Andy

Selections:

1. Misericorde (Part 1), Ne Obliviscarius
2. Misericorde (Part 2), Ne Obliviscarius
3. The Cambrian Explosion, The Ocean
4. Harbingers, Fires In The Distance
5. Polygon, Galya Bisengalieva
6. From the Start, Laufey
7. Enduring the Snow Drought, Panopticon
8. Metacognitive, Einar Solberg
9. Throne of the Lunar Soul, Valdrin
10. The Revelation, Stortregn

Christopher

Selections:

1. Spore, Omnerod
2. Departure, Sermon
3. Threnody to a Dying Star, Rannoch
4. Through the Sands of Time, Temic
5. Out of Sight, Ions
6. Kapitel I – Freiheit, Finsterforst
7. Esoterica, Kyros
8. Staircase, Steven Wilson
9. The Night Inside, Pressure Points
10. Thick Skull, Paramore

If you want your bones rattled, Sermon’s “Departure” is where it’s at; Him, the anonymous vocalist gives his most bracing vocal performance amidst thick riffs, a stunning lead motif, and the crushing drum performance of James Stewart. Meanwhile, Pressure Points delivered an Amorphis-esque prog bop with “The Night Inside”, catchy yet Opethian with a fantastic climax. Finsterforst’s “Kapitel I – Freiheit” brings the epic: glistening symphonics, thunderous vocals, and beautiful folk-inspired sections over the most epic German blackened progressive folk metal you’ll hear. But if you want even more epic than that, Rannoch’s “Threnody to a Dying Star” is seventeen minutes of the coolest progressive death metal this year

It was a great year for electro-prog: Temic’s sublime debut Terror Management Theory centred the sound design and keys of Diego Tejeida, and the blend of elements reaches its zenith on “Through the Sands of Time” with a drop dead gorgeous solo section and catchy chorus. Ions’ synthy djent proved a refreshing sound, too, and those swollen vocal harmonies on the chorus of “Out of Sight” made it the winning pick from Counterintuitive, an album replete with bangers. Prog legend Steven Wilson returned with his most electronica influenced solo work yet, and “Staircase” is a beautiful sojourn through a variety of soundscapes, prog to its core. We’re just getting poppier here, huh? I may as well mention Paramore then, “Thick Skull” was the highlight on the unexpectedly mature and melodic This is Why. 2024 will continue the electro-prog trend: “Esoterica” from Kyros’ forthcoming album Mannequin, a sublime fusion of lascivious synth pop and maximalist prog rock, like if Haken and Gunship collaborated, was easily the best single this year heralding an incredible album to come.

But the song of the year has to go to “Spore” from my favourite album of this year, The Amensal Rise. Omnerod start with serene vocals and eerie harmonica, journey through twelve minutes of pummelling riffs, godly vocal performances and earth-shattering solos, easily making for this year’s most astonishing track on an album of unhinged Devin-esque prog death.

Cooper

Selections:

1. pillar of salt (feat. dylan walker & iRis.EXE), The Acacia Strain
2. Aphelion, The World Is Quiet Here
3. Prof. Arronax’ Descent into the Vast Oceans (Feat Ultha), Ahab
4. Chrysopoeia (The Archaeology of the Dawn), Horrendous
5. The Bad Luck That Saved You From Worse Luck, 夢遊病者

Doug

Selections:

1. Grey, Enoch Root
2. Back, Yet Forward, Nospūn
3. Sempiternal Beings, Haken
4. …Of Ruins, Course of Fate
5. True Friendship, Ions
6. Desert Eagle, Bend the Future
7. Bear the Weight, Exploring Birdsong
8. A Cosmic Laughter, Karma Rassa
9. Prophecy, The Resonance Project
10. Detonator Gauntlet, East Of The Wall

2023 was a great year for debut concept albums. Between Enoch Root’s Delusion and Nospūn’s Opus, those of us yearning for more Metropolis imitators – or more favorably, companions and inheritors – have spent the year with much to chew on. Of course I have to throw in a track from Haken as well – although not within the normal underground purview of this site, it would be unfair not to mention alongside these other bands who have drawn so much inspiration from them. Plus, if you’ll allow me a hot take, it might be their best song in roughly a decade. Two sophomore album picks from Course of Fate and Ions round out my batch of traditional prog offerings before we dive into the more arcane.

In both Bend the Future and Exploring Birdsong we explore bits of the eclectic influences which inevitably find their way into prog. The former collect everything from jazz to post-rock, featuring saxophone wailing away atop a sparse backing of percussion and smoothed-out rhythm guitar. With the latter’s guitarless approach, they echo that jazz influence again, but also feelings of pop singer-songwriter aesthetics, settling into a cheery and upbeat mood that’s not especially common among progressive music.

I’ll round out the list with a bit of a grab bag. Taking an especially jazz-forward stand on djent, The Resonance Project mix mystery with thrills, simultaneously developing their wind-instrument-heavy melody lines alongside crunchy, intense rhythm guitar more befitting expectations of the genre. Meanwhile, both Karma Rassa and East Of The Wall jointly show off post- and alternative metal sensibilities, ramping up the distortion and haze without shying away from the driving, emotional moments that provide a strong core for their music.

Sam

Selections:

1. 1st Movement – Animabilis, Günter Werno
2. Banana Split, Pleasures
3. Currents: Severance, Vedalia
4. Neptunian (As Trident Strikes the Ice), Winterhorde
5. Bard of the Hell-Bent Ages, Oak Pantheon
6. Interference, Anubis Gate
7. Towers of Gold, Sacred Outcry
8. Lumen, Nebulae Come Sweet
9. In The Mood For Love, Ali
10. Congelia, Enslaved

Will

Selections:

1. Austerity, Katatonia
2. The Scavenger, Enoch Root
3. Instill, Humanity’s Last Breath
4. Poisoned and Shadowmad, Crawl
5. Gila Monster, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard
6. Path of Forlorn, Deposed King

Having been a bit unplugged from the Subway this year, my list is both short and maybe more mainstream than my colleagues. I’ve built my (albeit short) list by going back through my most played songs on Spotify over the last year – on the understanding that a great song is one that demands to be listened to on repeat. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

• Alkaloid
• Fires in the Distance
• Galya Bisenglieva
• Stortregn
• Omnerod
• Sermon
• Ronnoch
• Temic
• Ions
• Finsterforst
• Pressure Points
• The World Is Quiet Here
• Horrendous
• 夢遊病者
• Enoch Root
• Nospūn
• Course of Fate
• Bend the Future
• Exploring Birdsong
• Karma Rassa
• The Resonance Project
• East of the Wall
• Günter Werno
• Pleasures
• Vedalia
• Winterhorde
• Oak Pantheon
• Anubis Gate
• Sacred Outcry
• Nebulae Come Sweet

The post Playlist – Top Songs of 2023 appeared first on The Progressive Subway.

Across cultures and faiths, winter solstice celebrations are often to do with about driving away the approaching darkness – creating warmth and light and fun during the darkest, coldest and most desolate time of year. Our playlist is a Prog-infused tribute to this tradition: The first half representing the dark desolation of winter and the second representing that warmth and light we create to drive that darkness away.

Whether you want some extra music to spice up your parties, or if you’re just sick of the usual Christmas song pop fare, we hope you find something to enjoy these winter months here.

Christopher

I’m gonna be repping a lot of Mile Marker Zero here because they’ve released four covers of Christmas songs over the years, each in the style of a different legendary prog group. First up “Winter Wonderland” in the style of classic Genesis: lots of piano, acoustic guitar and of course, noodly synth solos, plus percussive Christmassy clapping. After that, go for a “Sleigh Ride” in the style of Rush which is replete with a “Tom Sawyer”-esque opening, hard rock riffs, that iconic keyboard sound and a sense of infectious groove. They also dropped a cover of “Please Come Home for Christmas” in the style of Queen as we were putting together this playlist, and yes, it’s as theatrical as you’d imagine.

