Single Review: October Thorns - Circle Game (1999/2021, Progressive Rock)

Some bands remain a legend. Also their lifespan may have been short they are often going round in the heads and hearts of music fans for a long time. 

It must have been like this with the band October Thorns, a progressive rock band that formed in 1999.  They only released one six track demo but that particular one had great reviews in international megazines like Aardshock and Germany‘s Heavy Oder Was?

The cover of the first single already gives a thought that something unusual hides here.

The line-up had members with them that should put a mark in other bands at a later time frame. 

Vocalist Paul LaPlaca went on to play with Chris Caffery (Savatage/Trans-Siberian Orchestra), Ted Poley (Danger Danger), Carnivore AD and currently plays with Drift Into Black, while bassist David Z went on to make a name for himself with Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Joan Jett, Jeff Scott Soto, and his own band, ZO2. On July 14,  2017, David Z was tragically killed in a vehicle crash while on tour with Adrenaline Mob.  

These days a re-worked (remixed and remastered) version of the demo along with bonus material is on it's way to be released in 2022. We at the Heavy Metal Underdogs blog were fortune enough to have a listen to the first single "Circle Game" and were impressed by the blow-away feeling it shares.

The first single "Circle Game" starts dreamlike with some guitar notes flying around with percussion adding to the atmosphere. Only seconds later the music explodes into a bright stream of pushing frequency. Gentle guitars touch the listeners ears with straight vocals writing the story. It's fine to hear the sound doesn't get overloaded also the solo section expands the volume of the highlighted music instruments. The vocals are partly multi-layered. I think this wasn't a standard in 1999 so it's a surprise to hear. The layering is set at proper moments so it adds to climatic moments of the sound and doesn't get on the nerves of the listener. The powerful end marks a sign in the mind to keep a eye on this release in the future.

You can listen to "Circle Game" for yourselves on digital streaming platforms listed up on this link.

https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/octoberthorns/circle-game-2

In addition to “Circle Game,” the full album will include unreleased mixes of the songs “Leviathan” and “Sounds of Life,” as well as unheard demo tracks. It's set for release in 2022 through Divebomb Records.

Make sure to follow the band on Social Media so you won't miss this long lost gem.

https://octoberthorns1.bandcamp.com

https://www.facebook.com/October-Thorns-116719685391554/

Instagram - october_thorns

Fatal Opera to release final album after 20 years

Some bands are a bit legendary for me since they were using a sound formula not to be heard too often. It's like this with Fatal Opera, a band from the US that featured ex Megadeth drummer Gar Samuelson and his brother Stew Samuelson.

They had a jazz influenced way to set up the songs and the first album "Fatal Opera" to me personally also feels a bit as if Jimi Hendrix's feeling for exploring heavy guitar sounds mixed with various rhythm was continued by the band.

A old band picture of Fatal Opera, Photo Credit unknown after 20 years.

These days I'm surprised to learn that the band had a third album "Fatal Opera III" in the makings before Gar Samuelson died. Now 20 years later the results of these writing sessions are about to be released but in a special way with many upgrades and specials.

The street date for the LP has been announced to be Summer 2020 via Combat Records.

The album will include guest appearances from Megadeth’s Chris Poland and David Ellefson, who will appear on the track “The Raven”, which will mark the first time Poland, Ellefson and Samuelson have appeared on a track together since Megadeth’s seminal Peace Sells.. But Who’s Buying, as well as additional guest appearances from Poland, and New Yorkers bassist Robbie “Pags” Pagliari, marking the first time the original lineup of The New Yorkers (Poland and Samuelson’s pre-Megadeth Jazz/fusion project, also featuring guitarist Stew Samuelson) has appeared together on a commercial recording.

Also making a guest appearance on “The Raven” is Ellefson vocalist, and COMBAT Records A&R, Thom Hazaert.

Fatal Opera III, is the final chapter in the band’s legacy, featuring the final recordings of Samuelson, who passed away in 1999. Fatal Opera began work on a new album prior to Gar’s passing, and the tracks sat for almost 20 years, until they were finally revisited. Enough tracks were found to create Fatal Opera III, produced and mixed by Andy Freeman. The remaining members joined forces to finish the album that was started so many years ago, released in a fitting tribute and celebration to the legacy of Gar Samuelson, and Fatal Opera.

Vocalist Andy Freeman says, “It was a long time in the making, but it truly was a labor of love, putting together this final release. It was an honor and a privilege to work with David and Thom, who helped make this album possible, and getting Chris and David together with Gar once again brought the whole project full circle. We are very pleased that it will finally see the light of day, and hope that it will be an offering to our fans, and a fitting final musical tribute to Gar."

Megadeth bassist, and Combat Records owner, David Ellefson says, “Gar was one of the more unorthodox, unpredictable, and musically compelling drummers I've ever played with. His legacy continues to grow with the passage of time. So, it's an honor for me to have this posthumous performance with Gar, in honor of his incredible musicianship and legacy he left for us all to enjoy.”

Make sure to keep a eye on Combat Records Facebook page for further announcements of this release.

CD Review: Final Coil - The World We Left Behind For Others (Progressive Metal, 2019)

Finally a album that gives a carthasis! That's what I thought when I finished listening to the newest output from England's prog heads Final Coil. It's like a rollercoaster ride to a inner fight between good and bad. Happily at the end you'll feel fine and refilled with new energy to move on with your own life.

The cover of the new Final Coil album was created by Andy Pilkington, (c) by Final Coil.

 
Changes in the band's sound
But what happened since the first full length album "Persistence Of Memory"? I think most of all the sound has taken a more sharper and clearer form. All of the sound ingridents come out strong and direct to you. The most remarkable sign speaks of the drums that set the beat heavier this time.

The new album also see's a lot of progress on the vocal site. Phil Stiles and Richard Awdry outworked their parts much more. You can feel more of the story through the vocal performance. Last of all the guitars show up more diverse than ever taking it with more surprise. The silver disc holds much moments that will have you raise an eyebrow since sounds come in you won't expect. Finally all the tracks vary. It's never a montone record but always one that keeps you on the stereo. Each song feels like a journey in itself.

More changes? Yes, "The World We Left Behind For Others" features intermissions. Some tracks seem to be composed as bridges between tracks so it will be one big artwork in the very end.

Track Overview / Analysis
It's hard to pick favorites for me but "Scattered Dust" was the most emotional moment for me. I love the softness mixed up with hammered powerparts that have been worked in. "Keeping going" comes around a bit like a electronic effect ladden song with open minded style. It's catchy and a bit of Depeche Mode shines through.

