Voyager: Colours In The Sun (Seasons Of Mist) [Matt Bladen]
Aussie proggers Voyager come back with their new album Colours In The Sun and it's a record that shows you the band Voyager are. They have toured all over the world and with each record they add another layer to their kaleidoscopic sound, which has resulted in this seventh record Colours In The Sun possibly their most cohesive and expressive release. Though it still veers wildly between stylistic choices, hooking in most of the record with chunky djent records but also bringing more old school prog sounds, pop hooks and walls of synthesisers and keyboards. Take the opening number Colours which kicks off with electronics that shimmer before the metal brings the grooves in, the dual guitars locking in for heaviness, though Brightstar is so loaded with synths that you could be forgiven for thinking it's an 80's styled synthwave song.
Aussie proggers Voyager come back with their new album Colours In The Sun and it's a record that shows you the band Voyager are. They have toured all over the world and with each record they add another layer to their kaleidoscopic sound, which has resulted in this seventh record Colours In The Sun possibly their most cohesive and expressive release. Though it still veers wildly between stylistic choices, hooking in most of the record with chunky djent records but also bringing more old school prog sounds, pop hooks and walls of synthesisers and keyboards. Take the opening number Colours which kicks off with electronics that shimmer before the metal brings the grooves in, the dual guitars locking in for heaviness, though Brightstar is so loaded with synths that you could be forgiven for thinking it's an 80's styled synthwave song.
Much like the new Leprous record there is massive amount of melody on this record, infact Einar Solberg of Leprous drops in on Entropy, with his as the massive choruses swell made for playing live. Hard nosed proggers may be a bit snobby about Voyager shedding some of their more overtly prog sounds but I think it will benefit the band in the long run, appealing to their already wide fanbase. A fan base so big that it's seen them open Download Festival Australia in 2019, it also reflects the theme of this album which is "musical depiction of a personal journey to an adopted country" while also "celebrating Australia’s vast and varied beauty with their new album." With this in mind you can hear why this album is both eclectic and upbeat, it's a celebration of a diverse landscape from a band who are musically gifted and are looking to take that next step in their evolution. 8/10
Ray Alder: What The Water Wants (InsideOut Music) [Matt Bladen]
Those who have indulged in progressive metal will probably know the name Ray Alder, he has been the lead singer of progressive metal legends Fates Warning since 1988, he was also until recently, the voice of Redemption. You have to think that the creation of this solo album was one of the factors why he left the latter but was it worth it? Well it is Alder's debut solo record and he has written the record with Mike Abdow, (Fates Warning touring guitarist), guitarist/bassist Tony Hernando (Lords Of Black) and Craig Anderson (Ignite) on drums. The album was mixed by Simone Mularoni (Rhapsody, Michael Romeo, DGM, etc.) and yes there are some similarities to Fates Warning as you'd expect on A Beautiful Life but there is a lot more than just being a clone of his main job. There's emotion that reminds me of bands like Queensryche on tracks like Lost.
Crown Of Thorns is a lot more dramatic built upon a pulsating bassline as the chorus hook swells on a very modern sounding song. It's bolstered by the mix by Simone Mularoni (Rhapsody, Michael Romeo, DGM, etc.) who brings his talent to make the record really shine on the passionate stripped back Some Days. As I was listening to this album one word went through my mind and that was Marillion...What The Water Wants sounds like the kind of music the British art-prog veterans have played since H was behind the mic. Even on the more rockier numbers such as Shine there's it lingers on the memory, with the ambient sounds of The Road and the more traditional progressive numbers like the excellent closer The Killing Floor. What The Water Wants may not win over hardcore prog metal fans but it shows why Alder is so revered as a vocalist with some heartfelt lyricism on top of the intelligent, mature musical base. 8/10
The Deathtrip: Demon Solar Totem (Svart Records) [Val D'Arcy]
Ray Alder: What The Water Wants (InsideOut Music) [Matt Bladen]
Those who have indulged in progressive metal will probably know the name Ray Alder, he has been the lead singer of progressive metal legends Fates Warning since 1988, he was also until recently, the voice of Redemption. You have to think that the creation of this solo album was one of the factors why he left the latter but was it worth it? Well it is Alder's debut solo record and he has written the record with Mike Abdow, (Fates Warning touring guitarist), guitarist/bassist Tony Hernando (Lords Of Black) and Craig Anderson (Ignite) on drums. The album was mixed by Simone Mularoni (Rhapsody, Michael Romeo, DGM, etc.) and yes there are some similarities to Fates Warning as you'd expect on A Beautiful Life but there is a lot more than just being a clone of his main job. There's emotion that reminds me of bands like Queensryche on tracks like Lost.