However, Mile Marker Zero’s greatest gift is “Most Wonderful Time of the Year” in the style of Opeth. The instant that Dave Alley diminishes “year” in classic Akerfeldtian fashion, you know you’re in for a ride. Nailing all the quirks of Opeth—the haunting organ, complex lead guitar parts, eerie harmonies, and nasty riffs—it’s a fantastic homage and a legit Christmas song so the family can’t complain, even if they don’t like the slightly evil Swedish vibe.

Let’s not forget a classic while we’re here: Greg Lake’s “I Believe in Father Christmas” is a staple of Christmas CD collections, albeit lower down on the tracklist after the Mariah Carey and Slade contributions. The ELP and King Crimson singer released this scathing indictment of the commercialisation of Christmas in 1975 and while it’s not prog per se, the general influence of the genre remains, from the complex acoustic intro (played on a 12-string) to the lifting of a melody from Prokofiev to the eschewing of verse/chorus structure to the one-hundred-piece orchestra that delivers a crescendous finale. Remember Greg Lake isn’t just for your throwback prog listening, he’s also for Christmas.

Doug

As sorry as I am to say it, I’m an uncreative hack, and finding clever songs for this playlist was much too great a task for me, so instead here are a handful of songs very explicitly about winter and/or cold things. As I lack deep knowledge of random Christmas song metal covers or concept albums that take place around the winter holidays, from me instead you get two separate tracks effectively titled just “Winter” (and a couple others to go with them).

The first of these is Karma Rassa’s “Zima” (you’ll never guess what that translates to), starting off with thematically appropriate sound effects of footsteps in the snow, evoking the sparse desolation of the winter months even before the plaintive guitar and muted all-Russian vocals kick in. Contrast with “Snowbound,” Anubis Gate’s lively but frosty opener from their best album to date, showing a different but equally hostile side of the season in their crisp, clean execution.

On a slightly different tack, enhance your “Cold December Night” with this spooky track from Vanden Plas (the second of these bands whom I still can’t believe aren’t popular enough to escape our very limited standards of “underground”), showing that they can still bring it after all these years. And lastly we have Cydemind’s cover from Antonio Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons “Winter” violin concerto, a piece which my parents put on every winter during the first snow of the year and so carries strong personal associations for me. I picked this more because it’s fun than because it’s great; in spite of my great love for last year’s The Descent, Cydemind don’t show nearly so much polish in their earlier recordings, but the piece lends itself well to metallification, and with a violinist already at hand, there are few better bands to tackle it than they.

Will

It’s been awhile!

Having been outside the exciting world of underground prog for a little while, I’ve felt somewhat limited in what I could bring to this playlist beyond facilitating and organizing. However, I did choose a few things to compliment my more talented colleagues.

I simply can’t get into winter without listening to Opeth‘s masterpiece Blackwater Park – with “The Leper Affinity’s” opening thesis statement ‘We enter winter once again’. On the nose? Yes. Awesome nonetheless? Heck yes.

Seeing my role as supporting Doug and Chris, I’ve tried to set music to offset and compliment their picks – for Christopher’s choices of classic Christmas songs reimagined in the style of prog bands, I chose classic, dark winter-y tracks from Opeth, Insomnium, and Uneven Structure. To compliment Doug’s busy, warm power metal infused choices, I preceded them with more minimalist stylings of Agalloch, Kauan, and Secret Garden. And for good measure added some warming tracks from Jethro Tull and Horslips.

I was sorely tempted to add “Winter’s Ghost” by Panoptikon but couldn’t justify a 20-minute behemoth of a song in this playlist. So, reader, please accept this as a bonus track.

Sam

Hello it’s me, coming in last minute. Winter to me has always been a time of introspection and melancholy. There’s nothing quite like the feeling of going on a stroll in nature under the blue skies of the winter sun. The glowing cheeks, the cold air, the fuzzy hormones in your underbelly… Nature is sleeping, giving all space to turn inwards as you reflect upon the world in its most stripped down, essential form. My dad passed away around this time last year, meaning my songs will be on the sadder end of the spectrum.

My first three submissions are meant to reflect this feeling. Subsignal have written many a song about winter, but the most fitting I find is “Some Kind of Drowning,” an incredibly poignant piano duet featuring Marjana Semkina from Iamthemorning about a loved one passing. On the more hopeful side, I went with “Thin Air” from Anathema to also reflect the light, uplifting aspects of winter and the love we feel for those close to us. And though winter is a time of death, it is also a time of rebirth, which is why my third song is “Departure” by Evergrey, my favorite tune in 2023. Though it’s about the end of a relationship, the tone is hopeful and optimistic about the future: “It’s not about the breaking, but the rising with an aim.”

To continue the upbeat trend, I wanted a couple of songs which were less musically sad. “Lady of Winter” by Crimson Glory is an early prog/power metal classic tune with a phenomenal sing-along chorus, “Daily View” by Maestrick adopted all your Christmas commercials into a goofy prog-power song, and “Cold Runs the River” by Borknagar is a majestic winter storm. And of course, no winter prog playlist can go without Enslaved and their introspective songwriting. I opted for “Ground” for its godly Floydian solo and comfy atmosphere. Finally, I wanted something heavier, for which I took the moody “Étoc” by Subway-darlings Hands of Despair. Happy holidays all!

• Negură Bunget
• Karma Rassa
• Maestrick

The post Playlist – Festive Winter Prog appeared first on The Progressive Subway.

Style: Melodic Death Metal (mixed vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Lamb of God, Mastodon, Meshuggah, Testament, Arch Enemy
Review by: Will
Country: UK
Release date: 28 March 2023

Don’t you just love an album that starts with inhuman screeching? I do. So too do British purveyors of heavy metal Raze The Void, who show they know how to make an entrance on their new album: Para Sempre. Raze The Void have been making music while attempting to set fire to a vacuum since 2016; they have been well received at newcomer stages at music festivals, and produce music that is much more reasonable than their low Spotify listener count would have you believe.

Throughout their album, Raze The Void consistently demonstrate their commitment to making every song intro as extra as possible: The aforementioned screeching that summons opening track “The Vulture’s Bones” into being; The rhythmic complexity that is “Raison D’être”; The thrashy, almost Lamb of God flavoured gatecrashing of “Bitter”; And, of course, the melodic, doom-laden, and genuinely menacing opening to “Beggar of the Dawn”. Of course, this being a prog-influenced band, things get excessive quickly. “Edge of the Universe” cycles through at least two intros. But the crowning glory of proggy excess here is the 13-minute epic “All That Will Ever Be” which boasts a whopping five separate intros (see below).

“All That Will Ever Be” intros

1. The Mastodon Intro
2. The Iron Maiden Intro
3. The As Yet Untitled Groove Metal With Technical Elements and Pinch Harmonics Intro (Slow Pantera Intro?)
4. Lamb of God Intro
5. The Melodeath (Potentially Arch Enemy) Intro

From the list of bands above, you can likely get the sense of the numbers of genres and themes that Raze The Void visit throughout their journey with us. It’s great to hear a band trying to synthesize genres and smash them together in new ways to create something novel. In addition to thrash, prog and melodic death metal, the band toy with gothic metal in “All That Will Ever Be” and atmospheric post-rock elements á la Red Sparrowes in songs like “Linear”. 

There’s also something so wonderfully Capital-”P”-Prog about making a thirteen-minute song with five intros (and at least two outros – I was tired of counting by then). It speaks to the creativity and the amount of ideas that Raze The Void have to cram into the limited space of an album. Somehow, you get the sense that they would happily fill a double or triple length album given half the chance.

