<![CDATA[ Latest from Louder in Progressive-metal ]]> https://www.loudersound.com/tag/progressive-metal Wed, 17 Sep 2025 05:03:00 +0000 en <![CDATA[ “We’re definitely still a progressive band. Listen to the detail in what we do and the musicianship behind it – it all comes from that legacy”: When Soen’s songs got shorter but not shallower on Memorial ]]> Soen were treated as a novelty supergroup of heavy prog musicians when they debuted in 2012. By the time they released sixth album Memorial in 2023, they’d legitimised themselves – but were they still prog? Lead vocalist Joel Ekelöf discussed the matter.

Joel Ekelöf looks incredibly zen. The Soen frontman is sitting in what he calls the “Japanese house” in his back garden, Swedish sunshine peering into the bright room as he smokes a cigarette. It looks like he’s enjoying a perfect summertime in Stockholm.

“It was very warm in June, but it’s a bit windy now,” the singer says, before breaking into the smallest of smiles. “You’ll never get a warm summer in Sweden.”

He comes across as a constantly composed character, speaking in short sentences with a serious yet quiet tone. His demeanour is the polar opposite of Soen’s music, which is a particularly high-energy and bombastic form of prog.

When the five-piece’s formation was officially announced in 2010, they were a supergroup of established players with a sprawling and melodic style many happily compared to Tool. However, in the decade since, the band have legitimised themselves as a full-time force and chiselled a soundscape very much their own.

Soen songs nowadays condense the majesty of heavy prog – the soaring vocals, studied riffs and mighty, crescendoing choruses – into episodic form. Their sixth album, Memorial, is a concise collection that could theoretically find radio success. The songs are powerhouse calls to arms marching along using iron-clad rock riffing, Ekelöf’s commanding vocals and arena-ready choruses. The longest track, closing ballad Vitals, barely scratches the five-minute mark.

Ekelöf likens Soen’s musical evolution to that of Genesis, one of his favourite bands, and one whose career famously grew more direct and pop-minded as it progressed. It’s easy to imagine Soen as the modern but heavier rock equivalent.

“I’m also a fan of the albums that Peter Gabriel made after leaving Genesis,” Ekelöf says. “They were a bit more straightforward as well. But I also think that the old albums have really good, strong songs with strong emotions. That’s the core to everything, which is much more important to me than technicality. I miss those kinds of great songs and great songwriting nowadays.”

To that end, Soen began to push in the opposite musical direction that they perceived the rest of the prog genre to be heading in in the 2010s. “We started seeing this crossroads in the progressive metal scene. A lot of bands were going more and more towards art-rock – more technical. We just wanted to preserve that metal vibe: the power and energy of the music. If you go to a Soen show, it’s a show with a lot of power.”

Although Memorial represents a streamlined and simplified Soen that, true to their frontman’s words, clearly places more stock in tonality than flamboyant chops, Ekelöf steadfastly believes they haven’t moved far. “I would definitely say that we are still a progressive band,” he insists. “If you listen to the detail in what we do and the musicianship behind it, it all comes from that legacy, from progressive music.”

Sure enough, the song Sincere opens Memorial in a scramble of off-kilter, progressive drumming before its main riff kicks in. The title track frequently escalates in drama by having oddly-timed staccato riffs grow more and more intense, while Incendiary dissipates from hulking metal into a section of Pink Floyd-like atmospherics during its bridge. The end result is an album that, although direct and often catchy, also flies above meathead heavy metal clichés. Memorial is blatantly as smart as it is easily listenable.

There’s a similar intelligence to the lyrics. Memorial is thematically the spiritual sequel to its predecessor, 2021’s Imperial. While that album was a staunch political statement about rising up against oppression, this one is about more quietly understanding the world: not fighting, but considering everything that, potentially, needs to be fought against.

“It’s more about just recognising the situation we’re in,” Ekelöf explains. “We’re in a darker stage in the world than we’ve ever been, especially in the Soen years, so the themes are about what’s happening right now. It may not be in the rebellious way Imperial was – but a more mature way.”

My way of singing was unexpected. I think Martin was expecting growled vocals

Self-distinction has always been the driving force of Soen. The band were founded by Martin Lopez in the early 2000s: the drummer was a member of Opeth from 1997 to 2006, before stepping down for health reasons. Soen were planned as a way for him to finally lead his own project and write his own music, as opposed to his place in the Mikael Åkerfeldt-founded and masterminded Opeth.

