Hot New Band: Earthside

An extraordinary labour of love more than two-and-a-half years in the making, Earthside’s debut album, A Dream In Static, screams its creators’ prog metal ambition from the rooftops.

With notable assistance from the Moscow Studio Symphony Orchestra – check out the band’s Mob Mentality video for proof – and guest appearances by Soilwork’s Björn Strid and Lajon Witherspoon of Sevendust, this is a record that thinks big and delivers bigger.

“We’ve always been ambitious,” explains keyboard player Frank Sacramone. “But this album became much more ambitious than we’d planned! The hardest part was not being able to release any music for three years. Now that it’s been released, I’m starting to see a reward from our efforts when people tell us that they’ve made a connection with our music.”

A surprise addition to Soilwork and Soulfly’s recent US tour lineup, Earthside have been brewing their wild prog metal hybrid for the best part of a decade. A Dream In Static has already garnered a huge amount of praise from prog and metal communities alike, and it seems that by purposefully taking an eclectic approach to making music, this band’s personality is becoming hard to resist.

“It’s been cool to see people’s reactions, even when we’re playing with heavier bands,” says Frank. “It’s refreshing to have a set that brings you something a little more ethereal and contemplative. Not having an easily classifiable sound is a very important part of our music.”

As this New England crew are concerned, every one of their crazy ideas comes from the heart.

“We want to reclaim a sense of soul in modern music,” Frank concludes. “People don’t want to make the sacrifices it takes to do something ‘ambitious’… but for us it is simply necessary.”

A Dream In Static is available now via iTunes

Dom Lawson began his inauspicious career as a music journalist in 1999. He wrote for Kerrang! for seven years, before moving to Metal Hammer and Prog Magazine in 2007. His primary interests are heavy metal, progressive rock, coffee, snooker and despair. He is politically homeless and has an excellent beard.