The don’t-forget-the-kitchen-sink approach to songwriting isn’t limited to Raze’s attitude to intros. There’s a maximalism to everything they do. “Edge of The Universe” is the best example of this, a whirlwind of a song that springs from two intro sections, then into busy riffing, then a spoken word poetry section, then back into raw vocals and busy riffage. It has everything! Yet, each ‘section’ of the song feels standalone and there’s no real sense of cohesion to the song as a whole. Instead of the music being a tapestry which work together to tell a story, this is more a patchwork quilt. And, while there’s nothing inherently wrong with this approach, some listeners may find that a new riff or new ‘part’ of a song every 30 seconds may numb them to the novelty of it all.

Having an abundance of ideas sometimes requires discipline on the part of the artists to edit down what to put into a song and what to leave behind. Some of these songs are so full of ideas and riffs, that few stick around long enough to be memorable, and fewer hit hard enough to be impactful. Overcomplexity is almost a mainstay of technical prog bands, but even the most technical and oversaturated bands like Cynic or Liquid Tension Experiment can moderate themselves. The negative effect of the overabundance of complexity can best be heard on tracks like “Raison D’être”, when the band try to make an impactful vocal hook, but which ultimately gets lost amidst all the other sections vying for attention.

It would also be remiss of me to neglect the graphic design for the band. Raze the Void have some pretty awesome cover artwork featuring a tree in blossom and two snakes, coiling in a circle, simultaneously a worm ouroboros as well as an ensō, a symbol of Zen buddhism. It’s something of a shame that the themes on the graphic design go no further into the band. No nod to Japanese culture (or E. R. Eddison’s book) and certainly not to the principles of minimalism, discipline and restraint of Zen Buddhism!

These nitpicks shouldn’t in any way detract from the band’s overall sound. All the musicians are incredibly talented and have an egalitarian approach to composing whereby every instrument, and vocalist is given a time to shine. Some of these moments, where the band step back and allow the listener to focus are among the strongest on the album.

With such a wealth of talent in the band, and with such promises made in the moments of triumph Para Sempre has to offer, I’m excited to see what’s next in store for Raze The Void and I will certainly be looking out for their gigs next time I’m in the UK.

Recommended tracks: Recommended Tracks: “Beggar of the Dawn”, “The Vulture’s Bones”, “The End of Everything” (Count those intros!)
You may also like: Arsena, Gutvoid
Final verdict: 7/10

Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Official Website | Facebook | Twitter | Metal-Archives Page

Label: Self-Release

Raze the Void is:
– Terry Wheybrew (Bass)
– Joe Stam (Guitar, backing vocals)
– Alex Ryan (Drums)
– RJ Learmouth (Vocals)
– Russ Drummond (Guitar)
– etc.

The post Review: Raze The Void – Para Sempre appeared first on The Progressive Subway.

Style: Atmospheric/Progressive Black Metal (mixed vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Fen, Oh Hiroshima, Wormwitch, Harakiri for the Sky, Agalloch
Review by: Will
Country: Siberia, Russia
Release date: 20 November 2022

From the cold, dark lands of Siberia, something not of this earth is stirring. A plague of madness washes down from the Steppes, over in Krasnoyarsk where, under the light of a gibbous moon (presumably as part of some diabolical ritual with powers beyond human comprehension), eldritch atmospheric black metal band Ultar have birthed a new album. 

The writings of American pulp fiction writer and renowned xenophobe Howard Philips Lovecraft have long captured the imagination of artist, writers, directors, and musicians. However, few bands have been so utterly fixated on his work as Siberian band Ultar, who have been crafting albums in the style of Lovecraft’s Cthulhu mythos since 2016. Their new album At The Gates of Dusk marks an evolution in the bands sound away from their post-rock, ambient metal infused roots towards something much more aggressive with the express goal of dragging both fans and new listeners deeper into Azathoth’s horrifying dreamscapes further still through a mix of atmospheric black metal, melodic black metal, and ambient post-metal soundscaping.

In At The Gates Of Dusk, Ultar utilise varying vocal talents and techniques more than ever before: Soft choral backing vocals buoy the melody on tracks like “Evening Star”, and delicate female vocals usher us into “Through The Golden Gates of Dawn”. Dark chantings on tracks like “Antiques” give a definite impression of the evil workings of a dark, Lovecraftian cult. Mostly hear the stylized screamings of Gleb Sysoev whose impressive range encompasses high screams, death growls and some form of guttural, drowning vocal style which feature most prominently (and appropriately) on tracks like “Innsmouth”.

One really interesting aspect of this album is the multiple moments in which Ultar make concerted efforts to make their listeners as uncomfortable as possible: Most notably, the outro to opening track “Midnight Walk and Remembrances of Necromancy” during which an ear-splitting nails-on-chalkboard tone is played for 22 excruciating seconds. Another example is the ticking chimes in the intro to “Rats in The Walls” which, when coupled with post-metal-esque soundscaping, genuinely does set the listener on edge before the vocals barrel through like a plague of rats tumbling through a weakened ceiling. It is genuinely difficult to discern whether these are moments of musical genius or madness (and perhaps that’s the point!). Presumably, the aim is to put the listener into a state of genuine discomfort in emulation of the mental anguish common to characters in a Lovecraft story (equally, Ultar might simply be trying to torture their listeners – have fun deciding). The effect is something of a genuinely immersive album. One that is difficult to have on simply in the background as so many numerous elements scratch at your nerves, begging for attention.  

Ultar manage to exist as a band with a definite theme without it feeling too gimmicky. Their incarnation in this latest album feels more polished and darker than in previous albums. Yet, in At the Gates of Dusk, it feels more difficult to differentiate their sound from other, similar atmoblack and black metal bands. Certainly, their synthesis with post-metal and soundscaping techniques, coupled with some pretty amazing use of vocal techniques certainly does set them apart. As does their inspired or insane choice to insert genuinely painful elements into their album is either inspired or insane. But these uniquely Ultar moments are sporadic throughout the album. Much like eldritch knowledge in a Lovecraft novel, there are hidden gems here if the listener is willing to dig for them. But others may well not feel it worth sticking around long enough to find them.

At any rate, if you want a band to play a soundtrack to your night terrors this winter, you can’t go far wrong with Ultar’s At The Gates of Dusk.

Ph’nglui mglw’nafh Cthulhu R’lyeh wgah’nagl fhtagn.

Recommended tracks: Through The Golden Gates of Dawn, My Rope, Rats In The Walls, Midnight Walks And The Remembrances Of Necromancy
You may also like: Unreqvited, Numenorean, IER
Final verdict: 9/10

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

Produced by Ultar and Vladimir Lehtinen

Label: Independent

Ultar is:
– Pavel Dil (bass)
– Denis Susarev (guitar and keys)
– Max Sysoev (guitar and keys)
– Gleb Sysoev (vocals)
– Vlad (drims)

The post Review: Ultar – At The Gates Of Dusk appeared first on The Progressive Subway.

Style: Sludge Metal (mixed vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Raging Speedhorn, Mastodon, The Ocean, Pallbearer,
Review by: Will
Country: Belgium
Release date: 30 September 2022

We’re in the middle of a mental health crisis. At least, that’s what my therapist tells me. 

It’s not surprising, really, is it? A toxic blend of lockdowns, social media, doomscrolling, and uncertainty in everything from the economy to climate has quite rightly taken its toll on our minds. Luckily, Huracan have burst onto the soundwaves with the antidote to heal our collective psyches with their new album, We Are Very Happy. An obviously happy album for happy people in which the Belgian sludge rockers manage to bottle the sound of releasing years of repressed emotion into just over 45 minutes of cathartic runtime. 

