It's extremely hard to pigeonhole Echobrain into a genre or a "style." I called them "edgy rock 'n roll with definate jazz and new wave influences" in my review of the debut, Echobrain. While that holds true for their sophmore effort, they've also matured and expanded their sound. Gone is Jason Newstead and with him, the "distraction" of being "Newstead's new band," which leaves them free to be, simply, Echobrain. The first CD was a surprise and sounded fresh, mostly on the fact that since Newstead had jumped in straight from leaving Metallica, the expectation was for heavy, metallic music. Glean sounds fresh, yet retains the sound that made the debut so enjoyable.

Dylan Donkin (vocals, guitar) and Brian Sagrafena (drums) are joined by Dylan's brother Adam on bass (since replaced by Spencer Corey) and new 2nd guitarist/keyboardist Andrew Gomez. The addition of a second guitarist and use of keyboards add a new dimension to an already thickly layered sound. While the debut was jazzy in the tendency to incorporate lengthy jams into song structures, Glean relies more on song structure and time changes, mostly from softer melody to the heavy jam. Songs like "Jellyneck" and "Hardheaded Woman" show the heavier side of the band while the impressive "Nowhere Too Long" shows a moodier, more melodic side. The CD as a whole is a bit heavier than the debut but not verging on metal quite yet. It's obvious on songs like "Out Of Reach" that the influence is there, even if the desire to play it isn't.

I really can't find much fault in any of the songs, though. My one complaint is that it's not Echobrain part II. Glean is a fresh sound without deviating from their own style. This one proves that it wasn't Newstead's star-power or a flash in the pan, but a band with a songbook full of good songs that plans on putting out some good stuff for quite a while.

Rating: 8 of 10