Evan, Author at The Progressive Subway

Review: Dawn Fades – Ode

Evan — Thu, 30 Sep 2021 14:00:00 +0000

Style: Post Metal (mixed vocals)
Review by: Evan
Country: United States
Release date: September 10th, 2021

Post-metal is hardly a descriptive genre title. What you would expect, perhaps, and what the genre originated with, is sludge riffs mixed with atmospheric elements from post-rock. What you typically get, however, is sludge riffs mixed with any random genre that’s traditionally softer. One of the popular trends as of late is mixing forms of extreme metal with shoegaze, like the divisive blackgaze. Dawn Fades, on the other hand, takes a more traditional form of post-metal and mixes it with a more traditional form of shoegaze, and produces a surprisingly captivating take on the genre.

I despise saying “band X is band Y meets band Z,” but in this case it is too apt to resist. Dawn Fades is Isis meets Slowdive. Coincidentally enough, I listened to a Souvlaki for the first time just a week before I heard Ode, yet the resemblance, specifically in the softer sections and clean vocals, is striking. Essentially, you get the “sludgey” riffs of Isis in the heavier section, mixed with blackgaze harshes, and the gaze like softer sections with laid back cleans. Overall, these elements fit well enough together to create a persistent atmosphere.

Opener “Dearth” has its moments, but certainly plods on a bit too extensively, even for the genre. Thankfully, it is followed by “Taste,” which is an extremely well focused track, demonstrating Dawn Fade’s dynamics at their best and coming to a hypnotizing concluding riff without overstaying its welcome. “Ode 1” is an interlude, and “Ode 2” effectively mixes soft verses with aggressive choruses, followed by a combination of the two at its conclusion. “Front” is fairly fluidly structured, focusing largely on atmospheric melancholy. “Chains” is a classic post-metal build, enrapturing the listener in its atmosphere before its dramatic and crushing conclusion. Lastly, closer “Turning” is a soft goodbye with that classic gaze sound.

Ultimately, the tracks are effective not only in building an internal atmosphere, but also in creating one that persists throughout the album. The persistent melancholy of the chosen gaze stylings meshes well with the post-metal aggression to meet this goal. Especially worth highlighting is the work of the guitarists, who are clearly quite adept at both styles. The vocals shift well as well, although the cleans may sound a bit too empty, even for gaze.

With the trimming of some excess, both on the metal and gaze fronts, Dawn Fades could easily become an even better band. Additionally, Dawn Fades could do to forge a more unique identity from both its predecessors and contemporaries. Whatever they chose to do going forward, however, Ode is still a worthwhile listen for fans of shoegaze or post-metal.

Recommended tracks: Taste, Ode 2, Chains
Recommended for fans of: Isis, Slowdive, Alcest
Final verdict: 6.5/10

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Review: Diskord – Degenerations

Evan — Tue, 31 Aug 2021 14:00:00 +0000

Style: Tech Death (harsh vocals)
Review by: Evan
Country: Norway
Release date: August 13th, 2021

After reviewing 7 death metal albums in a row, I decided to mix it up by reviewing another death metal album. This is no joke: Diskord has such a unique and diverse sound that it’s practically like listening to a different genre (or so I tell myself when I am flamed for listening to too much death metal).

Weird death metal is the best kind, and Degenerations is the perfect kind of weird, with chaotic style and tempo changes many times per song somehow fitting together cohesively. Each song mixes together old school death metal with prog, tech, doom, psych and experimental. The embedded track, “Abnegations,” is a perfect example, mixing together crushing doom with fast dissonant riffing, dazzling solos, and incredibly varied harsh vocal techniques. It is difficult to count how many times the tempo and style shifts in this track alone. And that is only the third track of the album: many later tracks are somehow even more unhinged. The FFOs section for this band is truly a nightmare, because it would not be a challenge to find countless bands from various sub-genres whose sound is expertly used by Diskord.

One of the greatest aspects of Degenerations, however, is that while each song features experimentation, Diskord favors tight song-writing, with few tracks even hitting the four minute mark, and none the five minute mark. This makes the number of ideas fit into each track even more impressive. Diskord’s song structures are also completely unpredictable, leaving each track with a unique identity. Explaining every track on the album would be such an exhausting endeavor. Ultimately, at many places I have no idea how the album works, just that it does, and that is good enough.

