For those who aren't in the know about this band, they are a Progressive Death Metal band hailing from Reading, Pennsylvania. They are currently signed to Century Media Records and have been creating music since 2012. The band self describe themselves as "the sound of a sentient being at war with itself and everything else; an entity holding on for dear life as its inner and outer world dies."
There are moments where I'm shocked to not see Tommy Giles Rodgers listed on this track as a guest vocalist as James Dorton and Andy Thomas, BCI's vocalists, capture these amazing clear highs and also achieves some truly excellent growls. Honestly, I'm floored at the performance offered on this track from Dorton and Thomas, it's something they should truly be proud of. There are even more moments where Andy Thomas and Ethan McKenna weave around each other on their guitars that captures my imagination, the riffs are insane. Nick Shaw holds down the bass like a pro and allows the rest of the band the freedom to work their magic. It's a professional sound from a professional band. Sadly I couldn't confirm who was drumming on this performance, but if it was a live performance they should be applauded as well, it's so good.
The track opens with this clean guitar lick that is very reminiscent of late-career Gojira and early/mid-career Opeth. Drums join in to liven up the sound at ~0:28, creating a very hypnotic moment, almost meditative. It starts building the tension and the band unleashes into the next moment at ~0:56. Blast beats backbone these soaring clean vocals and these crushing guitar riffs. The song transitions to a quick moment with some excellent rhythm guitar at ~1:24 before switching to a spacey riff with some delightful bass work at ~1:29. Growling vocals come echoing in from the void and develop this part of the track into an interesting and ethereal moment.
At ~2:17 the guitars ramp up again and bring the listener to a proper Death Metal atmosphere complete with the Gojira pick squeals adding a nice rhythmic moment. We return to what seems like the chorus that was introduced back at ~0:56 and then the song transitions into this Prog chug fest with an excellent vocal performance at ~3:27. The song lives in this pock for a while before switching to another musical moment at ~4:14 where we return to that Death Metal section. It still crushes and honestly, could go a little longer in my humble opinion.
There's a startling transition at ~4:56 when a solo strummed acoustic guitar enters the picture. It's a beautiful moment that is very reminiscent of Opeth's more Prog based performances but in a really good way. The chord choices are excellent and it adds some nice contrast to the song. More of the band joins in at ~5:37 and the band jams on this moment for a while. Again, this section could go on a little longer and I would dearly enjoy it. The lead guitar continues as we switch back to a heavier sound at ~6:06.
This transition is seamless, and just as seamlessly a solo begins at ~6:20, and what a solo it is. This player's chops are astounding. The solo switches over to a guitar harmony lead line and the song continues on revamping on this moment until the song begins to fade out at ~7:17. Fading out was an interesting choice and a welcomed one.
I don't have a single critique of this song, and I highly encourage you to check it out. In the meantime, I'll be digging back into their catalog and revisiting some of the material I've passed over. If you like this track, you can pre-order their upcoming album on Century Media Records which is due to be released on August 7th, 2020.
No comments:
Post a Comment