Opening from a frenetic drumbeat on the opening track, Huracan serves us a driving and incredibly groove-laden album from start to finish with a few pleasant surprises on the way. “We are Very Happy” successfully uses phrygian dominant scales in the vocals which gives the track an interesting Middle-Easter flavour. That very same track also features some interesting breakdowns and objectively the best recording of the word ‘rainbow’ ever committed to an album (thanks in large part to guest vocalist Nele De Gussem). Moments of hefty industrial influence on “Doberman Multiverse” as well as some musical hooks reminiscent of Mastodon’s tour de force Remission. “Before I was Born” utilises spoken word voiceover work to explore dreams and nightmares in a way that feels very Hands of Despair. And the intro to “Sky Burial” slows things down to the languid doom-laden heaviness that one would expect from bands like Earth.

Indeed, We Are Very Happy is a masterclass in pace control. I’ve been critical of bands in the past for pursuing musical technical brilliance at the expense of communicating emotion. Huracan are a welcome relief from this; though clearly musically proficient, Huracan aren’t interested in showing off how well they can handle their instruments, nor do they get carried away with their own heaviness and drive to play faster and faster: They are controlled and measured, giving room to the vocals when needed, pulling their foot off the gas to highlight different aspect of their playing. The effect is that of a very tight feeling album where all the elements get a chance to shine. Beyond that, the measured pacing with such a heavy sound puts the listener in mind of a whole mix of repressed emotions lying just beneath the surface, yearning to be released and yet unsure of exactly how. This is beautifully illustrated in the band’s music video for “Bruises” which features interpretive dance set to the band’s music, exhibiting the vibrant energy that the band carry into their music. We are Very Happy gives listeners an opportunity for catharsis. To scream in rage with the pounding, driving riffs, to move their bodies to the beat of their emotion and to relish the subsequent endorphin rush of release with the more optimistic, lighter portions of the album.

In We Are Very Happy, Huracan have created an interesting work of art capturing an outburst of mixed and raw emotion. While many songs off this album will make their way onto gym playlists around the world by virtue of their pure energy, others seem to fade into the background and, frankly, are difficult to recall after the album ends. Some songs feel like they add precious little to the album as a whole and the dead weight detracts from the punchy, impactful feel of the rest of the album.

Nit-picky critiques aside, Huracan have really made something interesting and worth examining. A timely album addressing the manifold frustrations, angers and emotions that so many of us hide under a fragile surface. 

Recommended tracks: Bruises, We are Very Happy, Dobermann Multiverse
You may also like: Moozoonshi, Vokonis, Mothman and the Thunderbirds, Eyes Fly
Final verdict: 8/10

Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Facebook | Instagram

Label: Dunk!records – Bandcamp | Website | Facebook

Huracan is:
– Tijs De Langhe (drums, vocals)
– Geert Reygaert (guitar)
– Bert Roos (bass, vocals)
– Christophe Wille (guitar, vocals)

The post Review: Huracan – We Are Very Happy appeared first on The Progressive Subway.

As we enter winter once again, the writers of The Progressive Subway have come together in conjuring a playlist in recognition of the legendary heritage of Opeth. Make no mistake, this playlist is not a requiem, or a funeral portrait (the band is still going strong, thank you very much). But it’s a fair judgment that Opeth has been incredibly influential to music fans and musicians alike, forming a large part of the windowpane into heavy progressive metal for many and it is this deliverance that we examine today. 

In the late nineties/early noughties, Opeth bottled lightning with a distinctive blend of melodic death metal, prog rock, inspired writing and excellent musicianship to create some incredibly compelling, atmospheric albums which led them to becoming nigh on iconic in alternative music circles. Despite this, constant debate has surrounded Opeth‘s later musical direction towards a distinctively lighter sound: For some this has been an eternal soul torture, but nectar to the ears of others, allowing Opeth to reach a wider audience with differing musical sensibilities.

“Opeth-worship” bands quickly followed as a whole generation of music lovers and bedroom-shredders strangled the necks of their guitars attempting to produce the bar chords from ‘The Drapery Falls’. We on this blog have sometimes been somewhat critical of bands that lean too heavily on their Opeth influences as opposed to producing their own musical ideas. But for this playlist, we’ll let that all go. It’s officially open Opeth-worship season on the site.

We are focusing our celebration of Opeth on smaller bands, the many heirs apparent to Opeth‘s legacy: the master’s apprentices, if you will. Writers Christopher, Doug and Zach have collected sounds from the prog underground that show their Opeth influences like a face in the snow. that carry the Opeth torch onto the next generation and into the frost of winter.

As always, you can scroll down to read our writers’ rationale for their choices and check out links for bands that the Blog has reviewed in the past.

Christopher

Selections: Anciients, Obsidian Tide, Luna’s Call, Vinsta, The Reticent, Wilderun

Anciients have just announced that they’re going into the studio to record album number three, thank god. They’re one of the most promising Opeth-inspired bands out there, fusing the inimitable Blackwater Park era sound with a sludgier vibe reminiscent of Mastodon and The Ocean. Y’know who else needs to get back in the studio? Obsidian Tide. Their debut album Pillars of Creation demonstrated a more circuitous take on the Opeth sound, with the Phrygian elements of their native Israel, and a quiet eye towards experimentation that bodes well for future releases.

There are two questions that lurk around our minds in those quiet moments when little else occupies us: as sleep takes over our bodies, as our loved ones turn away, as the tide pulls away from the shore… The first is: what if Opeth had continued on the prog death path? The answer is Luna’s Call, an incredible evocation of Opeth’s classic sound with something more energetic driving it. And the second question is: what if Opeth were Bavarian and they yodled? The answer to that question is Vinsta. 

The Reticent made the best album I will never listen to again. The Oubliette is an emotional nightmare of a concept album about dementia painted on an Opethian canvas that hits all the high points: incredible melodies, brutal death metal, impeccable storytelling. This is the only album to have ever made me truly weep and want to scream, and it did both at the same time at one point. And yet there are even better bands out there. Imagine if Opeth accompanied themselves with epic orchestration and leaned into a more dynamic sound. That’s Wilderun, and at the risk of being controversial, Wilderun are even better than the most iconic band in progressive metal. Come and flame me. 

Doug

Selections: Sisare, Hillward, Echoes and Signals

As the Subway’s latest resident prog rocker, it apparently falls to me to cover Opeth’s late-period heavy progressive rock output. Deep, deep down beneath the upper strata of artists often likened to Opeth’s post-Watershed style – your Anathemas, your Porcupine Trees, your Soens – lies an even deeper well of hidden gems who likewise ply their uncrunchy guitars and their melancholy, introspective, atmospheric lyrics in obeisance to the dark god Opeth.

Sisare bring a mostly uncomplicated style to the table, though their composition still bespeaks a wealth of depth and complexity. Featuring healthy layers of Soen-esque lightly distorted guitars, lively bass, mournful vocals, and unassuming but tightly plotted percussion, Sisare’s second and far more noteworthy album Leaving the Land triumphs in its simple yet effective execution.

Hillward opt for a more cinematic approach, featuring greater presence of keyboards and acoustic guitar, somewhat reminiscent of Riverside. Layering these elements on top of the shared foundation of heavy prog rock, the band have refined this formula across their three releases, culminating in 2021’s Alternate Timelines.
The latest addition to this list, Echoes and Signals, have only more recently settled into their Opethian style after a gradual metamorphosis of sorts through a few varieties of alternative rock and metal. Their 2021 album Mercurial further incorporates a light, ethereal haze that raises the sense of melancholy to its limits. “Broken Machine” is the keystone of this album, an emotional and moving lament concerning the frailty of the human condition.

Will

Selections: Hands of Despair, Piah Mater, Athela,

True story: Opeth was my gateway into heavier music with harsher vocals. Coming from a background in classic rock, early metal bands like Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple with a sprinkling of 90’s and 00’s indie, bands that made use of screams and growls felt somewhat inaccessible to me. I wanted to enjoy it but felt like I just couldn’t get a good handhold on it. “The Drapery Falls” changed that for me. The writing on that track, starting with an acoustic driven, deeply atmospheric melody before building into heavier sounds and feeding in Åkerfeldt’s death growls with such subtlety gave me an in. Everything clicked in my teenage mind and the rest is history. In honour of this, I chose “Amendment” from Athela‘s three track EP, this track does a good job of mimicking this progression from piano to forte, from haunting atmosphere to growling melo-death.