Beyond the style and song writing, Degenerations features strong performances from every member. As mentioned, the guitar riffing is impressively eclectic. The guitars are backed by strong bass lines that are reminiscent of old school, jazz influenced tech death. The drumming rounds the spectrum as well, delivering pummeling blast beats or intense polyrhythms whenever needed. The vocals are surprisingly varied as well, including shrieks, growls, and screams. Vocalist sounds like an absolute madman in the best way possible, perfectly matching the chaos of the music behind him. Lastly, the production is clear, allowing all instruments to be heard, but not to the point of sterility.

Offering proper criticism of this album is impossible: most of my usual gripes with some progressive/technical death acts (bloat, wank, overproduction, boring vocals) simply do not apply here. Through the winding path of each song, and the album as a whole, Degenerations takes its listeners through chaotic yet deliberate and old school yet inventive world of their unique style of death metal. And for that, Degenerations is not only my favorite new release of the year so far, but essential listening for all fans of technical/progressive death metal. This is one rec you should take seriously.

Recommended tracks: Abnegations, Dirgiste Radio Hit, Gnashing
Recommended for fans of: Gorguts, Demilich, Pyrrhon
Final verdict: 9/10

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Review: Calliophis – Liquid Darkness

Evan — Thu, 05 Aug 2021 14:00:00 +0000

Style: Death Doom (harsh vocals)
Review by: Evan
Country: Germany
Release date: July 16th, 2021

Unfortunately, I have to begin with a confession, one that troubles me deeply to admit: I cannot for the life of me discern what is happening on the album cover. There are so many questions and so few answers. Some sort of spell that summons water and tentacles? A plumbing job gone horribly wrong? It is anyone’s guess. Thankfully, I am not here to review art or I would be out of a job.

With my career as an art critic thoroughly dismantled, it is time to talk about the actual music. Calliophis plays the melodic and gothic style of death doom, more similar to Paradise Lost than the chunkier Autopsy style. Also worth mentioning is that Calliophis does not stray too far from other melodic death/doom bands and contains few “progressive” elements (not that this is inherently bad, just worth mentioning based on the blog’s focus). Songs are filled with clean guitar leads and classic doom riffs, the production is hardly raw, and tempos remain consistent but slow, never breaking into full death metal aggression or funeral doom slog. The vocals are fairly standard death growls, with a whisper here and there. The first word that comes to mind as one plods through each 10 minute plus track is “consistent,” and all positive and negative connotations of the word apply.

Speaking of consistency, the guitarists write good sounding leads in every track. In addition, each individual track represents a good, standard death/doom balance of the aforementioned leads and heavier riffs.

However, while the band may not struggle with writing songs or leads, far more attention should be paid to the actual riffs (especially in death/doom!) Essentially every heavy riff on the album sounds virtually identical, and are thus nearly impossible to distinguish when thinking back upon the album. Moreover, while the band has a consistently good songwriting formula, they apply it far too consistently (I am starting to hate that word), and the tracks become even harder to mentally separate from one another. The album is also bookended by its strongest tracks, whereas its midsection is in many places much harder to justify. Even more damning, the extreme focus on melodic leads diminishes the ability of the album to create atmosphere, as it often feels to be a sequence of individually well-crafted, but somewhat mismatched, melodies.

Criticism aside, this album would probably be enjoyable for fans of melodic death/doom. Nothing is particularly poorly executed, the sounds just seem to blend together by the end.

Recommended tracks: Liquid Darkness, Fratricide
Recommended for fans of: Paradise Lost, Katatonia, My Dying Bride
Final verdict: 4/10

Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Facebook | Metal-Archives page

Label: Solitude Productions – Bandcamp | Website | Facebook

Calliophis is:
– Thomas (vocals)
– Matthias (lead guitars)
– Florian (rhythm guitars)
– Andreas (bass)
– Florian (drums)

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Review: No Living Witness – Cosmic Simulacra

Evan — Mon, 26 Jul 2021 14:00:00 +0000

Style: Tech/Melo Death/Black (mixed vocals)
Review by: Evan
Country: USA
Release date: July 2nd, 2021

Usually when writing a review, or otherwise evaluating a piece of music or art, one looks for similar works for comparison. When a band creates from a variety of disparate influences a new sound, along with the excitement and novelty, there is a difficulty of evaluation. After all, it is far easier to evaluate when comparison is possible. Cosmic Simulacra is an album that makes one want to leave the FFOs blank at the bottom of the page, and scratch their head at the impossibility of reviewing where comparisons are so difficult.