“I always had the idea to write my own music and do my own thing while playing in other people’s bands,” Lopez told heavy music blog MetalSucks in 2017. “I felt that that time was the right one to start a band.”

He first reached out to guitarist Joakim Platbarzdis and bass player Steve Di Giorgio, the latter of whom found prominence playing with extreme progressive metal band Death in the 1990s. He’s also known to metalheads for his stints in thrash groups Testament and Sadus. Ekelöf joined last, thanks to Platbarzdis being a fan of his old band Willowtree.

“The first album [2012’s Cognitive] was a lot of exploring,” Ekelöf remembers. “We were trying to find what was us: ‘How can we get our musical inspirations together?’ The project basically started with the match between my way of singing and Martin’s rhythmic, aggressive way of playing, but that was unexpected: I think Martin, making those first demos, was expecting growled vocals.”

The frontman admits that, with much of the band already being well-known musicians, Soen were treated as a novelty when they first formed. “In the beginning, everyone was asking us, ‘Are you a supergroup? Will you do more albums, or is this a one-off?’ We had to answer a lot of questions over whether this band was ‘real.’ We knew all the time, though, that this was real and it would be the main thing we’d dedicate our time to.”

Not all the band made it through the early days. Di Giorgio amicably left to pursue his myriad other projects, now replaced by Oleksii Kobel, and guitars are currently played by Cody Lee Ford and Lars Åhlund. Ekelöf reflects that it was Soen’s second album, 2014’s Tellurian, that legitimised them as a full-time pursuit: not only did it come just two years after Cognitive, but it pushed the band into a prolific schedule of headline tours.

Prog 143

This article first appeared in Prog 143 (Image credit: Future)

“We started touring more heavily,” Ekelöf says. “We did one with Paradise Lost but, after that we started doing our own tours in Europe. Me and Martin especially are very stubborn; we want things a certain way and to be in control when we tour. If you go out as a support, you’re thrown into something else and have to adjust.”

Since then, Soen have been relentlessly active, releasing four further albums over nine years while maintaining a rigorous touring lifestyle. All the while, they’ve been refining their fiercely anthemic and infectious style of music. The culmination of the journey so far is a space Ekelöf is happy in. He exudes pride in Memorial, and admits he has no plans for the musical future, preferring to relish the now. Whether or not you believe the Soen of 2023 are prog, their music is powerful and successful – and it’s bloody good.

“I really like the place we’re in right now,” Ekelöf concludes. “We feel very comfortable here, and I regard this new album as the best Soen album. Some people ask me when we’re going to do another Tellurian, but I don’t think there’s going to be another Tellurian. There’s no point redoing old stuff. What we do next could well be intricate and experimental – but it will never be the same.”

]]> https://www.loudersound.com/music/albums/soen-memorial rdqBUo9aCadvXWNDwbWCxR Wed, 17 Sep 2025 05:03:00 +0000 false false false

Soen were treated as a novelty supergroup of heavy prog musicians when they debuted in 2012. By the time they released sixth album Memorial in 2023, they’d legitimised themselves – but were they still prog? Lead vocalist Joel Ekelöf discussed the matter.

Joel Ekelöf looks incredibly zen. The Soen frontman is sitting in what he calls the “Japanese house” in his back garden, Swedish sunshine peering into the bright room as he smokes a cigarette. It looks like he’s enjoying a perfect summertime in Stockholm.

“It was very warm in June, but it’s a bit windy now,” the singer says, before breaking into the smallest of smiles. “You’ll never get a warm summer in Sweden.”

He comes across as a constantly composed character, speaking in short sentences with a serious yet quiet tone. His demeanour is the polar opposite of Soen’s music, which is a particularly high-energy and bombastic form of prog.

When the five-piece’s formation was officially announced in 2010, they were a supergroup of established players with a sprawling and melodic style many happily compared to Tool. However, in the decade since, the band have legitimised themselves as a full-time force and chiselled a soundscape very much their own.

Soen songs nowadays condense the majesty of heavy prog – the soaring vocals, studied riffs and mighty, crescendoing choruses – into episodic form. Their sixth album, Memorial, is a concise collection that could theoretically find radio success. The songs are powerhouse calls to arms marching along using iron-clad rock riffing, Ekelöf’s commanding vocals and arena-ready choruses. The longest track, closing ballad Vitals, barely scratches the five-minute mark.

