountains of programmed orchestration. It almost ends up sounding like the band wrote the keyboard sections first, and added the guitars and vocals later. It definitely evokes an interesting atmosphere, even if the string sound never fully satisfies from a sonic viewpoint. A few faint classical influences ebb and flow throughout some of these tracks, most evidently on the closer "From Here to Death".

The leadwork is impressive, even though Skyfire shied away from including solos. On "By God Forsaken" there is a truly sublime, atmospheric section about halfway into the song during the line "Look at my life. What do you see?" that sounds so uplifting and glorious that you wish you could revel in its harmonies for a longer period. The best individual keyboard section surfaces at about 2:15 into "Fragments of Time", which is ultimately joined by a chugging, ascending riff that perks my ears up during every listen. "Dimensions Unseen" remains Skyfire's most well-written and enduring song, even today thirteen years after its inception. The twinkling piano melody during the verses counterpoints the driving guitars and vocal patterns extremely well. Don't miss that one, if anything.

While the melodies are incredibly searing and memorable, most of these tracks are written in a very similar, formulaic matter. Most open with a melodic onslaught that initially turns heads, continuing in a slightly-altered form throughout the verses and two rounds of the chorus. After the second chorus a new keyboard section is implemented, usually in the form of a breakdown. A final chorus usually drives the track home. The only real exceptions to this pattern are "From Here to Death" and the title track due to its longer running time. I can't help but still see it as a compositional flaw, but this would be swiftly rectified by the time Mind Revolution was released.

I've read in interviews that both Wenngren and Björk penned the lyrics. Wenngren's performance has zeal and tenacity, but he is severely let down by the production. His vocals sound almost entirely gutted and buried, even when they are doubled-up. The production as a whole is very uneven, as the keyboards hog the spotlight in a near-universal manner. The rhythm section has some low end do it, but this is mostly Sjögren's bass. The rhythm guitar has very little staying power, only really making it's presence felt during "Dimensions Unseen".

Regardless, most of these wrinkles can be forgiven by virtue of the fact that Timeless Departure is a debut full-length. Skyfire would swiftly drop this orchestral approach, only slightly hinting at its return during sections of Esoteric. Even if the band returned to this compositional method, there is no way Timeless Departure can ever be dethroned.

(Revised/Updated 1/25/14)