To start it would be impossible to label the genre of Cosmic SImulacra without sounding like one of those horribly overused genre-salad jokes. For simplicity’s sake, Cosmic SImulacra is primarily composed of melodic black metal and technical death metal, mixed with a variety of influences from modern progressive music, with a touch of the symphonic. There is not a band I have heard that mixes these styles in all too similar a way to No Living Witness, so to avoid admitting a potential gap in my knowledge, I am forced to conclude that they are the only band with this sound. But since I am obligated to fill out the FFOs section, imagine the melodic black parts of Enslaved mixed with The Faceless.

All this rambling about novelty begs the all-important question that surely everyone is asking: does it work? The vast majority of the time the answer is yes. Alternations between melo-black tremolo picking and tech death speed and aggression keep the album interesting and the listeners on their toes. Vocals from both styles are effectively alternated as well, including the occasional use of cleans. The opening track on the album “Discarded Ember from the Universal Flame” is perhaps the best representation of the sound on the album, demonstrating strong builds, and the signature rapid shifts between styles. The album does in many ways stick to its own formula, but this formula is novel enough that this is only a strength.

There are a few places, particularly toward the end in the album’s longer songs, where it feels the stylistic ambition is taken to far too extreme. A continued emphasis on merging styles leads to ever so slight bloating, and an occasional sense of meandering and disjointment. Potentially the song-writing in certain places such as these could use a touch of refinement. However, these criticisms are highly overshadowed by the strength and originality of the first half of the album.

Overall, Cosmic Simulacra presents a unique melding of styles that usually works quite well. Due to its diverse influences, many fans across genre lines will find something to love in its ambitious experimentation.

Recommended tracks: Discarded Ember from the Universal Flame, Dimensions of Diviner’s Sage, Sailing on a Cardboard Sea
Recommended for fans of: Enslaved, The Faceless (if they were mixed together)
Final verdict: 7.5/10

Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Facebook | Instagram | Metal-Archives page

Label: Independent

No Living Witness is:
– LJ (vocals)
– Sam Haglund (guitars/vocals)

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Review: Fractal Universe – The Impassable Horizon

Evan — Thu, 08 Jul 2021 14:00:00 +0000

Style: Tech Death (mixed vocals)
Review by: Evan
Country: France
Release date: June 25th, 2021

At the rate at which I am reviewing tech death albums, I am going to have no material left for my introduction, and the originality of my quips will fade faster than that of the genre’s new releases. This is quite facetious, as while it may often hold true, I have been reasonably, and in some cases more than reasonably, pleased by the recent output. After spending my last few evenings with The Impassable Horizon, I am once again, in fact, more than reasonably pleased.

Having never listened to Fractal Universe’s prior albums, the most immediately obvious stylistic comparison to their newest release is Alkaloid. For those familiar with Alkaloid (as everyone should be), this indicates a sound substantially more on the prog side than the pure tech side, which is always a positive. Fractal Universe has other parts to their recipe as well: an emphasis on clean vocals, including a few genuine choruses, and jazzy interludes almost reminiscent of Cynic. There is also a saxophone at certain times, but it is used sparingly and tastefully, fitting the music and never seeming too much like a gimmick. The music is, overall, far more melodic than one would typically expect in the genre.

Fractal Universe’s vision is ultimately well executed. Firstly, the riffing is, in general, excellent. It is technical without succumbing to tech excess or wankery, and demonstrates a clear variety of influences, old and new. The sheer abundance of clean vocals is quite rare for the genre, but they are nicely varied, and fit the music better than one might expect. The audible techy bass and diverse, but always form-fitting, percussion show the rhythm section pulling its weight. As for songwriting, the songs are, more similar to older tech death, in general quite short, and very tightly written. Well-executed soft-loud dynamic shifts abound.

There is not much to criticize in this album. The only sticking criticism, is that, like is so common for modern bands in the genre, the album outstayed its welcome by, perhaps 5 or 10 minutes. Fractal Universe and other modern tech bands would do well to look back to old prog/tech death masters and keep their albums closer to 30 minutes, especially since the ideas feel a tad recycled towards the center of the album.

Overall, Fractal Universe demonstrates a deep knowledge and command of the genre and produces tightly written, surprisingly catchy tracks with impressive performances that make this album essential listening for prog/tech death fans.