Ekelöf likens Soen’s musical evolution to that of Genesis, one of his favourite bands, and one whose career famously grew more direct and pop-minded as it progressed. It’s easy to imagine Soen as the modern but heavier rock equivalent.

“I’m also a fan of the albums that Peter Gabriel made after leaving Genesis,” Ekelöf says. “They were a bit more straightforward as well. But I also think that the old albums have really good, strong songs with strong emotions. That’s the core to everything, which is much more important to me than technicality. I miss those kinds of great songs and great songwriting nowadays.”

To that end, Soen began to push in the opposite musical direction that they perceived the rest of the prog genre to be heading in in the 2010s. “We started seeing this crossroads in the progressive metal scene. A lot of bands were going more and more towards art-rock – more technical. We just wanted to preserve that metal vibe: the power and energy of the music. If you go to a Soen show, it’s a show with a lot of power.”

Although Memorial represents a streamlined and simplified Soen that, true to their frontman’s words, clearly places more stock in tonality than flamboyant chops, Ekelöf steadfastly believes they haven’t moved far. “I would definitely say that we are still a progressive band,” he insists. “If you listen to the detail in what we do and the musicianship behind it, it all comes from that legacy, from progressive music.”

Sure enough, the song Sincere opens Memorial in a scramble of off-kilter, progressive drumming before its main riff kicks in. The title track frequently escalates in drama by having oddly-timed staccato riffs grow more and more intense, while Incendiary dissipates from hulking metal into a section of Pink Floyd-like atmospherics during its bridge. The end result is an album that, although direct and often catchy, also flies above meathead heavy metal clichés. Memorial is blatantly as smart as it is easily listenable.

There’s a similar intelligence to the lyrics. Memorial is thematically the spiritual sequel to its predecessor, 2021’s Imperial. While that album was a staunch political statement about rising up against oppression, this one is about more quietly understanding the world: not fighting, but considering everything that, potentially, needs to be fought against.

“It’s more about just recognising the situation we’re in,” Ekelöf explains. “We’re in a darker stage in the world than we’ve ever been, especially in the Soen years, so the themes are about what’s happening right now. It may not be in the rebellious way Imperial was – but a more mature way.”

My way of singing was unexpected. I think Martin was expecting growled vocals

Self-distinction has always been the driving force of Soen. The band were founded by Martin Lopez in the early 2000s: the drummer was a member of Opeth from 1997 to 2006, before stepping down for health reasons. Soen were planned as a way for him to finally lead his own project and write his own music, as opposed to his place in the Mikael Åkerfeldt-founded and masterminded Opeth.

“I always had the idea to write my own music and do my own thing while playing in other people’s bands,” Lopez told heavy music blog MetalSucks in 2017. “I felt that that time was the right one to start a band.”

He first reached out to guitarist Joakim Platbarzdis and bass player Steve Di Giorgio, the latter of whom found prominence playing with extreme progressive metal band Death in the 1990s. He’s also known to metalheads for his stints in thrash groups Testament and Sadus. Ekelöf joined last, thanks to Platbarzdis being a fan of his old band Willowtree.

“The first album [2012’s Cognitive] was a lot of exploring,” Ekelöf remembers. “We were trying to find what was us: ‘How can we get our musical inspirations together?’ The project basically started with the match between my way of singing and Martin’s rhythmic, aggressive way of playing, but that was unexpected: I think Martin, making those first demos, was expecting growled vocals.”

The frontman admits that, with much of the band already being well-known musicians, Soen were treated as a novelty when they first formed. “In the beginning, everyone was asking us, ‘Are you a supergroup? Will you do more albums, or is this a one-off?’ We had to answer a lot of questions over whether this band was ‘real.’ We knew all the time, though, that this was real and it would be the main thing we’d dedicate our time to.”

Not all the band made it through the early days. Di Giorgio amicably left to pursue his myriad other projects, now replaced by Oleksii Kobel, and guitars are currently played by Cody Lee Ford and Lars Åhlund. Ekelöf reflects that it was Soen’s second album, 2014’s Tellurian, that legitimised them as a full-time pursuit: not only did it come just two years after Cognitive, but it pushed the band into a prolific schedule of headline tours.

