Caligula’s Horse started in early 2010 as a solo project for Quandray guitarist Sam Vallen to express the heavier and more guitar centric side of his musical personality. The music began to take a more modern form, incorporating influences as diverse as Frost*, Steely Dan, Meshugga, Devin Townsend and Porcupine Tree. At the begining the project was a primarily instrumental blank canvas, things changed by introducing vocalist Jim Grey from progressive metal band Arcane. Jim’s vocal created a musical invention much greater than it’s constituent components; highly melodic music of intense mood and depth, with strong, memorable hooks and intense, technical instrumental performance.
“Moments From Ephemeral City”, consist of 7 elaborated songs was release in April 2011 and it’s available for free-download (Download this entire album [in whatever format you like] for whatever price you think it’s worth, and please feel free to put in $0 if you see fit. All I ask is that you share it with a friend or two if you do!) at the band’s official site. Read more Caligula’s Horse – Moments From Ephemeral City (2011)
progressive metal
Ocoai – The Electric Hand (2011)
Ocoai are an awesome surprise. Guitarist and engineer/producer Travis Kammeyer and drummer Tim Smith met in in the summer of 2006 and wanted to try something different, they wanted to be the loudest and heaviest band around. And the sound of Ocoai is kind of muddy, sludgy, spreading into multi-layered dimensions, imagine Moody Blues jamming around with Down or Sigur Rós playing some Mastodom songs. I hate labels and labeling music, but this is kind of cinematic Metal. Ambiental, spacy constructions, ingenious use of the cello, gentle guitar tunes or crushing riffs and noisy explosions completing and overlapping each other in a nice, natural flow. Without a vocalist they managed to fill up the wide spaces, but still, I believe a powerful throat can take them much further. In any case, not a James LaBrie copy I had in mind, but eventually someone with the qualities and abilities of John Bush (Armored Saint, Anthrax). Read more Ocoai – The Electric Hand (2011)
ZeroGravity – Misplaced Moments (2011)
It’s just like I’m looking for! There’s a band named Zero Gravity Band from Michigan, US and this one called ZeroGravity from Belgium. ZeroGravity was formed in 2003 and they soon recorded their first demo entitled “Synchronicity”. After several line-up changes, in April and May 2004 their first live concerts were played and in 2005 a new demo was released, the 4 tracks “Passagesâ€. Between 2005 en 2007, the band hit the stage again and started to develop a steady live reputation with a gig at the Progpower Festival in Baarlo being a definite highlight. By the end of 2008, ZeroGravity started the recording of their debut full-length album , but things have been delayed till the end of 2010. But here we go, “Misplaced Moments” are finally available. Read more ZeroGravity – Misplaced Moments (2011)
Lake Of Tears – Illwill (2011)
Four years after their 2007 effort “Moons and Mushrooms”, Lake Of Tears will release on April 29 their eight studio album. “Illwill” it’s dark, it’s heavy, it’s beautiful, it’s always recognizably Lake Of Tears, but they always evolved, searched, experimented and vary their sound and this ongoing development has continued through to this new album as well. There’s still gloomy reminiscences of Doom Metal, persist some polished Gothic shines, but Lake Of Tears have a strong and simple line of pure Rock groove in their vein and what make them different from most of the now days bands it’s their determination and focus to quality and music without fitting into some strictly delimited genre. Read more Lake Of Tears – Illwill (2011)
Grendel – Corrupt to the Core (2011)
Another name, two bands use it, it’s pity and annoying. For both of them. There is one Grendel from Netherlands formed in 1997 and playing Aggrotech/Post Industrial music, and Gendel we’re talking about now, from Finland, formed in 1999 originally using the name Crimson Sky – another name used by more than one artist… Hey, what’s wrong with you people?! Seriously… Leaving aside the legal issues: be imaginative, creative, don’t drive drunk, drugs are bad and stuffs like that.