Some tracks are softer, feel dreamlike. Take "Imaginary Trip" and it will send you to a land far away. The title track is a good mixture of soft and slightly heavier parts. The ten minutes duration are gone before you'll notice it. The monotone setting of "Convicted Of The Right" is great along with the more creepy rhythm.

Conclusion / Purchase-Link / Stream
Finally if you're after a good progressive rock/metal album that is diverse and gives great feelings while listening you've found it. Be sure to pick the Deluxe Bundle. It has a bonus cassette tape with it holding not only three demo tracks of album songs but also one additional one not used for the record that is not available anywhere else. I bet this is going to be a collectors item many people will hunt after one day. All formats are available directly from the Bandcamp page of Final Coil.

CD Review: Final Coil - Persistence Of Memory (Alt-progressive Metal, 2017)

A dark toned alt progressive album with lots of details to discover and a lyrical concept
that provides a critical look upon our technical overloaded existence.

This album comes around a bit different than the previous recordings. The first full length goes a different way to keep you on the stereo while listening.

The artwork of Final Coil's debut full lenth "Persistence Of Memory", (c) by Final Coil, used with kind permission

Summary and Track by track review
First of all it kicks in with the well known heavyness of the previous EP "Closed To The Light" just to throw you into cold water with softer and fragile vocals. These elements need a moment to sink in but we'll see later why it makes sense to be this way. "Corruption" is a great opener and introduction anyway.

The following "Dying" comes around with a simpler structure and feels familar, yet it also is not so straight as other tracks of Final Coil. The more rounds you'll give this the more you'll enjoy the atmosphere and details in this song.

"Alone" variates a lot throughout it's duration, while the basic riff is kept simple. It reminds of the first ever EP of the band but with better vocals.

A touch of Depeche Mode reaches your ears with the next one. The second single "You waste my time" comes with pop appeal yet it's much more dirty and rough than songs from that style.

A surprise is send our way with "Myopic". This is going back to the heavy formula, yet it's structure builds tension just to stop at it's climax. Great tune and fat production.

A band picture of the Leicester based band Final Coil, (c) by Final Coil, used with kind permission

If you started to discover the band while they put out the "Live with doubt" EP you'll love "Spider Feet". It has lot's of the music of that release. A hard tonality mixed with soft notes in the verses just to give you a blast with it's long and stretched refrain. One of my faves of the record.

The best is yet to come. This saying comes true with "Failed Light". It's epicness is a love letter to the beginnings of progressive music in days when Pink Floyd started to record music. It's giving me chilling freeze and lot's of noise tension in the end. One of the best tracks ever written IMHO.

"Lost Hope" provides what the song title promises. Sweet and slow suffering mixed with melodies sounding like lost in the haze.

The rough edge returns with "Moths to the flame". A cutting riff runs through this one. It's definitely for the fans of early material of the band.

Want more riffs? You got it! "In silent reproach" has a propeller rotating riff shaker with it. The drums kick heavier in here. Something less often to be found on "Persistence of Memory".

The album is closed with a silent number called "Alienation". Musically I would compare it with the "Somnambulant" accoustic sessions. A piece of music deeply rooted in thoughts and emotions yet the end holds something like a "won't give in" sound with it.

Finally the question: has the band become soft and are the vocals too easy?
I think it was the best decision to keep a eye on change and progression. Life is change. Everything is changing. I would've been silly to keep it all the same. As for me the band has found a way to maintain the hard riffs but to build  them into the music a intelligent way to give room for atmosphere and darkness.

The vocals are lighter most of the album but looking at the lyrical concept of digital distortion and destruction of humans (my interpretation of the lyrics) other styles wouldn't have fit. It's about hurt and regret so this needs to be expressed properly in my ears.

Finally I would recommend this record to you but listen to it on a real stereo system. The full ingridents only come to life with a extended sound system. All the laptop and smartphone stuff I tried never provided the full listening experience. Don't worry: a normal stereo system of a basic range already fit's your needs. Just make sure it has sharp sound and good bass sound available.

Album Stream / Purchase Link / Contact Data
It's a treat of great music recorded and mixed for full audio pleasure so it's worth giving back with some money. Remember that music can give you enjoyment for years if treated a good way. Few things in life will do the same for you.

The digital release is available via Bandcamp as of today. The CD version looks gorgeous but will be released September 22th. Pre-order packs of the physical edition with T-Shirts and more goodies will be set up earlier to the release date of the CD version. Just make sure to like the band's Facebook page to be notified or have a look on their homepage the good old way.

Live Review: Monster Truck / The Dirty Nil / Billy Talent Emslandarena Lingen 10.12.2016

What a night! Three bands that gave the fans of the sold out venue what they really wanted: Rock 'n' Roll at it's best. I think that's the best proof that the show was worth the money the people spent on it.

The Dirty Nil seem to have been added the last minute to the package. I was pretty surprised to see the band's banner on stage since I didn't hear before that a third band would rock out on that evening. They put out a typical modern punk rock format with their music and opened with a pounding fist of songs. The audience that was numerous up to that point already warmly welcomed their offer.

The Dirty Nil Live in Lingen 2016, (c) by Jan Starcke, used with kind permission

I think the people eagerly waiting for the Billy Talent show could somehow connect easily to the band's sound. The vocalist ripped up his voice roughly on most tracks so agression came out clearly while the drums layed down a pumping constanty to the sound and the guitars having razor sharp riffs with them. The band had a good mix of tracks but kept it fast for most of the time, something that was a good choice in my eyes. With a loud and rude opening and few but good lights on stage the evening was going to start out great.

Monster Truck were the best band of the night in my ears. They had in contrast to both of the other bands a different approach in any way. The most significant one was the sound. They decided to put the volume down, something that I love when it comes to live shows. That little bit of volume they cut was replaced with a beautifull sound spectrum. All instruments came through clear and direct and I think this sound was the
best I encountered in a long time.

Monster Truck put a highlight with their sound at the liveset in Lingen 2016, Photo (c) by Jan Starcke, used with kind permission

The soundstructure provides space for warmth, details in the performance and most of all it gave the possibility to enjoy each and every riff like having a good meal on which you spend a lot of time to taste every little nuance that is inside. The band opened up with a couple of faster tunes before they changed to a more slower and progressive format and also included a half-ballad in their set. This may have been too lengthy for some people especially when it came to the solo sections but the band once again changed the style and closed their set with rougher tracks that more people in the crowd enjoyed. After all I think the band was able to make some people open up their minds and discover their sounds.