Piah Mater, once described on this site as being the perfect band for people who want to live an alternate reality where Åkerfeldt never stopped growling, is straight up pure black-tar Opeth-worship. From pacing, guitar tones, solos, vocals, even the way finger movement on a guitar strings during a chord transition gets picked up on the recordings in acoustic sections are all deeply reminiscent of Opeth‘s style. No playlist worshipping the Swedish giants would be complete without including them.

Hand of Despair, like many progressive death metal bands, is clearly saturated in Opeth influence. But, unlike Piah Mater, the Quebeqois band make it their own, assimilating it into a sound all their own. 12-minute epic “Doppelganger” manages to feel fresh while still clearly having one food in their metal heritage.

Zach

Selections: Disillusion, Ne Obliviscaris, Dessiderium

What’s the secret to my dashing good looks and extra strong muscles despite the fact I’m actually over 10,000 years old? Well, I’m glad you asked. It’s simple really. I go to the gym 36 times a day, do my rigorous skincare routine thrice and I listen to Opeth every day. That last part probably isn’t a joke. Blackwater Park, in my humble opinion, is the best thing to happen to music since the invention of prog, and I consider the ‘peth in their prime to be the greatest band to ever walk this earth. No other band has the riffs and vocal prowess that Mikey Anklefeet brings to the table. So, why so little picks? Well, one, I wanted to let all the other proglings have their say. Two, I literally pick an FFO for Opeth every playlist. 

We start off with Ne Obliviscaris. If you’re a self-professed Opeth fan and you haven’t heard them, there are bigger problems in your life that I need you to sort out pronto. They resemble the Morningrise-era if they’d kept that jazzy bass and added a violinist to the lineup. Seriously, these guys are stupid talented and one of the best torchbearers of the progressive death metal sound. This was a hard choice, but I decided to choose ‘Forget Not’, probably one of the best metal songs ever written, for its insane use of the 12 minutes it has you captive. Seriously, this song feels like it’s 5 minutes long. 

Then we have our newly uncovered Lost in Time pick, Disillusion. A band with one of the strongest debuts in existence, who combine Opethian songwriting strategies with a mid 2000s melodeath aggressive edge. ‘Back to Times of Splendor’ the titular track of their debut, is the best example of their sound. The violin-driven riff in the beginning and that triumphant chorus get my blood pumping every single time. 

Lastly, we have the Zach-approved darling of the blog, Dessiderium. You could pick a good chunk of the playlists I’ve participated in, and chance is you’ll find a writeup about Alex Haddad’s one man masterclass of progressive death metal. But I’ll remind you again. Aria is one of the greatest albums ever made and ‘Pale’ has one of the coolest riffs you’ll ever find in a prog-death song. A swirling, dreamlike masterpiece that’s sure to enamour those who want lengthy, dynamic compositions. 

• Hands of Despair (included in 2018’s AOTY posts)
• Piah Mater
• Dessiderium
• Disillusion (Coming soon!)

The post Playlist – FFO Opeth (or, A Dirge for November) appeared first on The Progressive Subway.

Style: Thrash (harsh vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Anthrax, Megadeth, Metallica, Iron Maiden
Review by: Will
Country: US-MD
Release date: 9 September 2022

Blood Rusted Mother Earth is the first full-length album from Baltimore-based rockers Arsena. In Blood Rusted Mother Earth the band sets about creating a pedal-to-the-metal “genre defying” album with influences as disparate as Mastodon and Havok.

However, despite their genre-defying claims, Blood Rusted Mother Earth sounds predominantly thrash. In fact, there was some question over whether we thought it was “proggy” enough to feature on the site. The closest to progressive rock this feels like is some of Symphony X’s more thrash-infused tracks (and even that comparison feels like a bit of a stretch). Most of the time, this album is much closer aligned to Anthrax with some clear influence from Megadeth in terms of song structure (especially on tracks like ‘Pioneer’, which switches things into a more swing-beat-feel for the coda hook – which doesn’t sound a million miles from that of “Symphony of Destruction”). Arsena, for all their claims of diverse genre influences, seem to rarely leave their thrashy happy place for the duration of the album, which is disappointing and feels like a backwards step, especially given some of their (slightly) more adventurous pieces on previous albums (such as the single “Necrosis” off their previous album Dawn of the Second Sun).

Had the band had listed their main influences as Judas Priest, Megadeth, Iron Maiden, Metallica and Anthrax the listener may have a better idea of what they’re in for: Over the course of this hour long album, Arsena does their damndest to fill it wall to wall with as much 80’s garage thrash energy as possible. Guitar openings make an effort to sound a little like Scott Ian’s strictly downpicked “man-riffs” (especially notable on tracks like ‘Kamikaze Sun God’ where even the vocals are super Anthrax-esque). On other occasions they make a decent attempt at emulating some of the intricate, overcrowded riffs that Dave Mustane is known for. There are some fun guitar solos to be had across the album as well and it does feel like the band is having fun with the music they’re making and producing.

While the band is hopefully having a blast rocking out to their 80s thrash infused sound with the wild energy of a seventeen year old with two cans of special brew, one wonders what is left for the listener. Precious little, sadly; there just doesn’t feel like there’s anything here that’s attention grabbing or fresh enough. As always, the question you find yourself asking is “why am I listening to this when I could just play Spreading the Disease?”

Arsena fly so close to their 80s influences that the opening riff to single track ‘Seeds of the Dead’ is nigh on identical to that of Survivor’s classic ‘Eye of the Tiger’ (moving the second chord up half a step does nothing to disguise it). It’s hard to say if this has been deliberately pilfered and repurposed, or if this is a case of “subconscious plagiarism”; a trap that a multitude of thinkers, writers and musicians have fallen into, not least Byron, Neitzche and George Harrison. [Fun fact: The technical name for this is “cryptomnesia”. A word also renowned for scoring well in Scrabble.]. It’s not the only riff that sounds way too close to other music for comfort by any means, but it is the most obvious. Arsena’s ‘Tyrannicide’ has moments that are eerily close to Iron Maiden’s ‘Losfer Words (Big Orra)’, for example.

So where are we left with Blood Soaked Mother Earth? Potentially a fun album to listen through if you’re nostalgic for 80s metal but not wanting to listen to any established 80s metal bands for reasons best known to yourself (massive brain aneurysm, perhaps)? Certainly. But sadly, Arsena seem to have not lived up to their own hype with this album. Listing influences like Havok and Mastodon only sets listeners up for disappointment, like arriving at a five-star restaurant, ordering steak and then being presented with spaghetti. You may love spaghetti, but it’s always going to underwhelm if it’s advertised as fillet mignon.

It’s worth saying that this album may not be the reason to abandon hope for Arsena. On previous EPs they’ve shown some ability to innovate and make something halfways original. Here’s hoping that the band goes back to develop that interesting part of their sound for their next album.

Recommended tracks: Seeds of the Dead (if you really want to hear what Survivor would sound like as a thrash band).
You may also like: Nanga Parbat
Final verdict: 4/10

Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | YouTube | Facebook | Instagram |

Label: Self-Released

Arsena is:

Luke Albert- vocals, guitar
Owen Duff- drums, lyrics, triangle, synth
Robb Hollowell- lead guitar
Josh Deckman- bass, mouth harp

The post Review: Arsena – Blood Rusted Mother Earth appeared first on The Progressive Subway.

