Progressive Metal

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    Naïve – Altra (2015)

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    Arriving from France, today we have a very interesting and different release titled “Altra” from a band called Naïve. Mixing Progressive Rock/Metal influences with some trip-hop, shoegaze, and tons of electronic elements, they manage to create a very unique and dramatic cinematic experience in this album. Being more of the commercial-friendly spectrum of things, this release is quite mellow and perfectly enjoyable on a rainy day.

    Opening with the playful “Elevate/Levitate”, we are instantly treated to a very well put together track that nicely navigates through multiple moods and different soundscapes. With every track featuring soaring vocals and powerful guitars, this French trio has developed a very unique and solid formula to deliver high-quality songs like “Yshbel” and the excellent “Mother Russia” to name a few.

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    Luca Turilli’s Rhapsody – Prometheus – Symphonia Ignis Divinus (2015)

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    Delivering one of the most bombastic and ridiculously epic releases of 2015, today we have Luca Turilli’s Rhapsody with “Prometheus”. Vastly improving over their 2012 “Ascending to Infinity” the band elevates its game to reach new heights in terms of lush cinematic experiences. If you could imagine Therion paired with Blind Guardian and old Stratovarius, that is exactly what this album sounds like.   

    Building a very dramatic opening with “Il Cigno Nero”, the band’s signature intense tempo and theatrical vibe is felt instantly through Alessandro Conti’s vocals and Luca Turilli’s talented musical composition skills. The extreme usage of orchestrations and choir arrangements greatly pays off on tracks like “Anahata”, the dramatic “One Ring to Rule them All”, and the majestic “Prometheus”. The basic Power Metal core aspect of the band’s sound is kept very tidy through Alex Landenburg’s drumming and Patrice Guers’s bass guitar lines.

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    Kamelot – Haven (2015)

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    As one of the most anticipated releases of 2015, today we have Kamelot and their 11th full-length release “Haven”. Featuring a more explosive and theatrical sound, the band delivers around 54 minutes of brilliant music that shows a very well integrated Tommy Karevik with the rest of the band, making their music more cohesive and extra melancholic.

    In a very lively and dynamic opening, “Fallen Star” sets a very emotional mood for this release. As the first super catchy song of this release appears with “Insomnia”, featuring a great chorus section, it is very evident that Karevik is now perfectly integrated into the dramatic atmospheric keyboards and the playful guitar works of Thomas Youngblood. Moving into more lush and symphonic territories, “Citizen Zero” features a very Symphonic Metal-centric approach with excellent vocal arrangements and modern sounding guitars.

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    Emerged – Letting Go of Certainties (2015)

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    Formed by Tom Palms of Phlebotomized fame, this Dutch outfit delivers a nice five-song EP bridging genres between Progressive Metal, Heavy Metal, Stoner Rock, and some Doom. It is hard to standout these days, but the band’s music makes this quite effortless for Emerged. With a knack for epic melodies and super catchy song structures with a certain 90’s Metal feeling to them, this band is set to take the scene by surprise.

    With every song being quite different and a thing to individually explore, the band leads off with the melancholic “Dark Corner of my Mind”. In this track the band delivers a mid-tempo Proggy track with heavy riffs and some quite retro speedups. As we head into “Don’t Speak”, we have a livelier atmosphere with some chugging riffs and a certain old-school Psychedelic/Stoner vibe. Heavy Metal meets Prog Rock is the theme for the super catchy “Get a Life”, a song we can picture having vocals both by Dio and James LaBrie.

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    Rise of Avernus - Dramatis Personæ (2015)

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    With the popularity of Gothic/Symphonic Metal, hundreds of bands appeared in the scene and flooded our inbox with tons of sub-par releases. Luckily for us, Rise of Avernus does not conform with the masses and on their latest EP “Dramatis Personæ”, the band manages to have their own unique interesting of Progressive Gothic/Doom Metal. Imagining Septic Flesh meets Epica, this band delivers both intricate heavy music and some nice orchestrations to adorn things.

    Opening with “In the Absence of Will”, we get the traditional symphonic orchestrations mixed with some interesting riffs and tempo changes. The drumming is quite solid and the overall feel of the track is heavier than symphonic… what a relief. Things get a bit more complex and engaging with the brilliant “Path to Shekinah”, a song that features some heavy passages and engaging vocal arrangements (both growls and male clean vocals).