So, they shift their name into Grendel in 2000 and recorded their first EP “Broken Dream”. Vocalist Vocalist Jarno Blom leave the band one year later, they bring in 2002 Mikko Virtanen to the microphone and record another EP: “Fight Against Time”. The first album, “Lost Beyond Retrieval” was recorded in 2005 and released one year later. In 2008 they sing a record deal with Firebox Records and released their second album “A Change Through Destruction”. Last year they recorded their third album, this “Corrupt to the Core”. Read more Grendel – Corrupt to the Core (2011)
Rolo Tomassi – Eternal Youth (2011)
A friend of mine from London bring to my attention this band from Sheffield, England, in 2009 and their debut album entitled “Hysterics” released one year earlier blow off my mind. Define as “progressive hardcore”, labeled as jazzcore, mathcore or simply progressive rock, Rolo Tomassi delivering a fresh and powerful mixture of hardcore, punk, post metal and avant-garde jazz which is quite innovative and brilliant.
The band was formed in 2005 and immediately began to perform at local venues and pubs to small crowds and released some of their first material, a “3 Track Demo” CD, respectively “4 Track Cassette” which they could sell at the shows they were performing at.
After a split EP with Mirror! Mirror! (limited to 333 copies and released through Speedowax) the band signed to Holy Roar Records and released a self-titled EP featuring re-recorded songs from previous demos and EPs along with new songs. Read more Rolo Tomassi – Eternal Youth (2011)
Arkan – Salam (2011)
Season Of Mist bring us the second full-length album by Arkan, “Salam”, following their promising debut from 2008, titled “Hilal”. Last year I discovered a couple of exciting bands from the Middle East such as Orphaned Land, Melechesh and Absolace, Arkan comes to completing the picture, their music is labeled “oriental death metal”, an inspired mixture of the sounds of East and West, the melodies of North and South, amalgamate melodic Death Metal with Oriental traditions with roots reach deep down into the ethnic sounds of Algeria and Morocco. Arkan put together the whirlwind of Arabic percussion and the magical sound of ancient oriental string instruments with crushing riffs and intense rhythms, clean singing of Sarah Layssac with the screams and growls of Florent Jannier. Mystic and intense, “Salam” (Peace) is a colourful and powerful album with all the best spices of the East and West compounding together. Read more Arkan – Salam (2011)
Somnolent – Renaissance Unraveling (2011)
Somnolent formed in 2006, positioning itself as a funeral doom metal band. Having time for four years to perform at many festivals in the cities of Ukraine and Russia, and issuing a few releases in this vein, including full-length album “Monochromes Philosophy” in 2008 on the label Solitude Production. The band changed their style in the direction of post metal, progressive, sludge, while continuing to experiment. In 2011 they released their second full-length album, this “Renaissance Unraveling” through Slow Burn Records.
This is a dark and gloomy material, preserving the mood and trademarks of the debut album, but including some interesting colors from sludge and heavy explosions of modern metal riffings, some technical death metal elements and interesting breaks and shiftings from different tempos and moods. Read more Somnolent – Renaissance Unraveling (2011)
Last Chance To Reason – Level 2 (2011)
If you like bands as The Dillinger Escape Plan and Between the Buried and Me, it worth to give a try also to this Last Chance To Reason, you will have a very nice surprise. They are from Augusta, Maine, and their debut album, “Level 1”, was released through Tribunal Records in 2007. Their debut album heavily references video games, especially to “Super Metroid” and in the title of their album ‘Lvl. 1’, and song titles such as ‘Escape From Brinstar’, ‘Kraid Ain’t Got Shit On Me’ and ‘Destroy Mother Brain’ they refer to the game.
“Level 2” is a new take on both the concept album and the video game. The current line-up consist of Michael Lessard – vocals, A J Harvey – guitar, vocals, Thomas Waterhouse – guitar, Chris Corey – bass, vocals, Brian Palmer – keyboards , synth and drummer Evan Sammons. Read more Last Chance To Reason – Level 2 (2011)
Believer – Transhuman (2011)
What the hell is “transhuman”? Transhuman is “the study of the ramifications, promises, and potential dangers of technologies that will enable us to overcome fundamental human limitations, and the related study of the ethical matters involved in developing and using such technologies.” Shit, this are heavy stuffs. Believer is an American band formed in the late 80s and early 90s and from their thrash metal roots they grow into a post metal, progressive metal area and this “Transhuman” is their fifth full-length album which is set to be released on April 11, 2011 on Metal Blade Records. They put together 12 complex and intense songs, solid and strong thrash like guitar riffs and constructions are placed into a much wider progressive/post metal area, the technical elements are built in into a gloomy and atmospheric universe. Dream Theater back in 2003 on their album “Train of Thoughts” were kind of close to this sound and approach. Read more Believer – Transhuman (2011)
