OK, are you ready to take a deep breath and dive into the past? Because this is what you are going to do listening to SIENA ROOT's fourth full length album Different Realities. And talking about the past I mean quite a long time ago and far, far, far away from Metal. Let's go back in the 70's.

The band was formed ten years ago in Sweden. The explanation of their name is quite interesting. In their own words in the sense that the Blues is blue, Hard Rock is black, and reggae is pan-African coloured, this music has the colour of siena. It is a warm, earthy colour, originally from the muddy roots of Toscana. Because this sound has roots that go deep, it was also natural to let root be a part of the band's name. As for the lineup, apart from the three guys being the spine of the band, they have a singer whose identity remains a secret. The only thing that we take for granted is that his voice is not the same with the previous vocalists of SIENA ROOT.

Just by seeing the Press release font and the cover artwork I was sure for what to expect. 60s/70s Rock with a hippie attitude, with some more Rock-ish feeling in the first part of the album, which is separated as a vinyl disc, bringing in mind huge bands like LED ZEPPELIN, JETHRO TULL, CREAM and CAPTAIN BEYOND among others. The first side is more Rock oriented and the second one more ethnic, if I can say that, by listening to flute, sitar and tribal percussion to name a few. I am not a fan of instrumental albums, but Different Realities floats nicely. My only objection is the two songs with vocals, We are Them (still one of my favorite in the album) and As We Return, that seem out of place since the rest of the album is an instrumental one. The organ gives that extra something and with the well played guitar solos ant the analog warm sound it makes this album a good companion for someone that wants to listen to something like that written nowadays. Just listen to the excellent 60's-like acid jam in Over The Mountain or Jog, a 10-minute RUSH-alike opus.

I was surprised in a good way with this album. Different Realities is energetic, full of beautiful melodies and surely a different album than all the others I have come across. For all the ones that like the oldies this album is one of those that you have to buy. A strangely beautiful album.