Recommended tracks: Autopoiesis, A Clockwork Expectation, Godless Machinists
Recommended for fans of: Alkaloid, Gorod, Rivers of Nihil
Final verdict: 8/10

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Review: Alustrium – A Moment to Silence

Evan — Tue, 29 Jun 2021 14:00:00 +0000

Style: Progressive Metal, Death Metal (harsh vocals)
Review by: Evan
Country: Pennsylvania, United States
Release date: June 18th, 2021

While listening to this album and preparing for my review, I began to hear rumblings in the prog world about this album. Hyperboles were audible around every corner. Thankfully, I am entirely unbiased and refuse to accept any evidence or suggestion to the contrary. You will find neither a quick, thoughtless embrace of the consensus nor knee-jerk contrarianism, given that I am wholly immune to being influenced by the opinions of others. But I assume you are not here to read sarcastic jabs directed at both myself and review-writing generally; rather, you are here for the music, so I will digress no longer.

Diving straight into the style of Alustrium, A Moment to Silence is one part technical death metal, one part progressive death metal, and one part melodic death metal, with a surprisingly even balance between the three. Overall, the sound of this album is highly reminiscent of bands like Rivers of Nihil and Black Crown Initiate but does not always shy away from the fast technical riffing of modern tech bands like Obscura. I actually struggled quite a bit at following site guidelines and only picking 3 bands for the FFOs since there are a lot of bands that sound similar to the music here. While this could be interpreted as a dig, Alustrium plays a fairly well-crafted and refined version of this trendy modern death metal style (insomuch as you can ever call any form of death metal trendy).

Now, it is time to prove to you that if you like the other bands on the FFOs, Alustrium is worth your time. The greatest strength of Alustrium is compositional, namely how the shifts between the three riffing styles (melo, tech, and prog) fit together quite seamlessly in each track. Great attention is paid to ensure every track is not only cohesive, but also includes enough of a balance of aggression and hooks to please diverse fans. The drumming also exhibits a variety of styles, matching the dueling guitars through each of their twists and turns.

Now that you will certainly check out the album, obviously due to my immaculate persuasive and descriptive skill, it is time to do what every critic claims to hate but secretly loves: criticize. The strongest criticism of the album is that it is longer than it needs to be. An album that is an hour long needs to have one of two things: an extremely pervasive atmosphere that requires that length to build, or a myriad of interesting ideas spread out across the tracks. While the tracks are not extremely similar, they do start to blur together around minute 40, and the atmosphere is not captivating enough to remain enticing. Another excuse for length could be overall originality, but as mentioned, Alustrium is fairly by the books. Also, finally admitting I am biased, while the vocals are technically proficient, I do not like deathcore style vocals, so that certainly affects my judgement of this album, as much as I try to avoid it.

Gripes aside, modern prog death fans will find a lot to love in Alustrium’s latest release. Granted, some of the hyperboles, and some of the extremely early AOTY remarks are certainly overstated.

Recommended tracks: This Hollow Ache, The Accuser, A Monument to Silence
Recommended for fans of: Black Crown Initiate, Rivers Of Nihil, Obscura
Final verdict: 7/10

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Review: Gn0sis – Pro Terra

Evan — Tue, 22 Jun 2021 14:00:00 +0000

Style: Tech Death (instrumental)
Review by: Evan
Country: United States
Release date: May 21st, 2021

When you see a band called something like Gn0sis (especially with an album cover like this), you know it’s a tech death band. What is more surprising in this case, and especially so if you hear the music, is that Gn0sis is a one man project. Shocking, a one man project paying something other than weird black metal. In fact, Pro Terra is quite the opposite of the one man black metal project’s ethos: it is extremely technical, clean, and polished, perhaps to a fault.

“Clean” should give you an idea of the style of tech death that Gn0sis plays. Gn0sis fits clearly into the modern tech death paradigm, where every riff might as well be a solo and the guitar tone almost makes you almost forget it is death metal to begin with. Gn0sis differentiates themselves with a decent amount of dynamics, reportedly inspired by film scores. Also, as mentioned, Gn0sis is wholly instrumental.

The first thing that stands out about the performance on this album is that while it is heavily guitar driven, the other instrumental parts mesh quite well together, and with the guitars. It is unclear what Roger Trivinos did for the other instruments (i.e are the drums tracked or did he play them), but the synchronization, and compositional strength of drums and bass is impressive either way. Moreover, the tracks with dynamics are exceptionally well written, and that epic “film soundtrack” feel is truly present on the last track, “Anthropause.”

All this being said, Pro Terra still suffers from many of the common pitfalls of prog, and specifically tech death. A lot of the riffing, especially in the first half of the album, is rather unmemorable due to both its lack of bite and overindulgence of technicality. Moreover, even though the riffs sound quite similar to one another, they feel disjointed because each track never quite settles on a riff or motif. The lack of vocals makes this problem even more noticeable than it is in other tech death groups.