Finally it was time for Billy Talent to rock the packed house. The first third came around filled with classic tracks while the new songs had to wait until they had their time. "Afraid of Heights" was my favorite they played on the show along with a clear statement on the meaning at the beginning. The show was wrapped in a nice stage setup that included a monsterous backdrop of the album artwork that was filled with lights and also had a second floor were the musicians placed themselves later in the set.

Billy Talent in his typical pose captured live in Lingen 2016, Photo (c) by Jan Starcke, used with kind permission

My personal favorite was "Ghost ship of cannibal rats" a razor sharp number with the typical punk attitude in it. As for me it's a highly symbolical way of saying how today's society looks like. The band showed some heart and decided to give one euro of each sold ticket on this event to a social organisation for people in need. It shows that the band has not forgotten where they are coming from. The audience was wild on the show and it's not often that you can spot moshpits and pogo in cities like Lingen. Billy Talent returned after the set for some additional tracks and left a happy crowd in the thought that this was the first real proper heavy music event to grace the Emslandarena in Lingen. Thanks for the great show and the fine memories to all the bands that played on this evening!

Live Review: Purple Rhino - Rock am Pferdemarkt Lingen 16.09.2016

Not all the young bands are into modern styles of the hard genre - this one in fact goes more back to the days of classic Hard Rock and Blues Rock of the 70s.

Introduction

I've heard of Purple Rhino several times before I saw them first live. The local newspaper here had some show announcements of the band in their news section and I knew it was one of the bands that could be worth it. But in fact it never happened due to several circumstances that it took until this years Open Air season that I could check them out.

Purple Rhino live at Rock am Pferdemarkt Lingen 2016, (c) by Jörg Everding Fotografie

Summary

To make things a bit more exciting I didn't look up the band on the internet before. I knew of several other live shows that it was more fun if you know nothing about them beforehand and have all the surprise at the gig. I didn't regret my decision since they put on a great set. This band reminds me of classic Rock and Metal bands in the style of Jimi Hendrix and Deep Purple.

Especially the first named influence shown through many times at their set at Rock am Pferdemarkt. Guitar player Chris put's on a good signature on the band's sound while the rhythm section keeps it more in a basic tonality and style staying mostly in the background. It should be mentioned that vocalist / bassist Felix also adds a lot to the music and gives it a fresh drive everytime things seem to get a bit in far too deep with instrumental solos. They had this one slow song on their set whose name I don't know of (that's the downside of not listening to a band's music in advance of a show :-). It had a distressing and calming effect on me while I had some sort of thrill all the while - thank you for this special moment!

Purple Rhino live at Rock am Pferdemarkt Lingen 2016, (c)  by Jörg Everding Fotografie

Purple Rhino offer a good mixture of entertaining rock and metal music that goes straight into the heart of the listener combined with sections that will satisfy the fans that love the technical aspects, precision and timing of progressive music. The signature move toward the end when vocalist Felix and guitar player Chris got down on their knees to drive towards each other rounded out a impressive performance which is a good reason for me to keep a eye upon the further band's activities. As for me Purple Rhino were by far the best band on this year's edition of Rock am Pferdemarkt. Here is their current official video to give you a idea of the band's sound and performance.



Contact Data

Make sure to see the band's Facebook page to stay in touch or head on to the webshop where you can purchase their record for a fair price that could make a nice gift for christmas to rock and metal fans. They are regulary playing shows so a look at the homepage is also a good idea. Here are the next dates:

23.12.2016 - Gaststätte Stock, Hagen - Germany
29.12.2016 - Lagerhalle, Osnabrück - Germany
21.01.2017 - Truck Stop, Wildeshausen - Germany
02.03.2017 - Fernsehkonzert Kanal 21, Bielefeld - Germany

Jupiter Hollow introduce upcoming social/Sci-Fi concept EP with new video

As for me it's impressive to see what people are able to do if they really want to. This thought just came across my mind when I heard about this ambient progressive rock/metal duo from Barrie, Ontario.

It's only these two guys called Grant MacKenzie (guitar, bass, synth) and Kenny Parry (vocals, drums, synth/keys) who've put together music that is breathtaking for me. It is for sure dominated by a progressive tonality but they keep things more straight forward and give the music room to breathe.

You never feel stressed with all the elements they bring in to the sound but instead it's more of a deeply emotional music which keeps sounding straight forward, harmonic and you can understand the song structures straight away. In addition to that the new video is calming with it's beautiful nature recordings. What's even better is the fact that this song is part of their upcoming EP 'Odyssey' which has some concept behind it that reminds me of a novel-like social/Sci-Fi story.

The EP that will be distributed by Milagro Records and is set for release on January 13, 2017 will feature 5 tracks to introduce their ambient experimental progressive songwriting plus will act as a prelude to their planned full length 'AHDOMN'.  

The following column contains spoiler! Please only read on if you like to know things in advance instead of discovering them for yourselves step by step.

The cover of the upcoming Jupiter Hollow EP "Odyssey", (c) by Jupiter Hollow, used with kind permission

"This EP is a concept record, it will tell the story about two characters fighting one another in order to save their civilizations, but they just can’t do it. They’re in control of their civilizations future, but then you actually find out that there's only one person, who’s actually fighting with themselves. They're unhappy with who they are when they look in the mirror and realize they can’t grow past their indifference, and that they actually aren't a good person and the people from their civilization will die." says the duo. "The cool thing about the EP's title track Odyssey is that the story then takes place after the civilization is destroyed, and the character leaves on a spaceship somewhere else looking for a new start. This track will be the introduction into our second record, which will be about them looking for a new start. It will be a more hopeful record. Spoiler Alert! Overall this EP is like the “trailer” to a movie. Odyssey will help listeners get acquainted with us and prepare them for our full album AHDOMN later in the year."

If you'd like to listen to some more stuff right now (like me) you are surely happy to read that some tracks of the EP have already been released. You can buy and listen to these songs on the band's homepage and keep the contact via YouTube, Facebook or Twitter.

Abraham Sarache looks at relationsships in a sophisticated way

Sometimes real special stuff arrives to my inbox. This particular one is one of these things that picked my attention. I think it's a good thing to have a look on other music than the one you use to listen to or stuff that falls in between the so often mentioned genre borders.

This track of multi-instrumentalist Abraham Sarache mixes up a lot of acoustic guitars along with hard hitting drumming plus deeply emotional vocals all over it. The pretty amazing thing is that besides the heavyness that comes from the pushing and hard hitting drums there's enough space in the sound for the feelings and that the guitars gladly never get lost so there's always a melody going through the whole track.

Check it out for yourselves and mark your Facebook calenders since Abraham Sarache will play a special release show in support of the album "The Gardener" (from which this track has been taken) at Volta in Amsterdam on June 24th. The show will be recorded for a future live release.
You can purchase the track or the whole record now from iTunes and Spotify. 


