VOLA: Applause Of A Distant Crowd (Mascot Records)
Danish progressive, genre bending four piece Vola have managed to work their charms over all manner of music fans with their amazing musical talent and knack for songwriting. Their previous debut record Inmazes saw them expanding on the djent/modern prog metal blueprint with some atmospheric melodic meandering, it was weighty piece and one that slow burned Vola to the precipice of the progressive rock fraternity with as much love for them as the is for Brits Haken who they have similarities to.
It was a hard album lyrically based on internal struggles however here on the follow up the focus is shifted outward. Asger Mygind (vocals/guitar), is in happier place here and title is a metaphor derived from our relationship with social media, how we can appear close but be miles apart. Mygind elaborates: "We spend a lot of time trying to present ourselves in a flattering light in the pursuit of continuous applause, even if it’s a distant applause from those you may not connect with away from the screens."
They've taken a slightly more loose approach for this one, you can hear this in the first two tracks Mellow and Ghosts they are mellow pieces that float on the air drifting with ambience that reminds me of Anathema or Steven Wilson, much of this is due to the clean guitar lines from Mygind and the propulsive drumming of Adam Janzi. The album was mastered by Andy VanDette (Porcupine Tree, Steven Wilson, Devin Townsend, David Bowie) and it ebbs and flows the first glimpse of heaviness coming with the chunky Smartfriend, it's probably one of the most straightforward songs on the record but it's needed to bring in the heavy.
It means that tracks such as Ruby Pool are just as likely to have keys and jazz bass (Martin Werner & Nicolai Mogensen) as they are buzzing electronica (Alien Shivers) or Tool-like sound on Still with beauty on Green Screen Mother and Vertigo. Ambitious and spine-tingling at times Applause Of A Distant Crowd deserves all the plaudits it's going to receive, play it repeatedly to really hear it and you won't want to listen anything else for a while. 9/10
Beyond The Black: Heart Of A Hurricane (Napalm)
Fronted by the majestic voice of Jennifer Haben, German metal act Beyond The Black are heading into the hurricane with their arms and their minds wide open, having always toyed with a fusion of sounds this third record takes everything a step further to being truly fantastic. They could be, unfairly, compared to Delain, Within Temptation or Nightwish and if you were only listening to Million Lightyears then you'd forgiven for thinking that they were another symphonic metal clone but Beyond The Black are no so much a clone but a distillation of those influences with a new edge.
They marry their affinity with Medieval cinematics (Song For The Godless), with catchy pop sensibilities and also heavy blastbeating metal (Beneath A Blackened Sky/Fairytale Of Doom), all handled with class by Haben who has one of my favourite voices in music at the moment, her voice is fragile yet powerful breathily whispering one minute then belting like a Eurovision diva the next. The catchiness of Through The Mirror is a thing to behold especially as it features on a gothic doomy track, however then they've got elecro-pop for Escape From The Earth which could have come from Sharon Den Adel's My Indigo record.
It seems that at the Heart Of A Hurricane there is a swirling maelstrom of talent on offer with, bombastic keys, a sturdy rhythm section, crisp fret melting guitars, a hint of orchestral swelling and a chanteuse of a singer all creating a record that I've played numerous times already (even at 15 tracks). On the last Beyond The Black record we predicted big things for the band, well they're here to collect! 9/10
Satan: Cruel Magic (Metal Blade Records)
As writers we tend to throw the term 'legend' around alot but I'd say there was enough of an argument to call Newcastle Upon Tyne NWOBHM standard bearers Satan legends in the UK metal scene. Having released ’83’s seminal Court In the Act and ’87’s Suspended Sentence the band like so many took a break before returning in 2012 as a fierce touring and recording force they have produced two albums since then with both Life Sentence and Atom By Atom drawing from their heritage but modernising it with a tasty mix of proto-thrash, classic British metal and even lumbering doom, they have successfully crafted themselves into a vital proponent of post-millennial metal.
They approached their fifth album as the antithesis of the modern metal as guitarist Russ Tippins who said "I'm no longer as impressed as I used to be by speed, technique, control, heaviness, tone, flawless production and excessive bottom end!" they have been influenced by the re-release of their fan favourite debut Court In The Act which they see as naive but endearing due to it's D.I.Y nature, it means that Cruel Magic is trying to re-capture that sound making an effort to record every song in one take.
It's a risk that works as this record is possibly Satan's finest, the progressive cinematic Mortality ends the record in the same magisterial style as it opens with the galloping Into The Mouth Of Eternity then into the frenzied madness of The Doomsday Clock which sees Tippins (guitar), Steve Ramsey (guitar), Graeme English (bass) riff like Hell (a band who have gone through a similar reinvention) and the percussive My Prophetic Soul driven by Sean Taylor's drumming. Cruel Magic is another worthy addition to the Satan collection, it's proper heavy metal with Brian Ross a perfect master of ceremonies working the titular magic. 9/10
Moths: Moths EP (Self Released)
With such majesty previously featured in this edition of the blog it was probably time things got a little dirty, thankfully Puerto Rican stoners Moths are here for all your Mastodon styled progressive fuzz needs. This debut EP has thick syrupy licks, proggy time changes and some stirling vocal work that has growls, droning mids and even some Dickinson wailing, Lepidoptera has it all in one song (it's even got a jazz odyssey) and it's only the opener, but at 6 minutes of twists you're ready for the psychedelic Adhara & Rey which is a little Rush meets Jane's Addiction and the more direct heavy riffs of Desires which is the last original track on the EP.
The fourth cut here is a cover and when a band have such a progressive tendency it would be remiss if they didn't cover a prog classic so with that classic riff powering out of your speakers they have a pretty traditional take on 21st Century Schizoid Man. Moth have pretty unique thing going on, very progressive but with stoner grime rubbed all over it, I like and I'm sure you will too. 8/10
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