Crown Of Thorns is a lot more dramatic built upon a pulsating bassline as the chorus hook swells on a very modern sounding song. It's bolstered by the mix by Simone Mularoni (Rhapsody, Michael Romeo, DGM, etc.) who brings his talent to make the record really shine on the passionate stripped back Some Days. As I was listening to this album one word went through my mind and that was Marillion...What The Water Wants sounds like the kind of music the British art-prog veterans have played since H was behind the mic. Even on the more rockier numbers such as Shine there's it lingers on the memory, with the ambient sounds of The Road and the more traditional progressive numbers like the excellent closer The Killing Floor. What The Water Wants may not win over hardcore prog metal fans but it shows why Alder is so revered as a vocalist with some heartfelt lyricism on top of the intelligent, mature musical base. 8/10
The Deathtrip: Demon Solar Totem (Svart Records) [Val D'Arcy]
Combining talents from (ex) DHG, Mork and My Dying Bride, The Deathtrip are very much an international act, peddling their own form of occult Black Metal. Five years since their first outing, Demon Solar Totem is the follow up full-length to their 2014 debut, Deep Drone Master. Clocking in at forty five minutes, with seven tracks, songs are on the longer side of six minutes which is fitting of the mid-paced tempo that carries the majority of this record. There are some outbursts of pace that show up occasionally, but the overall mood of this album is one of doleful transfixiation; that accidental pace acts more as an amplifier to the disconsonant, trance-like state I seem to find myself in as I listen; It's an abstractly elevating, sonic experience.
The album cover features art by Luciana Lupe Vasconcelos, Brazilian born artist who was featured some time ago in Cvlt Nation for her particular flavour of gothicly-obscure imagery. She is best know for paintings that conjure associations with occultism and the supernatural, which perfectly captures the essence of Demon Solar Totem. The whole album is imbued with a sense of otherworldly mysticism; it creates an atmosphere that's thickly intoxicating. There appears to be some influence from all geographic corners of the band present here. Overwhelmingly, of course this is a Black Metal album, but heavy doom overtones are at work. There is a ritualistic feel brought about by the passages of clean, chanted vocals.
The production is intentional and vast, whilst keeping some rawness and grit in the sound of the drums and of course Kvohst's captivatingly primal vocals. The combination of the two latter forces is superb throughout this album, it produces a real feeling of underground sophistication. The sixth track and only single released from this album, Abraxas Mirrors is probably the most intense and hard hitting. From the melodic, tremolo picked riffs in the opening bars to the spoken screams and primitive blast beats this track will give a good insight into the look and feel of this album. That said, its an entity best served whole. 7/10
The Elysian Divide: Beast EP (Self Released) [Matt Bladen]
The Elysian Divide are a metal band from the UK, Beast is an EP that is the follow up to 2018’s debut album, Face Behind The Mask. Now they refer to themselves "female fronted metal" band, i struggle with this term so I'll call them a groove metal act with some traditional metal and gothic flourishes, frontwoman Atashi has a gritty vocal ideal for singing these songs that explore "human condition and the existential void" take Inspired By Hatred which is a bit poppier than first track Loser but features Atashi raging as the rhythm section of James Kelly (drums) Troy Michael Wicks (bass) bring the heavy with Jon Sick (guitar) double tapping and soloing with virtuosity. Even on their cover of Radiohead's Street Spirit (which is a bit heavier than The Darkness cover) the guitar playing is excellent as Atashi exhibits another side to her vocals as the rhythm section brings some power metal to Storm where things go a little Nightwish on the EP's longest number full of operatic madness.. A varied metal EP from The Elysian Divide that is a great addition to their debut record and a footing for their next. 7/10
The Elysian Divide: Beast EP (Self Released) [Matt Bladen]
The Elysian Divide are a metal band from the UK, Beast is an EP that is the follow up to 2018’s debut album, Face Behind The Mask. Now they refer to themselves "female fronted metal" band, i struggle with this term so I'll call them a groove metal act with some traditional metal and gothic flourishes, frontwoman Atashi has a gritty vocal ideal for singing these songs that explore "human condition and the existential void" take Inspired By Hatred which is a bit poppier than first track Loser but features Atashi raging as the rhythm section of James Kelly (drums) Troy Michael Wicks (bass) bring the heavy with Jon Sick (guitar) double tapping and soloing with virtuosity. Even on their cover of Radiohead's Street Spirit (which is a bit heavier than The Darkness cover) the guitar playing is excellent as Atashi exhibits another side to her vocals as the rhythm section brings some power metal to Storm where things go a little Nightwish on the EP's longest number full of operatic madness.. A varied metal EP from The Elysian Divide that is a great addition to their debut record and a footing for their next. 7/10
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