Prog 143

This article first appeared in Prog 143 (Image credit: Future)

“We started touring more heavily,” Ekelöf says. “We did one with Paradise Lost but, after that we started doing our own tours in Europe. Me and Martin especially are very stubborn; we want things a certain way and to be in control when we tour. If you go out as a support, you’re thrown into something else and have to adjust.”

Since then, Soen have been relentlessly active, releasing four further albums over nine years while maintaining a rigorous touring lifestyle. All the while, they’ve been refining their fiercely anthemic and infectious style of music. The culmination of the journey so far is a space Ekelöf is happy in. He exudes pride in Memorial, and admits he has no plans for the musical future, preferring to relish the now. Whether or not you believe the Soen of 2023 are prog, their music is powerful and successful – and it’s bloody good.

“I really like the place we’re in right now,” Ekelöf concludes. “We feel very comfortable here, and I regard this new album as the best Soen album. Some people ask me when we’re going to do another Tellurian, but I don’t think there’s going to be another Tellurian. There’s no point redoing old stuff. What we do next could well be intricate and experimental – but it will never be the same.”

]]> <![CDATA[ I used to feel like a geek for loving prog metal. In 2025, it’s taking over the world – and I couldn’t be happier! ]]> “When do the vocals kick in?!”

“Why does this song never end?!”

“How the hell do you bang your head to this shit?!”

When I was a teenage progressive metal fan, these were the questions I heard ad nauseam. As much as heavy music was considered outsider art during my awkward school years, loving the bands who played 20-minute tracks in 9/8 time was fringe even beyond that. The kids who adored Ed Sheeran didn’t understand Metallica, then the kids who adored Metallica didn’t understand Between The Buried And Me.

It was a trickle-down economy of shitting on music tastes and mine was at the bottom of the U-bend.

Jump-cut to 2025 and, blimey, the world feels different now. The West is plummeting into neofascism to the sound of incels’ vindicated applause, while artificial intelligence threatens the very meaning of human creativity. But, more staggering and unprecedented than all of that, prog metal is in vogue now!

There’s a part of me that wants to be bitter about it. Maybe if I see yet a-fucking-nother TikTok trying to explain the mythology behind Sleep Token’s lyrics, I will be. Moreover, though, I’m grateful that prog metal has entered its golden age: an era where eclecticism and complexity aren’t things to be ashamed of, but which thrust its practitioners to mainstream goodwill and festival headline spots.

For many, the explosion of prog metal to arena-scale success became tangible post-pandemic. Footage of Jinjer frontwoman Tatiana Shmayluk howling through Pisces wowed millions of people and quickly made the Ukrainians a big deal. In 2023, the aforementioned Sleep Token became the metal band, winning viral success with their masks, sensual sounds, and leaps from pop melodies to Meshuggah-ey riffs that many had never heard the likes of before. Gojira enjoyed their first tour through 10,000-plus capacity venues across Europe around the same time.

Although that may have been when mainstream metalheads took notice of these forward-minded bands, the truth is that your social media algorithm had long been teaching you to love sonic technicality – and you probably didn’t even know it!

Think about it: from the mid-2010s onwards, how many virtuoso guitarists and drummers popped up in your Youtube, Facebook and Instagram feeds? How many more inspired stunned news stories from magazines such as this one? And how many more still were further circulated by other content creators, who sat mouths agape as Rob Scallon defied physics with his left hand and buttered toast with his right or whatever.

Social media has been instilling a penchant for proggy chops in many people for quite some time. Meanwhile, the seemingly inevitable apocalypse caused by climate change has probably made you sad, angry or hopeless at at least one point. Then the pandemic made everyone sadder, angrier and hopeless-er. An appetite for music that’s jointly intricate and intense has been brewing for a while now. Combine that with the obvious mainstream dalliances of Sleep Token (frequently dubbed metal’s Bon Iver) and the hip-hop-indebted Polyphia, and the climate is perfect!

Sleep Token performing live in 2023

Sleep Token perform at Leeds festival in 2023 (Image credit: Katja Ogrin/Redferns)

This brings us to the present day. In 2025, the ascents of numerous prog metal superstars will be reaffirmed, while the release schedule looks full to bursting with new albums from the genre’s elite forces.

Let’s start with the most staggering achievement: in June, Sleep Token will headline the UK’s near-100,000-capacity Download festival alongside veteran rock icons Korn and Green Day. It’s also been heavily hinted that the masked pop-prog-metal sex cult will release their fourth album before they grace the stage in Donington, potentially giving not just their genre but all of heavy music its tentpole release for the next 12 months.