Ultimately, while Gn0sis does little to progress tech death, or even to attempt to overcome its most frequent pitfalls, it is still, like most of its genre contemporaries, an enjoyable, impressive, and energetic release. “Anthropause” shows some serious promise, however, and shows a clear direction in which Gn0sis can progress.

Recommended tracks: Pro Terra, Eons of Truculence, Anthropause
Recommended for fans of: The Faceless, Martyr, Beyond Creation
Final verdict: 6/10

Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Facebook | Metal-Archives page

Label: Independent

Gn0sis is:
– Roger Trivinos (everything)

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Review: Intonate – Severed Within

Evan — Tue, 04 May 2021 14:00:00 +0000

Style: Tech Death (harsh vocals)
Review by: Evan
Country: Canada
Release date: April 16th, 2021

Dear Reader, I have a confession to make. Over the past year, I have fallen deeply in love with dissonant tech death. Fortunately for you, we are not exlusive; this subgenre is polyamorous. You too can join me in my love for music that tries its hardest, and with the utmost technical ability to not to resemble music! And there is no finer way to celebrate the love of this subgenre than to listen to a remarkably strong new offering from Intonate.

Personal feelings aside, it is time to discuss what the album offers stylistically. Intonate have a clear, but intricate recipe. Start off with a large portion Ulcerate/Gorguts style riffing, and some of the atmospheric qualities of both of their later releases as well. Then, add a large helping of standard funeral doom/death doom influence. Finish with a pinch of black/death influence in the form of tremolo picking abuse. Sounds tasty? That’s because it is.

Now that we have our recipe, we can talk about the tracks. There is quite a bit of variety offered. The first two tracks, “Sever” and “Within” pummel you with dissonant riffs, with the exception of a powerful build that closes up the second track. The third track, “Yearn” is heavily meandering, highly atmospheric, and features a few scraps of melody, including an excellent, yet tasteful, solo. “Wander” is more similar to the opening tracks. “Prolong” is loaded with doom influence and features an incredibly eerie second half that layers with acoustic guitars. Overall, the song structures are highly unpredictable, almost seeming random at times, yet still somehow make sense. The atmosphere, through the twists and turns of each track, is pervasive.

Next, onto the performances. This album is heavily guitar centric. The two guitarists carry the mix at virtually all points. Of specific note, and innovatory, is the extended use of memorable tremolo picked riffs within the dissodeath formula. The drumming, while still incredible, seems to play more of a subordinate role, and is not quite as over the top as their peers in Ulcerate. Still, like much tech death, the bass is clearly visible, and contributes well to the sound. The vocal work, while completely unvaried, is suitable to the purposes, and atmosphere, of the album.

For the first time on this site, I actually have nothing bad to say. Intonate spices up the formula of a great genre by adding unique elements of their own, having incredible song-writing skills, being technically skilled musicians, and continuing to do what the genre does best: crushing its listeners in the best way possible.

Recommended tracks: Within, Yearn, Prolong
Recommended for fans of: Ulcerate, Gorguts, Portal
Final verdict: 9/10

Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Facebook | Metal-Archives page

Label: Willowtip – Bandcamp | Website | Facebook

Intonate is:
– Nicola Nucciarone (vocals/guitars)
– Ulysses Fiorito (guitars)
– Jean-Philippe Matte (bass)
– Dominic Nucciarone (drums)

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Review: Paranorm – Empyrean

Evan — Mon, 22 Mar 2021 14:00:00 +0000

Style: Extreme/Technical Thrash Metal (harsh vocals)
Review by: Evan
Country: Sweden
Release date: February 26th, 2021

When I first searched up this band on Spotify they had fewer than 4000 listeners. Now less than two weeks later, they are at almost 10,000 (thankfully not quite, as that would put them over our review cap!). Therefore, I feel that I am a little late to the party. Nevertheless, Empyrean warrants a review.

This is a thrash metal album. Half the readers left after hearing that probably, given the genre’s modern state. However, if there is one thrash band in this decade that has received acclaim it is Vektor, and Paranorm sounds a hell of a lot like Vektor. Thankfully they are able to avoid just sounding like a clone. For one, Paranorm incorporates quite a bit more melody into their guitar playing, and overall the music is less aggressive. This is relative of course, as Paranorm is still an extreme thrash band. There is also a substantial modern tech death influence, clearly heard in the production, some of the guitar work, and most notably the vocals.