"The Gardener" is an alt/progressive rock concept album with the inclusion of folk instruments like ukulele and Venezuelan cuatro. To express the feelings involved, different kinds of voice registers are provided: from a soft, melodious or whispered voice to raspy voice. Various pads and synthesizers are used to give depth and warmth to the songs where an acoustic guitar with a low tuning predominates. A multicultural composition on the instrumental level and a progressive rhythmic base create an exquisite atmosphere of imbalance and peculiarity.

The philosophy behind the album is based on the fact that in any interpersonal relationship, whether it is a friendship or a romantic connection, there is a duality between the one that participates in an active way (The Gardener) and the one that does it in a passive way (The Flower).

“All of us at some point of our lives have a role of a gardener and in other moments we are flowers,” Sarache commented.

“We can all identify ourselves as the Gardener when we talk about a person we were looking after because we liked him or her, we wanted to know more about this person or we just wanted to spend more time with them, no matter what. We simply did everything possible to make things work.

The cover of Abraham Sarache's album "The Gardener", (c) by Abraham Sarache, used with kind permission

“On the other hand, we have been also in situations when someone was interested in us in a special way, but the feeling was not mutual. We still wanted to maintain a relationship because we liked other aspects of that person's character. To this behavior I refer to as the Flower,” he continues.

“The Crush: Eyes of Fire” which opens The Gardener was awarded as the Best Alternative Rock Song by The Akademia Music Awards in May 2015. Sarache released a video single for the song, and he commented: “This is a very special video for me. My first video as a solo artist showing parts of my everyday in Madrid and Margarita Island where concept album The Gardener was conceived and recorded.”

For the upcoming show at Volta in Amsterdam on June 24th, Abraham Sarache will be joined by Dutch alternative/progressive rockers Amikdla. Visit Abraham Sarache's official website here.

Easter gift: Full Orymus progmetal album "Miracles"

Happy easter everyone! Yeah, the spring time is coming closer so it's time to wipe the winter ghosts away. That's the way it's at least tradition here in germany. People come together at a easter fire, children often baking potatoes that are bound on a bough wrapped in aluminum foil and holding it in the glow of the fire until it is ready for easting.

As it has become sort of tradition that there's some giveaway going on here on Heavy Metal Underdogs on those days. This year we have some fine progmetal for you. The swiss progmetal band Orymus is currently handing there full album "Miracles" out for a pay what you want price (no minimum and maximum amount) over on Bandcamp. You can also listen to it first here before downloading anything.


They impressed me with their powerfull sound. You can feel the brightness of the music already when listening to the big bass sounds that the opener "End of the world" holds. Yet there's enough room for all the other elements to breathe and some space for dreaming and lots of emotions as well.

If you enjoy what the band offers you follow them even further with taking a look on their homepage or liking them on Facebook.

CD Review: Atropos Project - Towards Firmament

Short Introduction

Atropos Project plays instrumental music with a lot of progressive and metal elements in them. The band started out as a one man project and saw it's first release with the full length album "Equator" in 2013. In the meatime John Quarles, who writes and plays nearly all the music has created a follow up record called "Towards Firmament" in his studio in New York. The new album will see the light of day on December 1st 2015.

(c) by Atropos Project, used with kind permission

Summary / Player / Purchase-Link

I am very glad that this outstanding project survived the tides of time. In the two years since the first album Atropos Project developed the song-structures quite a lot. I mean the first album was great but this one shows a bit more precisely that John Quarles has learned a lot when it comes to writing songs. The new tracks that will be released soon have more structure, often follow more a main theme or topic as the songs on "Equator" did.

Still the great thing is that it doesn't miss the fun aspect of music. You can hear a lot of parts on the album where especially all the musicians amongst you out there can nearly re-feel the positive vibes and emotions that John might have been in when writing, producing and recording these songs. You can feel a lot of jazz vibe in the music and that's what makes this recording sound so different from other's that go into the same direction. It comes out with a jam-feeling to it, a great emotion to me. This feeling when everything seem's to come together in a good mood and everyone involved throw's in his power and talent to it.

It sounds very powerfull and hard but also melodic and very versatile when it comes to the playing techniques and styles of the various tracks. One can quickly point out that it's a typically Atropos Project recording you're listening to.

The first half of the album comes more direct while the second one needs more time to fully sink in. Don't let this stop you from buying. I would like to encourage everyone out there dedicated with the full heart and soul to music to buy this diamond. It's always surprising to see how intensive a record can be - this one will be a journey you'll love and enjoy. Just give it a try.

It's also a great idea for a christmas gift if you know someone out there that has this dedication towards music. It will be a great surprise and I think a album one will enjoy even more with every listen. Remember that Bandcamp also offers the possibility to gift someone with a download code directly through the plattform's shop system.

"Towards Firmament" will be available through the Bandcamp page of Atropos Project starting December 1st 2015. It will also be available through other digital merchants such as CDBaby, Itunes, including streaming at Spotify, Google Play, etc. There are no physical copies planned unless demand warrants it this time around.
Note:  I'll add the exact links to the purchase and streaming plattforms once they've been released so please check back if you're interested in buying or listening to the album. The same goes for the album stream. If it should go online I'll add it here, too.

Currently a preview can be accessed through YouTube that gives a good overview on the album with excerpts of each and every track. Just click on the player below, it only takes a few minutes to listen to it.


Update 01.12.2015: The full album stream is online so I've added it here as promised.  
Album Overview (Track-by-track review)

The Slide: The tracks starts with a few broken notes at the beginning and then goes over to a midtempo slower stomping track with full distortion. Sounds very powerfull and heavy. A keyboard intermission lights up the dark feeling of the track with a lighter melody. The track becomes faster and takes up some tempo. A intensive shred section dominates the last third of this opening song before it finally ends on some strange noise. A great opener!

Bent Crown: A rough and compact but also short intro section kicks us into the second number. It finally let's us fall onto some softer notes that finally form the main theme for this song. The rhythm changed to fit to the guitars. A lot of jazzy feelings in here. This is one of my absolte favorites of the album. The jam feeling comes a lot into play on this one. A new melody abruptly comes in giving it a dreaming theme in between just to be followed on a new part that wraps the melody into a rougher noise guitar vibe and rhythm. The melody continues to shine through. Beautiful part! Finally the rougher part get's more intensive and starts to dominate the track giving it a blistering intermission with a fitting rhythm section. The song goes back to the starting theme to start a little play-around with it before climating into going faster with every round further. I love this!