Style: Progressive Death Metal (Harsh vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Opeth, Bathory, Metallica, Ghost
Review by: Will
Country: Canada
Release date: 23 September, 2022

Happy October, Spooky Friends! The leaves are turning, nights are darkening and Samhain is fast approaching. And as if to coincide with the gathering dark, Gutvoid has released their debut album Durance of Lightless Horizons; an atmospheric Hammer-Horror movie of an album that revels in its own gruesomeness featuring filthy vocals, whirling, hypnotic guitar parts, bone-rattling drums and song titles that sound like D&D modules (an image happily reinforced by the pretty epic looking artwork).

With the musicians in question possessing over 20 bands worth of experience under their collective belts, it’s no surprise that there’s excellent composing and musical chops on show here. Immediately apparent is Gutvoid‘s penchant for a dramatic entrance: The introduction to all the songs are almost uniformly excellent. From the swirling, wavering build up of “Coils of Gas-Hewn Filament”, through the direct pounce of “Delivered to the Alter Lich” to the ventablack doom-laden ominousness that is “Wandering Dungeon” (try to read that track title and not imagine the music video to “Holy Diver”).

Gutvoid also beautifully manipulate the tempo and drive of their songs. Clearly drawing influences from a lot of different wells, sometimes doom, sometimes thrash and oftentimes blackened death metal. Putting these sounds together is a mean feat that, more often than not, Gutvoid manage to pull it off. “In Caverns it Lurks” is a great example: A creature-feature movie where the tone shifts between a doom-y, stalking creep and a thrash-y, savage charge reminiscent of early Metallica. Their hefty experience works well in terms of the cohesiveness of their sound; this is a band where each musician knows when to ease off and let one another side. The mix is well balanced as a result (despite somewhat burying the bass), the vocals being low and close to the instruments which adds to the thick, claustrophobic sound that feels so very Gutvoid. 

It’s a rare thing to listen to a band’s debut album and feel like they already very much have something of their own sound. Often band’s first albums sound like a smorgasbord of their various influences and, though many of their influences are on show here, the band has managed to synthesise them into a way that sounds more of themselves than of their influences. In the front row of their sound is Brendan Dean’s guttural vocals which genuinely ooze evil in their slow delivery. Another recurring theme is the repetitive, hypnotic guitar riffs that often take the place of a guitar solo or bridge, drawing the listener deeper in to the tar of Gutvoid’s sound. “Delivered to The Alter Lich” displays the best example of thiswhere the swirling guitar tones are clear circle-pit generating material. Perhaps in a live-music setting this is the case however, when just listening to the album, these sections can sometimes be overly lengthy, overly repetitive and outstay their welcome.

There are, sadly, a couple more flies in the Gutvoid ointment: The biggest is that, despite knowing how to make a killer entrance, they have a lot more difficulty making an exit. Their songs end with more of a whimper than a bang, going for a fade out over an repetitive outro more often than not. It often seems the case that the song is running into an interesting exit riff only to veer back for another verse that, honestly, feels surplus to requirements (as in “The One Who Dwells Beyond Time”). The best song endings on the album are on “Delivered to the Alter Lich” and “Skeletal Glyph”. This may feel like a monumentally nit-picky critique, but sticking the landing to a song is important and it just doesn’t quite feel right for their songs to fizzle into nothingness, especially given the strength of the song’s introduction.

But there are moments in this album when all the elements pull in the exact right direction. “Delivered to the Alter Lich” (which has been mentioned in almost every paragraph of this review) is one example of exactly the horror movie of a track Gutvoid is capable of making: A savage, headbangable, mosh pit scouring monster of a song that could and should bring out the beast in us all. The other end of the Gutvoid duality is “Wandering Dungeon” which pulls their atmospheric, blackgaze influence to centrestage.

Durance of Lightless Horizons is the schlocky horror movie of an album to keep you company over Halloween: There aren’t too many surprises in store, but it’s somehow just what’s needed to set the scene as Samhain approaches in the darkening streets.

Recommended tracks: Delivered to the Alter Lich, Wandering Dungeon
You may also like: Epitaphe, Godless, Wither, Negură Bunget
Final verdict: 7/10

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

Label: Blood Harvest – Bandcamp | Website | Facebook

Gutvoid is:
– Daniel Bonofiglio (guitars, bass)
– Brendan Dean (guitars, vocals)
– Justin Boehm (bass)
– D.W. Lee (drums)

The post Review: Gutvoid – Durance of Lightless Horizons appeared first on The Progressive Subway.

There are a lot of great covers in the mainstream of progressive music that we could point to, Opeth‘s grungy “Circle of The Tyrants“, Mastodon‘s poignant “Stairway to Heaven“. Our writers have been searching for unique and interesting covers from smaller progressive bands to check-out.

Christopher

Selections: Cheeto’s Magazine, Omnerod, Novena, Che Aimee Dorval, Mile Marker Zero

I love a cover that takes a song and goes somewhere weird and wild with it. To that effect, my first pick is Spain’s nutty prog rock professors Cheeto’s Magazine and their off-the-wall take on “Basket Case” by Green Day. Zany synths, wacky vocals and noodling lead licks jostle together like oversugared children in a bouncy castle after an ill-advised cocktail of junk food, infusing the punk classic with cartoonish jazz flavours better suited to a drug-inspired children’s breakfast television show.

You want heavier? I’ll give you heavier: Omnerod’s brutal take on the experimental electronica track “You Make Me Feel” by Archive. This Belgian ensemble faithfully emulate the melodies and sensibility of the original, an eerie and noisy love song, but make it a thousand tons heftier, with agonised harshes, dissonant riffs, and crazed sax licks courtesy of the ever-brilliant Jørgen Munkeby. 

When Ross Jennings isn’t focused on Haken or releasing solo albums, he’s fronting the deeply underrated Novena, who brought us a brilliant cover of Billie Eilish’s “Bury A Friend”. It’s actually Gareth Mason who takes on lead vocal duties on this one, and despite fronting the brutal Slice the Cake he manages to maintain the gentle sensuality of the original. Starting off faithful to Eilish’s vision, Novena slowly layer on the heavier prog elements, including some nasty piano scrapes and melodic guitar harmonies. 

The Yuletide season isn’t too far away now and so I thought I’d prepare you for the season of uninspired music with some prog Christmas covers. Connecticut neo-proggers Mile Marker Zero have released two Christmas covers in the style of other bands. And so I present to you their take on “Most Wonderful Time of the Year” in the style of Watershed-era Opeth—which you know is going to be a sublimely observed pastiche from the moment the singer gives an eerie Akerfeldtian diminishment to the very first vocal line—AND a Genesis inspired version of “Winter Wonderland”, which ably captures the sound of those icons. 

Finally, longtime Devin Townsend collaborator Ché Aimee Dorval constitutes an inversion on the formula, having taken a couple of prog staples and converted them to her own bluesy/folky vibe. She took The Mars Volta’s “The Widow” gave it an agonised blues rock twang, and intensified its emotional weight by dint of her absolutely jaw-dropping singing. She also transformed Strapping Young Lad’s intense rager “Almost Again” into a jaunty folk bop (which unfortunately isn’t on Spotify, but it is on YouTube). 

Mathis

Selections: Imaginary Flying Machines, NinDjent0, Aliases, Cheeto’s Magazine, Kyros

Originality is something I take very seriously, so you may expect I’m not fond of covers. The fact is there are amazing artists in this world that can honor an original artwork while simultaneously adding their own unique flair. People like this walk a fine line effortlessly, blessing listeners with nostalgia and new experiences in one package. Screw all the fancy talk, I just love when my favorite artists appeal to my nerdy side with covers from anime and videogames!

Studio Ghibli is known primarily for their exceptional animation and art style, but fans across the world will instantly recognize the tune to “My Neighbor Totoro”. A great tune and a great film no doubt, but Ponyo is my cup of tea, and Imaginary Flying Machines (with the help of Destrage) have the most colorfully heavy cover of “Ponyo On The Cliff”. I have to play this track at least three times in a row, my brain becomes addicted and just one hit of this cheerfully chaotic song isn’t enough to satisfy.