So why has this album received rather positive reviews and rapidly increased the following of the band? Well for one the lead guitar work on this album demonstrates not only an impressive virtuosity, but also a capacity for solid thrash riffs. Interesting guitar harmonies and impressive solos fill the album as well. Moreover, The general song-writing principles of the band are quite well-fleshed out. The first track of the album, “Critical Mass” is pure thrash aggression, while the longer third track, “Edge of the Horizon,” features a long build before exploding into a similar frenzy, demonstrating a propensity for both thrashing hard and longer form songwriting. The occasional but not too rare use of dynamics helps keep the album engaging throughout.

So is this album a modern thrash classic? Probably not, for a few reasons. While the lead guitar work is impressive, it is often excessive, and there are no memorable rhythm, bass, or drum parts or interplays throughout the album, which is mostly lead guitar spectacle. The vocals similarly can get a bit monotonous as they have the exact same delivery in every segment of the album. Ultimately, the album is purely based on the lead guitar work, which everything else just seems to serve to back up. Coupled with the extremely clean production, the album puts far more emphasis on impressing the listener with guitar work than it does on building atmosphere or emotion.

Despite this criticism, Paranorm are clearly a group of talented musicians, and Empyrean is a strong, enjoyable album, certainly worth checking out. And perhaps, if many critics are praising it, and many prog fans are rushing to listen to it, it could be even better than I am giving it credit for.

Recommended tracks: Critical Mass, Edge of the Horizon, Desolate Worlds (Distant Dimensions)
Recommended for fans of: Vektor, Obscura, Coroner
Final verdict: 7/10

Label: Redefining Darkness Records – Bandcamp | Website | Facebook

Paranorm is:
– Markus Hiltunen (vocals/rhythm guitars)
– Fredrik Kjellgren (lead guitars)
– Samuel Karlstrand (drums)
– Marcus Blom (bass)

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Review: Oceana – The Pattern

Evan — Sun, 07 Mar 2021 14:00:00 +0000

Style: Death/Traditional (mixed vocals)
Review by: Evan
Country: Italy
Release date: January 29th, 2021

Normally, I take the liberty of sampling from an album before choosing to review it. However, this album was labeled prog death (the indisputably greatest subgenre), had a beautiful cover, and was mixed by Dan Swano. Seems cool right? Well, the best I can say is I will not retract my compliment of the album cover.

Before ragging on this too hard, it would be prudent to discuss genres. The band, in interviews, claims to be playing some form of progressive gothic death/doom. I hear the gothic and some of the doom, but not all too much of the death besides the harsh vocals. In fact, the record overall ends up sounding much more like standard progressive metal than anything else. It is easy to hear at least as much Dream Theater as Edge of Sanity. Choosing to play a more melodic style of music is not inherently a bad thing. However, here it is clearly detrimental.

The largest issue with this record is that its dynamics are not nearly convincing enough. The song structures are very akin to Opeth or Edge of Sanity, but the riffs and music in general are never heavy enough to leverage that type of writing. Whenever the harsh vocals come in, the music underneath hardly changes, and the few death metal riffs that do exist on the album are rather boring. This is a shame because many of the clean sections are rather pretty and sometimes even fairly catchy, though maybe a tad repetitive. These minimizations of dynamics, especially in the riffing, renders the record far less varied than it conceivably could have been. And to further this point, many of the shorter songs sounded rather similar.

But it would be a mistake to completely dismiss Oceana’s work here. While the guitar work is not extremely interesting, there are a lot of solid melodies, and the clean vocal layering helps build some of these melodies into some very beautiful and catchy sections. Moreover, the mix and production further help achieve this aim. But while I was enraptured by sections on the album, and actually quite enjoyed its longest track, the sameness permeating throughout and the really boring heavier sections made the album as a whole somewhat dull.

Ultimately, while I found Oceana’s focus on melody opposes their song-writing goals, I could conceivably see someone who is far more interested in a traditional style of prog metal enjoy this record far more than I did.

Recommended tracks: Hiding Lies, Carousel, Atlantidea Suite Part 1
Recommended for fans of: Edge of Sanity, Katatonia, Dream Theater
Final verdict: 4/10

Related links: Bandcamp| Spotify | Facebook| Instagram | Metal-Archives page

Label: Time to Kill Records – Bandcamp |Website | Facebook

Oceana is:
– Massimiliano Pagliuso (vocals/bass/guitars/keyboards)
– Gianpaolo Caprino (guitars)
– Alessandro Marconcini (drums)

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