Djent-influenced metalcore frontrunners Spiritbox will enjoy a similar levelling up. Next month, the Canadians play their biggest-ever UK show at the 10,000-capacity Alexandra Palace. The gig will be followed by second album Tsunami Sea, set to surf in on a wave of hype strong enough to drown Godzilla.

Also happening next month is the release of the new Jinjer album, Duél. It will be their first studio project since Wallflowers in 2021, with the band having admitted that the Russian invasion of their home country slowed them down creatively. Something special this way comes nonetheless: bassist Eugene Abdukhanov recently told Metal Hammer that Tatiana’s vocals are so good they move him to tears.

February will herald Dream Theater’s Parasomnia too. The sleep-themed album will be the New Yorkers’ first in 16 years with founding drummer Mike Portnoy. The blue-bearded beast returned to the fold in 2023, after playing for almost every other rock band in existence.

More is expected from everybody’s favourite baying Frenchmen, Gojira, later down the line. Last September (a couple months after the band’s fire-spewing show at the Olympics’ opening ceremony), frontman Joe Duplantier said they were in the middle of making some “ambitious” new music. When that will materialise is TBA, but what’s certain is that the wildmen will decimate Derbyshire’s Bloodstock Open Air in August, alongside modern metal greats Trivium and Machine Head.

Polyphia are set to make some bold musical moves as well. The genre-shredding instrumentalists have already buddied up with Deftones and Steve Vai, and, talking to Rock Sound last summer, guitarist Tim Henson revealed that they’ll team with Babymetal on their next album.

“We’ve been talking to Serj [Tankian] from System Of A Down,” he added. “We love all kinds of music, so it’s fun to reach into all these different things.”

Filling out the calendar will be new stuff from sludge/prog giants Mastodon, who are currently working on their first album since 2021: a “supernatural horror” concept piece. “I don’t see a world in which it does not come out in 2025,” drummer/vocalist Brann Dailor says in the new issue of Hammer.

And that’s just the big guns! Karnivool are set to make their debut atop the bill at Bristol’s Arctangent festival in August and deliver their first album in 12 years. Plus, Leprous are currently trekking across Europe on an Evening With run in some of the biggest venues they’ve ever played, whereas Animals As Leaders are about to celebrate 10 years of beloved album The Joy Of Motion on the road.

Naturally, there’s still way more to be announced over the coming months, but it’s already plain to see: 2025 will be a banner year for progressive metal. The genre will get catapulted to the apex of festivals, cram venues of all sizes, and offer landmark album after landmark album. Take that, other kids at school!

Read more about the metal albums to get excited for in 2025 inside the new issue of Metal Hammer. Order your copy now and get it delivered directly to your door.

Trivium x Bullet For My Valentine Metal Hammer issue promo image

(Image credit: Future)
 ]]> https://www.loudersound.com/features/why-prog-metal-will-define-2025-op-ed-sleep-token-gojira-jinjer doYYb8gYdwfRL5BzGHPC5B Wed, 29 Jan 2025 10:04:58 +0000 Tue, 18 Mar 2025 14:31:57 +0000 false false false

“When do the vocals kick in?!”

“Why does this song never end?!”

“How the hell do you bang your head to this shit?!”

When I was a teenage progressive metal fan, these were the questions I heard ad nauseam. As much as heavy music was considered outsider art during my awkward school years, loving the bands who played 20-minute tracks in 9/8 time was fringe even beyond that. The kids who adored Ed Sheeran didn’t understand Metallica, then the kids who adored Metallica didn’t understand Between The Buried And Me.

It was a trickle-down economy of shitting on music tastes and mine was at the bottom of the U-bend.

Jump-cut to 2025 and, blimey, the world feels different now. The West is plummeting into neofascism to the sound of incels’ vindicated applause, while artificial intelligence threatens the very meaning of human creativity. But, more staggering and unprecedented than all of that, prog metal is in vogue now!

There’s a part of me that wants to be bitter about it. Maybe if I see yet a-fucking-nother TikTok trying to explain the mythology behind Sleep Token’s lyrics, I will be. Moreover, though, I’m grateful that prog metal has entered its golden age: an era where eclecticism and complexity aren’t things to be ashamed of, but which thrust its practitioners to mainstream goodwill and festival headline spots.