Sometimes my emotions get the best of me, and the Imaginary Flying Machines covers don’t hit me in my feels like I need. Every now and then I have to embrace my less fun emotions and lament with the proper soundtrack. In times like these I listen to “Aquatic Ambience” from Donkey Kong Country, and if I’m feeling that strange angry sadness then NinDjent0 has my back with their cover of “Aquatic Ambience” as I headbang the tears flow from my eyes, flying to ceiling, then to the floor, then the ceiling again. A vicious cycle that repeats until the song ends.

Sebastian

Selections: Contrarian

Honestly, this is overall a pretty tough playlist to make additions to; both because of the fact that a lot of the covers bands do are only in demos and unpublished YouTube videos and whatnot, but also because there really are just not many prog metal cover songs out there. But I did find one: Contrarian‘s cover of Death‘s “Nothing is Everything”. This cover shows what Death might have sounded like had they been an underground tech death band in the 2000s. With deeper guttural growls relative to Chuck’s mid-range harshes, nasty pinch harmonics, and of course, the hypnotic riff melody that went with late-era Death.

Related Progressive Subway Articles

• Novena
• Kyros
• Contrarian

The post Playlist – Best Covers appeared first on The Progressive Subway.

Do you conduct the music you’re listening to; waving your hands in the air like a Hogwarts dropout as the Best Guitar Fill of All Time roars through your head? Do you get that look on your face (you know: the one where people aren’t sure whether you’re weeping or gently farting) when the drums completely switch up the tempo and blast beats the song into overdrive? Are your friends and loved ones in constant danger of being shushed as you count them into the Most Epic Part Of The Song?

Us too.

That’s why our brave contributors have put together our picks of some of the best moments in Prog. Epic cleans, amazing drum sections, solos, fills and bass drops, all here for your aural pleasure. Staying true to our underground focus, we’re bringing you huge musical moments from the smallest bands.

Scroll down to find our playlists, an explanation of what we chose from each writer, links to any featured band reviews, and the comments section; where you can tell us what we missed!

Nick

Selections: The Escapist by Jekyll (chorus), Alastor the Blind by The Morgana Phase (bridge), Typewriter II by Panzerballett (intro)

I’ll never forget getting out of work, flipping on my local alt rock station during their international showcase hour, and being thrown right into the transcendental chorus of “The Escapist” by Jekyll. Coming from The Whispering Galleries EP, Jekyll takes notes from the early works of Muse (particularly Showbiz) yet makes a sound that is entirely their own. First kicking in at 1:45 (nearly halfway through!) the theatrical chorus cuts through the built tension and unease. The lyrics themselves hit hard, portraying someone filled with regrets overtaken by emotion. It’s simple, but effective.

My second pick is from everyone’s favorite The Dear Hunter knockoff, The Morgana Phase. “Alastor the Blind” comes off of the badass rock opera II: The Eyes of Time and, while I’m an absolute sucker for the chorus, I also hate being repetitive. Instead of that, I’m going to be focusing on the instrumental bridge that begins around 3:23. Taking a page out of The Dear Hunter‘s theatrics playbook, they slowly build layer upon layer over a clever arpeggiation. While I rag on them for their obvious influences, their songs are filled with neat songwriting tricks like this.

Speaking of neat songwriting, I just HAVE to highlight the introduction to “Typewriter II” by Panzerballett. The toying with stereo sound, hopping ear to ear, is tightly executed and almost goosebump inducing. The use of a typewriter sound effects also help give the impression of the notes being keypresses. I’m gonna go out on a limb and say that this may, in fact, be among the coolest ideas in the history of prog metal.

Christopher

Selections: Wilderun, Soulsplitter, Obsidian Tide, Subterranean Masquerade, Clément Belio, Meer

When asked for best song moments my mind instantly goes to about a dozen moments from Wilderun, but I’ll settle for just one: the climax of “The Means to Preserve” at 8:32 as the choir croons ‘Sleep at the edge of the earth, far from the spring of life’s…’ cue Evan Berry screaming: ‘… REBIRTH’ and then the epic instrumental section kicks in. Chills everytime. My second moment goes to “Disconnected” from Soulsplitter, and the gorgeous tapping sequence at 3:37 with subtle piano chords and delicate female vocal accompaniment which feels like being adrift in a psychedelic sea.  

Obsidian Tide know how to do an epic moment and none grabs me like the climax of “Pillars of Creation” at 3:05: snare rolls and massive strums accompany some of the best lyrics I’ve heard in years: ‘a secret star a shining gem, a regal night sky diadem, the vault of heaven welcome’s another god’; an incredibly catchy evocation of something intangible and transcendent. Their kinfolk Subterranean Masquerade are also one of my picks. A song where the climactic refrain in the chorus is about ‘striking a minor note in a place that was made for fairytales’ needs to end on an appropriate moment of melancholy, and “Place For Fairytales” does it perfectly in its glorious final chorus (5:14) with the poignant revelation from our singer ‘I am the vagabond’ before the plaintive cry of a fiddle kicks in, perfectly encapsulating all the melancholy of the difficult journey ahead. 

I’m a sucker for a bit of good piano work and two of these picks have it in spades: Clément Belio’s “Take Your Time” is a gorgeous prog/jazz symphony segueing through multiple movements until it reaches what sounds like a close, but then that piano solo at 6:37 kicks in and it’s like the sun has burst from behind the clouds to reinvigorate you. Meanwhile, “Honey” by Meer is a wonderful work of proggy art rock and in the epic final chorus (4:45) of this song there’s so much going on to enjoy the Haken-esque backing vocals,  joyous piano work which culminates in an ascent up the keys which never fails to put a smile upon my face.

Will

Selections: Hands of Despair, Aquilus, Toundra, Alter of Plagues,

A truly epic moment in music is something hard to quantify or define – but we damn well know it when we hear it. It can be a moment when the song seems to be kicked into a whole new level. “Crimson Boughs” by Hands of Despair, a darling of this blog, has a double whammy here. First at the 2.50 mark with some menacing vocals and one of the coolest verse structures I’ve heard in a long time (also objectively the best pronunciation of the word ‘North’ ever committed to tape). This track keeps on giving with an epic build up and release of tension crashing into soaring clean vocals at the 5.18 point. That’s the beautiful moment that you listen to a track on repeat for.

In the theme of menacing sounds, Alter of Plagues‘ “Mills” is one of the most riveting introductions to an album ever. Piercing violin; distorted, demented spasms of vocals; down-tuned bass and ominous drum lines. The first drop of the bass and drums is the key moment that lets you know what you’re in for with this album.

I’m forever grateful to my colleague, Zach who introduced me to Aquilus. Listening through I was blown away by the ending to the track “Loss” where, for the final verse, the music pulls out and the rough, hushed vocals continue on mirroring a motif originally laid down by the piano. It’s beautiful, haunting and terrifying all at once.

Finally, to warm things back up again like a warm bath after a cold day, we have Toundra‘s opening track to their third album, “Ara Caeli”. Translating to ‘The Alter of Heaven’ this track is the first step in a beautiful journey of an album. After the opening delicate strings, Toundra‘s distinctive full, rich sound kicks in and it’s gorgeous.

Zach

Selections: Ne Obliviscaris, Wilderun, Dessiderium, Hath, Abiotic, Vale of Pnath, Aquilus, An Abstract Illusion, Aethereus, Dyssidia

I rarely, and I mean rarely love an album upon first listen. I think what a lot of people underestimate is that well-written music is no different from a well-written book in the sense that you won’t get everything on your first read. There are details that you’ll pick up on the second, third, and maybe fourth reread that’ll make you appreciate it that much more. But, you think of those seminal moments on the first read that made you go back for another go-around. With my favorite albums, I’ll remember those massive riffs or vocal lines, but I’ll catch new details or riffs that I’d never caught before. And that makes me enjoy the music that much more, but it all starts with a single moment that I caught upon first listen. That’s why there are so many picks up there.