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    Enslaved – In Times (2015)

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    Constantly evolving and maturing over the last 10 years, Enslaved returns with another mesmerizing release with “In Times”. Further developing their Progressive Black Metal sound, the band delivers 53 minutes of impeccable music that will strengthen the band’s legacy and please all Metal fans. If you think the bar was set too high with “RIITIIR”, it has not been obliterated by this new release.

    Opening with a blistering onslaught in the first minute of “Thurisaz Dreaming”, the band masterfully turns the tides around and delivers an elegant piece that perfectly blends aggressive passages with the band’s signature proggy/jazzy melodic passages. Arve Isdal and Ivar Bjørnson do a great job in combining different guitar styles to create intricate song structures for the tracks in this release. With almost everybody pitching in on vocals (Grutle, Ivar, and Herbrand Larsen), the mood majestically changes without always needing elaborate tempo changes like on “Building With Fire”.

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    Oceans of Night – Midnight Rising (2014)

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    The USA Progressive Metal scene has been growing in the last few years, and surprisingly besides the premiere bands, there are many newcomers (or smaller bands) filled with quality like Oceans of Night. As the brainchild of multi-instrumentalist Scott Mosher, “Midnight Rising” marks the third full-length release of the band and greatly shows improvement over their previous albums. Coming in at nearly one hour of music, this release combines early 90’s Progressive Metal elements with the futuristic vibe of Dol Ammad and Ayreon.

    Opening with the atmospheric “The Haunted Mind”, the band seamlessly transitions into the Heavy/Power Metal elements of “Midnight Rising”. In this last track, Scott Oliva shines through the expertly crafted riffing and percussions. Breaking up the flow, the highly atmospheric “Critical Mass / The Breathless Sleep” nicely changes the pace of things before the epic “The Burning Sky”. As one of our favorite tracks in this release, the instrumental passages and guitar solos are just amazing in this one (there is a guest solo in this track by Chris Rifkin).

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    Deconstructing Sequence – Access Code (2014)

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    Hailing from the UK, today we have one of the most interesting bands we heard in 2013 return with their EP titled “Access Code”. The Deconstructing Sequence this time around delivers 16 minutes of music in two superbly written tracks that will only make you crave a full release from the band even more. The band’s progressive sound paired with their futuristic atmospheric elements makes them standout immediately.

    Opening with “A Habitable World is Found”, DS makes you believe things will be going a more ‘traditional’ way with the Death Metal-ish opening as they deliver growls, crushing riffs and powerful drums. This nicely changes as time goes by into their trippy atmospheric passages with multiple vocal styles and very proggy sounding synths. The track nicely culminates with spoken vocal sections and the nicely cascading musical elements as a backdrop.

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    NovaReign – Reign of the Infinite Sun (2014)

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    Hailing from the USA, where we do not have a lot of Power/Progressive Metal bands, today we have Power/Progressive Metal California outfit NovaReign and their first demo release. With “Reign of the Infinite Sun”, the band delivers four very promising tracks that with a little more work could be outstanding.

    Opening with the exciting “Call on the Storm”, the band showcases excellent musicianship and technical proficiency. The thing that brings down the experience is the not-there-yet vocals of David Marquez. While his range has potential, it still needs to be definitely worked on. As the epic riffs, tight drumming, and proficient guitar work continues on tracks like “Crimson Shield” and “Beyond the Cold”, we also noticed that for a demo in 2014, the production is a bit flat. A better job when mixing should do the trick and elevate the band’s sound.

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    Desdinova - Defying Gravity (2014)

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    Hailing from Eastern France, today we have Sci-Fi influenced Desdinova and their debut full-length titled “Defying Gravity”. Featuring an intense mix of Thrash Metal with Progressive elements, this is one release that brings memories from bands like old Metallica to more recent Progressive Metal releases. Crafting a unique style is hard, but Desdinova gives us a very promising showing of their ambitious music.

    The band starts off with very Metallica-esque songs with “Solanum” and “The Valley”. Things shift a bit more into playful territory with “The Valley”, before going very progressive with the soothing “Seven”. In just four songs the band quickly shows their range of abilities by crafting some ultra-catchy tunes that help Desdinova construct their own musical style. Filled with solid drumming and very charismatic vocals, this release has tons of elements to be discovered by the listeners. Going a bit more mainstream with “Sunbreaker”, the band keeps surprising us with their wide range of styles; however everything returns to their traditional Thrash roots in “Rules of Engagement”.

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