For many, the explosion of prog metal to arena-scale success became tangible post-pandemic. Footage of Jinjer frontwoman Tatiana Shmayluk howling through Pisces wowed millions of people and quickly made the Ukrainians a big deal. In 2023, the aforementioned Sleep Token became the metal band, winning viral success with their masks, sensual sounds, and leaps from pop melodies to Meshuggah-ey riffs that many had never heard the likes of before. Gojira enjoyed their first tour through 10,000-plus capacity venues across Europe around the same time.

Although that may have been when mainstream metalheads took notice of these forward-minded bands, the truth is that your social media algorithm had long been teaching you to love sonic technicality – and you probably didn’t even know it!

Think about it: from the mid-2010s onwards, how many virtuoso guitarists and drummers popped up in your Youtube, Facebook and Instagram feeds? How many more inspired stunned news stories from magazines such as this one? And how many more still were further circulated by other content creators, who sat mouths agape as Rob Scallon defied physics with his left hand and buttered toast with his right or whatever.

Social media has been instilling a penchant for proggy chops in many people for quite some time. Meanwhile, the seemingly inevitable apocalypse caused by climate change has probably made you sad, angry or hopeless at at least one point. Then the pandemic made everyone sadder, angrier and hopeless-er. An appetite for music that’s jointly intricate and intense has been brewing for a while now. Combine that with the obvious mainstream dalliances of Sleep Token (frequently dubbed metal’s Bon Iver) and the hip-hop-indebted Polyphia, and the climate is perfect!

Sleep Token performing live in 2023

Sleep Token perform at Leeds festival in 2023 (Image credit: Katja Ogrin/Redferns)

This brings us to the present day. In 2025, the ascents of numerous prog metal superstars will be reaffirmed, while the release schedule looks full to bursting with new albums from the genre’s elite forces.

Let’s start with the most staggering achievement: in June, Sleep Token will headline the UK’s near-100,000-capacity Download festival alongside veteran rock icons Korn and Green Day. It’s also been heavily hinted that the masked pop-prog-metal sex cult will release their fourth album before they grace the stage in Donington, potentially giving not just their genre but all of heavy music its tentpole release for the next 12 months.

Djent-influenced metalcore frontrunners Spiritbox will enjoy a similar levelling up. Next month, the Canadians play their biggest-ever UK show at the 10,000-capacity Alexandra Palace. The gig will be followed by second album Tsunami Sea, set to surf in on a wave of hype strong enough to drown Godzilla.

Also happening next month is the release of the new Jinjer album, Duél. It will be their first studio project since Wallflowers in 2021, with the band having admitted that the Russian invasion of their home country slowed them down creatively. Something special this way comes nonetheless: bassist Eugene Abdukhanov recently told Metal Hammer that Tatiana’s vocals are so good they move him to tears.

February will herald Dream Theater’s Parasomnia too. The sleep-themed album will be the New Yorkers’ first in 16 years with founding drummer Mike Portnoy. The blue-bearded beast returned to the fold in 2023, after playing for almost every other rock band in existence.

More is expected from everybody’s favourite baying Frenchmen, Gojira, later down the line. Last September (a couple months after the band’s fire-spewing show at the Olympics’ opening ceremony), frontman Joe Duplantier said they were in the middle of making some “ambitious” new music. When that will materialise is TBA, but what’s certain is that the wildmen will decimate Derbyshire’s Bloodstock Open Air in August, alongside modern metal greats Trivium and Machine Head.

Polyphia are set to make some bold musical moves as well. The genre-shredding instrumentalists have already buddied up with Deftones and Steve Vai, and, talking to Rock Sound last summer, guitarist Tim Henson revealed that they’ll team with Babymetal on their next album.

“We’ve been talking to Serj [Tankian] from System Of A Down,” he added. “We love all kinds of music, so it’s fun to reach into all these different things.”

Filling out the calendar will be new stuff from sludge/prog giants Mastodon, who are currently working on their first album since 2021: a “supernatural horror” concept piece. “I don’t see a world in which it does not come out in 2025,” drummer/vocalist Brann Dailor says in the new issue of Hammer.

And that’s just the big guns! Karnivool are set to make their debut atop the bill at Bristol’s Arctangent festival in August and deliver their first album in 12 years. Plus, Leprous are currently trekking across Europe on an Evening With run in some of the biggest venues they’ve ever played, whereas Animals As Leaders are about to celebrate 10 years of beloved album The Joy Of Motion on the road.

