Working as a guitarist and songwriter in a number of bands, such as THORIUM (BE), OSTROGOTH, NEO PROHPET, 23 ACEZ and others, Tom Tee also spent several years writing and recording a large number of songs of his own, in various styles and genres of Metal. Wanting to break free from the mold of writing music in function of what would fit a certain band's style, he set out to realize a long overdue dream - creating albums and projects that would not only unite influences from all the kinds of Metal he'd loved since his teenage years, but would also bring together a plethora of awesome vocalists from all across the scene. "Thriving Force" contains nine tracks.

"Inception" is an instrumental that opens with twin acoustical guitars and a somber tone, before the main riff hits hard and fast. The lead guitar solo is all over the place, flying to heights unknown. It segues into "Thrive." At first it's hard and heavy, with fast picked guitars and that familiar groove of Thrash Metal. The Progressive elements mingle in with the harsh vocals in a sound that I haven't really heard before. The chorus, by contrast, is chocked full of harmonized clean vocals. I have to say this mix is odd but let's keep going here. Following the second chorus there is a nice ambient passage with lead guitars. "I Bleed Worlds" opens with solemn clean guitars and a despondent tone. The vocals are incensed and bitter, while the music moves at a slow grind. A clean guitar passage is next, followed by a glittering guitar solo, then it's back to that original sound.

"The Dyeing of Spheres, Pt. 1" opens with a heavy riff done with an odd time meter. Melody works its way in but it doesn't quite fill in the spaces as evenly as you might expect. The Progressive elements take the song to completion. "The Dyeing of Spheres, Pt. 2" picks up where Part One left off, but with melancholy clean vocals over top those spikey musical accents. Bass can be heard dancing around the clean guitars. The harsh vocals bring it up a notch. I have to say that I appreciate the way these competing elements work in these two tracks as opposed to the first three. "Utopia" opens with bass and drums, a bit flirty. But the guitars mean business. Another wave of euphoric harmonized vocals passes over you like a stiff breeze. Things are starting to make sense to me now. That aggressive bed of Thrash Metal draws a thick line between passages however.

"Lunar" is a shorter piece, opening with dreamy acoustical guitars and strings, and an alluring guitar solo. The entirely of the song is shrouded in mystery. "Always in Motion" is a behemoth track, clocking in at over eighteen minutes. After a soft entrance, the guitar riff kicks in hard. The harsh vocals work well with the Progressive sound. From there, the song begins to explore. If you don't keep your wits about you, you could easily be swept away. It's a bit hard to follow, and passages that start and stop and change on a dime. "Solar" closes the album. Sexy saxophone notes drip over a bed of acoustical guitars with some vocal chants.

Overall, this was a tough album to digest, even for this Prog Snob. The musicianship is impeccable, but perhaps his goal too lofty? Though there is some semblance of order it is often too hard to follow, and the changes made too sharp. It's a shame, because the album has so much potential and with all of the guest musicians, this could have been something really special. Make smoother transitions, and connect some of the dots a bit cleaner, would be my recommendations. That being said, this must be heard for its originality factor alone.