Block No Light: The opening riff makes it already clear that this track comes around a lot sharper and heavier than the previous one. The main theme morphs and forms a lot as the track progresses even further maintaining all the while it's rough style. Finally a new melody comes up giving it a more melodic and mysteric touch. A ghostly feeling comes up before a sharper midtempo riffer rushes in that opens up the way for some keyboard elements which give it a epic theme. The end comes fast and abrupt but also very fitting to the track.

Alchemist: The fifth album track starts out with some soft introduction notes before heading on to a straight rocking number. The short break with silence comes as a surprise but the melody rushes in even better afterwards. Throughout all the changes the song always remains heading straight on forward in a faster mood. The end presents a lot of distortion and drums playing along to it. It plugs out quickly but all of this feels as if it should be this way.

Expeller: This one opens up quite epic with walls of sound of guitar and keyboards. It transforms further into a midtempo number with heavily distorted guitars and a lot of shred formed into the sound. Finally clear guitars softly come in just to leave as fast as they came. The walls of guitars seem to reflect into the music once again before a string of clear guitar melodies form a soft touching outro to this outstanding track. You'll remember it often afterwards.

Towards Firmament: A rather unusual beginning for this Atropos Project tune with a soft arrangement of guitar strings along with few percussive elements at the start. Rough and dry guitars come in forming a pulsating noise gate that along with the constant rhythm sharps the heaviest track of this second album. It's a big surprise even if you're familar with the sound of this instrumental project. The end gives in some more relaxed parts that form a contrast to the first section that is overwhelming with it's sheer intensive power. Surely a track that set's a mark in the world of heavy instrumental music.

Sistine: This one starts out softly. It has overall a lighter feeling to it with percusson adding to it. Thoughout all the variations a main theme runs through all the parts giving this a heavy jamming attitude. It has a attempt like "Bent Crown" in it. The drumming is more versatile and faster but the guitars go more directly on it. A overall straighter number but with the slight progressive elements I like in this music so much.

Red Roads: We reach the final track of this album. It welcomes us with soft keyboards. The eight song plays around a bit before it comes to the next section - a riff hacking heavy track that has a epic keyboard theme with it that seems to form a echo for the guitars. The hacked notes come back in with much jamming added to it. It plays around a lot with the variations that can be made of it and John Quarles knows how to use them. It's great to see what can be made of single elements and this track shows the variations you can make of it. I hope the journey this album provides can be continued one day. I would love to go on. As for the first I'll put it on repeat and enjoy it a second time that's for sure.

CD Review: Final Coil - Closed To The Light

Band Introduction

Final Coil are a metallic grunge band located at Leicester, England. They've put out various EPs / albums on Bandcamp which all represent a own style the band is capable to play so if you listen to the various stuff you'll be surprised to hear how different they can sound like.

The "Somnambulant" record they've put out in 2014 saw the band going into a acoustic direction offering very sensible and deeply-emotional songs. In the time between "Failed Lights", a brand new and in my ears excellent acoustic song saw the light of day on YouTube, it's a recording of a web-broadcast the band did a while ago.

Only few details on the next record were spread through Facebook in the meantime. But this will end today....

(c) by Final Coil, used with kind permission

Summary / Purchase-Link

Having heard the songs I've talked about above I was absolutely sure that the band would come around with another acoustic record. The new track sounded like a perfect fit, a bridge between the "Somnambulant" tunes and the beginning of a more progressive era of new longer acoustic tracks held in the typical Final Coil style.

The cool thing is: everything about this was totally wrong. :-) In fact what can be heard right here is the heaviest stuff the band has come up with today. I would call it the heaviest songs the band has put out up to this point. The guitars are absolutely sharp and ripping everything to pieces that stands in their way. Meanwhile the drums and bass guitar maintain a fine note of rhythm, giving in a hard, dry and deep punch into the sound. The vocals put a perfect layer over this, transporting much of the emotions of the tracks.

Everything is held in a very tight style, it's crushing heavyness coming from every corner of the sound. It doesn't even leave a single chance of easy sound on most of the tracks (the last song is a exception from that). If you like your music heavy and ultratight this EP will make you more than happy.

In fact I would call this a mixture of the first EP "Goodbye to all that" and their second effort "Live with doubt". Don't miss out this gem. The EP will be released on 2. November 2015. You'll be able to get a free listen / download for a first spin over at Bandcamp starting at that day. There will also be a limited edition CD available. Please buy one of the CDs so underground bands can keep making music and move on. It's worth listening to it numerous times, a EP mixing up all the various styles of the band and bringing them out in the most beautiful form. Progression and heavyness in all of it's beauty.

Player 

The fine thing as of today is that Heavy Metal Underdogs can give you exclusively a first listen of one of the tracks of the brand new EP. I'm very proud that the band picked my blog for this song premiere. It's a honour for me. So without further ado enjoy the track "Daylight Fades" right here.


Track-by-track review

A short intro called "Close to the light" gives in some atmospheric touches with guitar effects and some vocal extracts before a sharp guitar cut comes rushing in quickly leading over to the first full track.

While the first track "Daylight Fades" starts with a simple rhythm it becomes quickly clear that the band had a hard sound in mind when writing this track. The repeating of the text is a kicker in my ears. Especially the second "can't" repeated several times makes this harking back to your mind. Some of the guitar sounds even remind me of good old Jimi Hendrix and his special sound effects. The bridge between the first refrain and the second refrain could easily be described as a sonic guitar bomb. I love this effect! The end of this first song offers a compressed part that only slightly let's room for variations but those played kick the number up even higher. it's like a glimpse of light falling out of a dark mass shaping a form into the darkness for just a few moments but long enough to keep you longing for more.

"Goodybe to all that" picks up where "Daylight Fades" left off, showing what the band is able to do with re-writting a classic track. This incarnation of the track features a much more compressed and heavy guitar sound compared to the original track. Besides that it leaves away most of the playing effects of the 2010 release giving a sharper focus on the main-theme of the song. It shows impressively that reduction can be a fine way of giving a track a new and much heavier interpretation. Nevertheless it doesn't mean the song works only with cutting away things. Moreover these elements were added back again but in a different and harder format. It's now all distorted, yet you will need some fine playing skills to get to replay this I'm sure.

The final track "Closed to the light" is a surprise to the listener. It stands out of the other material giving some redemption after the brutal heavyness that stormed through your ears before. The song starts out softly with some drums and few vocals. The volume is rising all the while as the music slowly starts to build up more. The tonality is set softer, more dreamingly at this point. Much room for the more progressive site of the band on this one. This touches softly the "Somnabulant" era but with more punch and drums before some slightly heavy guitars keep coming in. The vocals are very intense with much drum fills performed to the last silent corners of the song. The last third brings in some heavyness in the guitar section giving some thoughts to the legendary Pink Floyd. A epic masterpiece in my ears. After all I'm listening to the whole record on repeat. It's a big pleasure to have the chance to listen to such a talented band.