So, we’re going to start with the moment that made me absolutely lose my god-damn mind the first time I heard it. The bass break in ‘Devour Me, Colossus’ by Ne Obliviscaris is quite possibly one of the coolest things I’ve ever heard. After nearly 9 minutes of going on this journey, building with each new section, you’re treated to an amazing bassline and yet another amazing buildup with the riff that starts underneath it, soaring right into one of the finest finales I’ve ever heard. Speaking of bass, Abiotic promised a dueling bass solo between Killian Duarte and Jared Smith from Archspire, and delivered on it to the highest degree.

It would be cheating to put ‘Blackwater Park’ on here, so I opted for the next best thing. Wilderun‘s ‘Garden of Fire’ with Evan Berry’s absolutely beautiful delivery of the clean vocals around the 6:15 mark that has provided plenty of motivation on those tough gym days. Hath, a band that don’t usually use clean vocals (but are welcome whenever they pop up), have quite the amazing line in ‘Decollation’ about being baptized in muck. Makes me feel like an Uruk’hai warrior riding into battle whenever I listen to it. And while we’re on the topic of amazing vocals, I can’t forget to mention the outstanding voice and delivery of Dyssidia‘s Mitch Brackman in the chorus of ‘Hope’s Remorseful Regret’.

Then there are the occasions where a riff is so good it makes me mosh in my living room. You take one listen to Vale of Pnath‘s ‘Unburied’ and tell me that ending riff isn’t one of the finest things to bless your earholes, especially with that blast beat behind it and how it evolves during the song’s last minute. Then there’s the keyboard and lead guitar combo in An Abstract Illusion‘s ‘Abode of a God’ that drives the song through its several movements.

But then there’s stuff that didn’t stick at all on first listen, which grew into the whole song being that one “moment”. And these are moments I consider my favorite. Dessiderium‘s Aria and Aquilus‘s Griseus have so many of these it was hard to narrow down. The title track on Aria has incredible, emotion-drenched screams throughout and a riff in the middle section that gives me full body chills. Griseus‘s intro track, ‘Nihil’, might be the perfect tone-setter for an album. Aethereus‘s ‘The Living Abyss’ is only last because I find it so much better in the context of Leiden, but that intro will hook any stray listener in immediately.

Sebastian

Selections: Overtoun, Cryptodira, The Offering, Charlie Griffiths, Sweven, Growth

I don’t remember which one of these people thought of the idea of “best song moments” for our next Subway Playlist, but I will say, they did not know what kind of can of worms they were opened by such a suggestion. When each of us got down and started listing our favorite song moments, whatever we had just wasn’t enough. A snowball becomes an avalanche. One “Omg, but how can we forget about this track!” leads to another and we then have 20 picks each to choose from, which would be far too many for a digestible playlist. So, I took the task of whittling down my list to a manageable six choices of cool moments of underground (and underground-ish) prog metal artists and wrote about them enough so that I feel like I gave them justice.

I will begin with a track from one of my favorite progressive/tech death metal albums of last year Overtoun‘s “Pitch-Black”. This track begins with more of the band’s signature style of mixing the technical death/thrash style of Revocation with the old-school death metal tendencies that Death inspired, full of squealing pinch harmonics, groovy riffage, and death growls. However, what really stood out to me on my first few listens to this was the smoothest of Opethian transitions at 2:23 from the hostile combination of hostile growls and electric, high-gain guitar riffs to an unexpected sentimental interlude of acoustic guitar chords (with a timber almost sounding like a ukelele) accompanied by growing violin flourishes. This interlude is then followed up by more prog death from your inner hell, but this moment of lush respite is akin to a ray of hope amongst the dark storm that surrounds it. 

How often is it that you hear harsh vocal poetry? Honestly, Cryptodira showed me that it should be a hell of a lot more than I currently do because their intro to “Self-(Affect/Efface)” is really neat. Beginning with nothing but an ominous ambiance and solo drum fills, the fills back chanting growls which fill this minimal space with disgust, grief, and brutality. The growls are actually done by two of the band members who have their own harsh vocal styles and cadences, and having them alternate gives you that similar love for acts like White Ward and Hands of Despair. It’s always brilliant hearing different harsh vocal styles implemented side by side, and on the same track, and having them lament the suffering of history and the separation of the self makes it all the more novel.

To make a third quick mention to one of my favorite proggy dissodeath bands Growth, their 2020  output features some of the chunkiest, technical riffs I’ve listened to, and “Darkly, It Tightens Its Grip:” is not different. It finishes its six-minute attack of dense dissonant instrumentation with a dense, bulky riff that meticulously pounds you into a fine paste. But the moment I want to focus on here is what follows: an out-of-place spoken word interlude that escalates to a screamed word interlude as a woman pleads to someone unknown (Her significant other? Her nurse? The audience? Herself? We don’t know) but what we don’t know about this situation makes it all the more absurd when we hear it, and it’s very uncomfortable. This makes for quite the memorable transition into the next track.

The next moment I will reference has pretty much become an underground metal classic at this point. And yes, I am referring to the phenomenon that is “Just another way! Another Way! Another Step into the…” in The Offering’s debut album. It is in the second track of the album which is probably my favorite in a group of high-class songs. You are introduced to this moment at the 0:24 second mark, and it is a thrashy, groovy chorus, which is followed by technical riffs, guitar techniques, and soaring vocals more fitting to power metal (this band is certainly a fusion of many metal genres). But it is not until the build-up that leads to the moment at 2:02 where this familiar chorus really pops off with a three-member vocal harmony. This pop-off still gives me the stank face to this day.

The next artist I’ll mention is also not entirely unknown, but his Spotify page has less than 10k monthly listeners, and that is Charlie Griffiths. It really wasn’t until his solo album that I finally realized that he was for sure my favorite Haken member. All those years of listening to their zany, groovy riffs and I didn’t realize exactly how much Griffiths played a role in Haken’s songwriting that made moments in their material amazing. The moment from one of his songs I wish to mention is in “Dead in the Water”, one of the most rhythmic and avant-garde tracks on the album. This song introduces a few headbanger riffs from djentle chugs to riffs closer to a wacky prog/avant-garde death metal band but one of these riff arrangements is reorganized into an instrumental duo breakdown played by the sax and xylophone-sounding synths which is soon accompanied in harmony with some guitars, and you have a memorable groove. 

The final moment I’ll be writing about is from one of my favorite underground prog metal debuts The Eternal Resonance by Sweven. The album is filled with many impressive climaxes like this one but the moment on “Mycelia” is easily my favorite. For the first four and a half minutes, the song ebbs and flows with atmospheric, distorted guitar chords, blast beats, and vocals reminiscent of Chuck Schuldiner. This all builds tension as the song goes on with reverb that makes you feel like you’re in a chasm. Then at 4:56, the band introduces a guitar riff that’s as ominous as it is epic. While Sweven fleshes out this big doomy riff, various instruments accompany it: rolling drum fills, jazzy rhythm guitar, groovy bass, and fluttering keyboard arrangement embellish the backdrop with increasing velocity as the riff is drawn out to a satisfying conclusion.

Related Progressive Subway Articles:

• Hath
• Dessiderium
• Aethereus
• Dyssidia
• Aquilus
• Hands of Despair
• Overtoun
• Cryptodira
• Charlie Griffiths
• Sweven
• The Offering
• Growth
• Wilderun
• Clément Belio
• An Abstract Illusion (coming soon)
• Obsidian Tide
• Subterranean Masquerade
• Meer
• Soulsplitter

The post Playlist – The Best Moments in Prog appeared first on The Progressive Subway.