Well, I guess you could say the golden goose that really sinks this record has already been let out of the bag: "A Shade in the Light" is merely a tribute album, copying the popular past efforts of progressive metal's gateway groups and beating them four-hundred feet in the earth. The band's logistics are basically the same: unusual time-signatures (that become not-so-unusual after a few tracks), gratuitous keyboards, complex guitar solos, and perhaps immediate tempo changes. Variety between each tune, although present, is usually discreet at best, using a song like "Stillness" which applies a piano more frequently than the other tracks, for instance. Sometimes Persona Non Grata turns into an anomaly and pulls out a great song like "Before for Reason," a fun note with rocking riffs, twisting solos, adamant keyboards, and stylistic premium that shows a bright potential. Moments like such, however, are quite scarce, so the enjoyable sequence hardly comes into the ballpark; most of this stuff is paper-thin and immediately obsolete.

There is some reinforcing bass work that strangely remains in a ghost-area for whatever reason, although Chris Vogiatzis definitely brings a lot of jazzy plucks and interesting finger-picking techniques; not like a Zeus that plays bass, but still worth a mention for his obvious talent. It might be a bit overkill to proclaim Persona Non Grata is single-handedly saved by Bill Axiotis - the band's vocalist and a strong reason this Greek faction can float to shore and not suffocate from the rising tide quickly closing in - yet there's no doubt his voice is a pivotal part in aiding the listener’s stay in consciousness. He sounds substantially aggressive in tone, yet melodic and clearly able to sway between octaves like a driver dodging traffic cones. So a neat bass and noteworthy vocals meet a mediocre environment is all she wrote; not a thrilling tale, no sir.