Final Coil reveal new acoustic track

Sometimes there are videos out there that give you this feeling from the start that something special is hanging in the air. It's as if a certain feeling or moment has been captured within a melody or the full song. This track then stand's for something and more than anything that could ever be said with a million words it tells you a story that you can re-feel.

That's what happened to me when I first heard and saw the brand new Final Coil song for the track "Failed Lights". It's starting with this soft melody and starting to drift onwards from there before coming to a rougher climax towards the end that you nearly have the feeling as if you'd been on a journey to a place far away. The last soft notes give it something even more special when returning to the soft style of the beginning letting you alone with your thoughts. Just try this out for yourselves in the video below.



Keep a eye on the band's Facebook page so you won't miss out on the further activities of them. The band is also playing a one-off acoustic date at Duffy's Bar on Thurs 8th October. so you might be happy to catch them live.

A Light Within stream new single from the upcoming EP

So the clocks are mercyless ticking down the last hours of 2014...
What shall be done left before a new year will begin?

Don't miss out the chance to do something special on day number 365:
hear the new single from A Light Within already today! It will be released at the end of January 2015 but you can already listen to a stream of the full track "Between Shores" on the pages of Ragnarok Reviews. Very haunting and epic atmosphere on this one. Made my last day of 2014 a very special one...

The next show of the band will be on
Friday, 9th. January 2015 21:00 (CST) at the recordBar in Kansas City
If you would like to sneak a bit more into the upcoming EP don't miss out my article about the vocal recordings sessions as well as more clips from the recording process I posted some time ago.

Update 2015/01/17: The new song is available for streaming and download on the bandcamp page from A Light Within on a pay-what-you-want basis. Since it's such a great track I include the stream here as well. For me this track comes with a very haunting and blistering atmosphere. The intro perfectly rounds out this song which offers it's full bandwith and content only to those who listen to it several times...

Morphelia release 3 cam mix video of Northern Prog Festival

Sometimes, yes only sometimes there's a song and band out there that gives you this freezin' chills that make you feel so good. They help you escape from the daily gray, the dark and cloudy winter weather we are currently rolled in.

This little moment has just happened. I saw a live video from the band "Morphelia", a superb and excellent Progrock and progressive Metal band from Lower Saxony, Germany. Maybe this little post can help to reach out and touch some of you out there to make more people aware of them.

The cover of the current album "Waken the nightmare", (c) by Morphelia . Used with kind permission.

They are sort of a band which offers music to let you drift and dream away but never misses this groovy touch so it never feels boring or standing still. One of the bands you could compare them best to is the band Saga. But better than any words could ever do music speaks out for itselfs so please click the play button and enjoy some fine music and video (it's a fine three cam mix done from the guys at the Background Megazine).

I like the detailed work on this one, all of the elements are arranged in such a harmonic way that fits together perfectly. Most of all the atmosphere is supported by the fine keyboards and the whole excitement lasts for the full ten minutes duration of this track. That's something quite few band can come up with.





I've seen Morphelia myselves back in 2011 and they were awesome. A friend of mine made me aware of them and we spontanously drove over to the show. Never forgot that evening. Most of all the bass guitar solo. I've had the honour to see quite a lot of good bass guitar players so far but Renko Rickers is absolute excellent on his instrument.

Don't miss out to see Morphelias website to learn more about this excellent band. They also have a account on youtube as well as a page on myspace if you prefer to connect to them through these pages.

The band is working on a new album at the moment and sends out a newsletter through E-Mail from time to time. It includes information on the the recording process as well as about past and upcoming shows of the band. It comes in both, german and english language. Just enter your E-Mail adress into the proper field on the right row directly at the homepage underneath the Vossphor-Records Logo (please scroll down a little bit to see it).

The band recently played at the Northern Prog Festival in Siegerwoude in the Netherlands on November 1st 2014. If you want to read a detailed live review about the festival as well as some photos of all the bands playing then head over to the Background megazine. They've put together a fine detailed check up of the full festival.

CD Review: Heartlay - Injection EP

Note: If you have a own band or project that you think might fit in well here for a review or as a presentation / introduction please drop me a line or two in a E-Mail. Please see my profile for my E-Mail adress. I appreciate new suggestions very much so please don't hesitate to contact me. I'm also interested in band news / updates / tourdates so please keep the stuff coming. Thanks!

If you're having troubles writing in English please send me a E-Mail in your preferred language or use the free Google Translator to transfer your message to English. I also use that tool, it's of course not perfect but I think it will mostly likely work out for our purposes.

Short introduction

Heartlay is an Alternative/industrial rock band incorporating elements from Industrial rock, Alternative metal, modern electronics and Progressive rock. All the songs are completley conceived and performed by French multi-instrumentalist Aaron Sadrin, writing all the music, from intense vocal melodies to heavy guitar hooks, sonic experimentations, and modern influenced soundscapes. Brought up on piano, switching to guitar, and now, vocal interest has transformed and opened up these visions of music as a whole, without any limits.

The debut EP "Injection" has been released in November 2014.

(c) by Heartlay, used with kind permission

Summary / Player / Download Link

This five track EP contains a very dedicated, unique piece of music with very intensive atmosphere and many, many chilling moments. I love this epicness of the style and sound!

The whole record comes in a very powerfull soundscape. It's from the very beginning up to the last track a very intensive listening feeling you'll have. Somehow it reminds me of a journey - it starts at a very loud beginning, then a lot of things happen which will see you reaching many highs and lows until you reach the end which is a set in a bit more silent way but the last notes give hope that this wasn't the last bit we've heard from the band. I hope the journey can be continued some day!

The sound is set in Rock music style and on various points even Heavy Metal elements come in. Nevertheless you'll hear that it doesn't come along packed in a traditional sound but with a lot of modern ways to produce such a record. Also I'm coming personally from the old-school days I like this modern approach. It brings in a lot of fresh air to the world of Rock music and innovation often comes along with experimentation not with staying the same way all the time in my opinion. It's also very diverse so it won't get boring, the tempo and mood changes quite often in each song.

The record has been set up as a free download on Bandcamp. Since you can name the price for the EP on Bandcamp it would be nice if you could give something back for what you've taken. You know making music ain't free so please consider this. Thanks! The download option on Bandcamp also let's you choice the format and quality. All the fines loseless music file-options this site offers are available with this EP,too.

If you want to keep a eye on what's further going on in the Heartlay cosmos make sure to follow the band on Facebook or have a look from time to time on their official website which also holds more links to other social accounts the band has a presence opened up for.

Track-by-Track Review

1.See You Under
Some soft guitars play some notes before a constant hard and heavy drum pattern gives the track the push movement forward. Haunting, spoken and distorted vocals add a lot to the atmosphere. The refrain kicks in with very dominating vocals and harder guitars. It feels a bit like a phoenix rises from the ashes.
This scenario grows even further as the six-strings go over into a heavy and hard riffing attack which is pushed by a double-bass drum part which makes this the blast part of the song. A slower part follows up which gives some time to breathe before some more intensive but slightly cleaner vocals lead the song back to the heavy style. The drum pattern from the very beginning comes back towards the end of See you under bringing this one to a slow but great ending. A great first track!

2.Leave Them All Behind
A very dark and heavy hitting riff along with pushing drums opens this one up. The tone is very raw and direct. A little change comes in with the vocals. It gets over to a bit more riff- and rhythm-oriented song before a blasting refrain kicks back in again which ends up in the raw tone of the beginning again.   The second verse and chorus go in the same way as the first did but the refrain comes in even more handy which makes this track ringing in your ears for quite some time after you've heard it. The solo section comes a bit softer around playing with the previous elements of melody and riffs in various ways. The refrain is repeated and the riff-hacking part comes back to life. The end reprises the maintheme and refrain and end with distorted guitars abruptly ending the track.

3.It Comes Alive
High peak six-strings open this one up before some softer vocals give a haunting chill to this piece of music. Set in a bit more midtempo structure this one plays around a lot with the various tones and effects of the guitars. While the first half features some vocals they are left oft the second half which goes even further into experimenting with raw and hard noises. This one needs a repeat to get fully through the complex song structure.

(c) by Heartlay, used with kind permission

4.Hidden
Haunting and chilling fearfull vocals open up this one. The refrain offers a tight, bright wall of sound. This has a strong effect on the listener. The following part feels much more frail and intensive after this treatment. A constant played melody brings back the intense atmosphere from the beginning but in a bit softer way. Then a sharp cut surprises the listener - some piano notes come to life making the follow up instrumental section to a very special one. It mixes up the previous used elements along with some riffs to end up in another sound explosion. Another sharp cut and very soft and slow notes bring this excellent piece of music towards the end. A very special gem, a must listen to all the music lovers out there!

5.White Walls
Ghostly drums start this one. Beautifull, soft notes jammed in with harder piano pieces build a very strong piece of sound again. Some drum variations along with some last guitar vibrations end this EP in a soft but very decent way. 

A Light Within shows writing vocal session clip for upcoming EP

The Alt-Rock / Post-progressive band A Light Within is working on new material for the next EP. Having made their first step with the release of the "Preface" EP which can be heard in my review about the release the band is preparing the follow-up mini-album these days.

This snippet shows the process of writing vocals to a live instrumental take of "Between Shores". I've never seen such a teaser before, but it feels like it takes one directly into the creative working process the band is currently in.

Not one of the "usual" studio impressions though. Very cool vocals and I also like the style of the video that fits to the music. It feels a bit haunting and the atmosphere is very tight. I've also had a interview with the band a while ago so head over to find out more about this outstanding band.



The band will play two liveshows in the upcoming time:

Oct 23
The Riot Room
Kansas City, MO

Nov 08
with Various Hands and The Travel Guide
The Bay, Warrensburg MO 64903

Update 2014/11/07: The band has added two new snippets from the recording sessions to their Youtube channel. They used video in photoshop! Just click below to see them both plus all the other stuff that the band has uploaded so far.

Interview with A Light Within

Short introduction

With this interview a new section on metalunderdogs is opened up. Here we'd like to talk to new, young and upcoming bands about their current or past releases and take a little look behind the scenes.

Today we had the pleasure to speak with Jeff from the band A Light Within. Recently we did a review of their first EP called "Preface" and now it was time to take a closer look upon this band. Hope you all enjoy this new section of the site. Please let us know in the comments below or drop a E-Mail with your suggestions. If you're interested in setting up a interview I'd appreciate a E-Mail as well. Thanks!

Band introduction / player

(c) A Light Within, used with kind permission

A Light Within, are a Post/Progressive Alt Rock band from Kansas City, MO USA. The band started as did so many other bands before, from the demise of the band members previous bands. With no planned direction, a bond was formed and a voice/sound began to develop and be defined. The first EP “Preface “ was recorded by the band in 2012 and was mixed by Kyle Brandt and released in 2013.

The EP is a concept based upon a reflection of one’s life as the end draws near. “Aged eyes gaze upon the vast ocean through the window in the living room. Attempts to recollect life start with what little is known of birth. As these memories strive to keep the lungs breathing, and the heart beating, they slowly trickle from the mind one by one; releasing the will of existence. As questions of life arise, so do questions of death; for the first has been experienced and the latter may be welcome.”. (These notebook pages contain substance of a persons mind, body, and soul while their time was spent on earth.)



The Interview

Thank you for taking the time to do this interview. Can you tell our readers something about the equipment you use? Is there something special in instruments you use to create the sounds that can be heard on "Preface"?

Thanks for wanting to know more about us. We appreciate the support. Our equipment is nothing out of the ordinary. Guitars, bass, vocals and drums. Our setups are somewhat different. For starters, we have too many pedals (don’t think that can ever be said). Each guitarist has a multitude of pedals, the bass has a good amount and Kyle, singer, uses a couple of pedals for his voice as well as a microphone made from a old school payphone. It’s these different sounds/elements that helped to create our sound.


Did you record the whole album for yourselves? Did you also create the package on your own? The recording has a fine quality!

Both Kyle and I (Jeff, guitar) have home studio setups and since we’re using ProTools, we can easily pass files back and forth. The drums and vocals were done in his studio and the guitars and bass were recorded in mine. Kyle spent many hours mixing, so it’s always good to hear that people like quality of the recording. We’ve both learned a lot since then and can’t wait to get to recording the new EP. I’m a graphic designer and enjoy having the chance to create an interesting package for our music.

(c) A Light Within, used with kind permission

Where do you get your inspirations from?

It’s really difficult to pinpoint where an exact inspiration comes from, I know this may be cliche, but inspiration is all around you, whether it be a sound, a smell or something you see. We’re are inspired by the music we listen to, the people in our lives, our heroes we look up to or just the way your dog looks at you. In practice someone may be fiddling around with an idea and 20 minutes later a song is born. Sorry to be so abstract.

Was there a discussion in the band before recording the EP about the lyrics or how did it come together? Who works on the lyrics anyway?

(c) A Light Within, used with kind permission

The music was mostly written before Kyle was officially in the band, well 2 partially written songs. We’d send him the ideas and he started doing vocal demos and had this concept idea that we all really liked and went with it. Kyle writes all the lyrics.

How is the songwriting going on? Is there one band member that comes around with a idea for a song or is it more done as a collaboration between all the band members? Do you often jam around to find new sounds?

We are pretty organic when it comes to songwriting. Someone may have an idea that they start playing and we jam on it and see where it takes us. We all work on ideas outside of practice, but there’s not one main songwriter, it’s a full on collaboration. We have a few complete song ideas for the next EP and have 2 more that partial thoughts that we’ll finish up to complete it. We started recording drums and we’re really excited to get this EP completed.

The numbers of the songs refer to pages. Why aren't they set in line on the EP, or is it just that the songs fit better this way on the record?

The songs are sequenced how they are because of the way they flow together. There wasn’t a plan on how to place them on the EP, it just felt right.

Is the artwork also somehow involved in the lyrical concept? The backside image of the inlay has some relation to them with the clock and the lyrics in them.

I had the main idea of the artwork completed in my head way before the songs were recorded. I added the clock as a design element to tie into the lyrical concept a bit more. And I thought adding the lyrics was just another layer/texture to add to the visual aspect of our package to coincide with the layering/textural aspect of our music.

What are your plans for the future? Can you already give a little sneak peek on how the lyrical concept of the EP will be continued on the next record?

Right now we are writing and recording our next EP, writing new ideas with our new(ish) bassist and just trying to build our audience and get as much exposure as we can. We are extending the concept of the 1st EP into this one as 2 of the songs were written around the same time as the songs on the 1st EP.

Are there plans to visualise the concept with animations or something else in upcoming shows of the band?

(c) A Light Within, used with kind permission

We did a small visual teaser before the 1st EP was done and we plan on doing another one once we get a song or 2 recorded for the 2nd one. Maybe even do a full lyric video or full concept video, that would be nice. We’ve also talked about projecting some sort of animations on top of us while we’re playing live. We like the whole idea of stimulating all of the senses.

Where does the band play next? I am sure many people would like to experience the songs in a live concert.

We’ve had a few shows in the last couple of months out of town and we play next at Californo’s in KC in June. Then we play in St. Joseph, MO in July at Cafe Acoustic and back in KC in Aug at the recordBar.

Can people out there book the band if they have a event/Open Air where they would like to see the band playing?

We’re definitely open to play anything. I really think our music would sit well in the festival setting, just something about the expanse of playing outside really fits well with our sound. We missed a chance to play the Euroblast festival last year by the skin of our teeth in an online voting competition. (Now that would have been something amazing to have been a part of) Thanks… visit us online at facebook.com/ALWaudio or alightwithin.bandcamp.com

CD Review: A Light Within - Preface

Note: If you have a own band or project that you think might fit in well here for a review or as a presentation / introduction please do drop me a line or two here in the comments section or please see my profile for my E-Mail adress. I do appreciate new suggestions very much!

If you're having troubles writing in English please send me a E-Mail in your preferred language or use the free Google Translator to transfer your message to English. I also use that tool, it's of course not perfect but I think it will mostly likely work out for our purposes.

Short introduction

A Light Within are a  Post/Progressive Alt Rock band from Kansas City, MO USA. The band started as did so many other bands before, from the demise of the band members previous bands. With no planned direction, a bond was formed and a voice/sound began to develop and be defined. The first EP “Preface “ was recorded by the band in 2012 and was mixed by Kyle Brandt and released in 2013.

The EP is a concept based upon a reflection of one’s life as the end draws near. “Aged eyes gaze upon the vast ocean through the window in the living room. Attempts to recollect life start with what little is known of birth. As these memories strive to keep the lungs breathing, and the heart beating, they slowly trickle from the mind one by one; releasing the will of existence. As questions of life arise, so do questions of death; for the first has been experienced and the latter may be welcome.”. (These notebook pages contain substance of a persons mind, body, and soul while their time was spent on earth.)

Short Summary / Player / Download Link

The band has a beautiful sound, it's very spheric music letting you drift to a very outstanding and unique experience. It's well worth a listen and I did so many times and every time I find out more details that I think I missed out before. If you like bands like Pink Floyd or Deftones I think you'll love the very dedicated music the band creates. Listen to this one in a relaxed surrounding with eyes closed then it comes it's best giving you imaginations unknown.

The concept of the record is also very well worth taking a look, not so many albums come with that. The lyrics can be found directly on the Bandcamp page, so have a look at them if you're interested in finding out more about this. I think it perfectly fits to the sounds the band provides at the album.

"Preface" comes for 3 Dollar as a download from the band's bandcamp page but you can also order a physical CD for only 5 Dollar plus shipping and handling. Check out the stream right here and read my track by track review to find out if it meet's your taste.
If you'd like to stay in touch with the band head on over to Facebook and give their site a like click.

Track by Track Review

1. Page # 32 (Morning)
The song starts very slow. Yes, it feels like you've just been woken up. The epic dimensions of the album can be felt straight from the start of the EP. Vocals come in slowly, distorted vocal lines mix in with a lot of melody and reverb. Some drums come in towards the end of the song, giving it a slight movement forward. It's overall a very spheric sounding world you softly are introduced to. Fits perfectly to the concept of the record.

2. Page # 18 (Grin)
A clock wakes us with a monotone signal. Softly a melody rushes in and soft tone but clear vocals add a lot to the feelings. The song then changes a bit more towards a edgy piece of sound, few drums and much distortion can be heard giving it a raw note before some softness gives you a breath. A climatic end gives some good feelings to the mid of the song. The vocals are a bit streched giving it a bit more good vibe to it. Very ghostly ending with much echos towards the end of it. Some strange words, very distorted bring the track to the end fading out towards the final track of this recording. Page # 18 (Grin) is my favorite track of the EP.

3. Page # 66 (Sixes)
The most moving song of the package. Starts with some guitars and clear guitars in the beginning, then we fastly go over to some experimental keyboards. Hard to take, few silence before the hard and very distorted part rushes in back again. Again with some distorted vocals giving the track it's very own charm.  The end comes in very heavy, very powerfull - giving it a heavy feel to it. A last raw line spoken by the voice, before a soft tone melody guitar riff fades the track to it's end. Let's hope for more to come to continue the conecpt. I surely would love to know how the next step turns out. How will it sound, how will it feel? Let's keep an eye on this...