Naturally, there’s still way more to be announced over the coming months, but it’s already plain to see: 2025 will be a banner year for progressive metal. The genre will get catapulted to the apex of festivals, cram venues of all sizes, and offer landmark album after landmark album. Take that, other kids at school!

Read more about the metal albums to get excited for in 2025 inside the new issue of Metal Hammer. Order your copy now and get it delivered directly to your door.

Trivium x Bullet For My Valentine Metal Hammer issue promo image

(Image credit: Future)
 ]]> <![CDATA[ 7 new progressive metal albums that break all the genre’s rules ]]> ‘Progressive’ is a pretty loaded term in rock and metal. The word should represent artists who push heavy music forward, expanding its conventions with new sounds and concepts. More commonly, though, what we get is worship for the pioneers of the past, with many ‘experimentalists’ simply conveying their love for Dream Theater, Tesseract and other idols.

This is why the bands who actually have new shit to say deserve to get their voices heard. Below, Metal Hammer has collected seven albums from 2024 that truly sound peerless and progressive. Whether it’s by immersive psychedelia or cinematic black metal, prepare to have your mind expanded.

Metal Hammer graphic line break

Bipolar Architecture – Metaphysicize

Metaphysicize is hellishly oppressive. On their second album, Bipolar Architecture follow post-rock and shoegaze introductions with blasts of ultra-dense metal. Djent rhythm guitars, black metal tremolo picking and the odd hardcore breakdown barrage your ears when this German/Turkish rabble rage at full tilt, and the ambient build-up only makes them hit all the harder. No band in modern metal has cooked the same stew of hideous things to punish you with.

Dvne – Voidkind

On Voidkind, you’ll hear the influence of Mastodon, Neurosis and classic prog. However, Dvne melt those touchstones into rocket fuel and blast off to somewhere distinct. The post-metal cosmonauts’ second album is a tightly wound odyssey, its songs stacked with layers of guitar, melody and space rock synths. Plus, unlike such veterans as Tool, the five-piece are quick to reach their crescendos, making much of this hour as breakneck as a jump to hyperspace.

Ihsahn – Ihsahn

Talk to Ihsahn and he’ll tell you he’s just as inspired by the scores of Jerry Goldsmith as by Iron Maiden and Twisted Sister. With his self-titled album, the Emperor lynchpin fully expresses that cinematic influence: such standouts as Taste Of The Ambrosia don’t use chord progressions typical in rock, but rather those found in classical music. It’s especially clear on the double disc’s second half, which strips away metal to reveal the songs’ sweeping orchestral touches.

Ou – 蘇醒 II: Frailty

Ou’s instrumentalists formed the band after meeting through the Beijing jazz scene. With drummer/songwriter Anthony Vanacore hoping for the project to also scratch his heavy metal itch, they were always going to be a unique prospect, then singer Lynn Wu sealed the deal. Her almost pulsing vocal performance affirms 蘇醒 II: Frailty as a one-of-its-kind release. Meanwhile, the music sounds especially enormous thanks to the production of prog maverick and wall-of-sound master Devin Townsend.

Pallbearer – Mind Burns Alive

Pallbearer are stripping themselves back to move forward. The American troupe were among the most maximalist in doom metal, until 2020’s Forgotten Days switched to more episodic songs. Then, this year, Mind Burns Alive sounds even more sparse, venturing undaunted into ambient post-rock territory. Talk Talk and Peter Gabriel were key inspirations, which, when combined with the hefty metal chords of With Disease, make this band’s fifth album a fascinating anomaly in contemporary music.

Seeyouspacecowboy – Coup De Grâce

Before Coup De Grâce, Seeyouspacecowboy were raw-sounding yet emotionally vulnerable mathcore prospects. Album number three changes almost all of that. Vocalist Connie Sgarbossa favours positive messaging over personal lyricism, while production’s handled by Panic! At The Disco dial-twiddler Matt Squire. Squire pulls out numerous baroque melodies, though their energy is still erratic enough to fit in with the savage hardcore riffs and juddering time signatures. Along with the endorsement of Spiritbox, it all suggests that SYSC are going to go places.

Slift – Ilion

Slift needed four years to make Ilion and even a cursory listen will illustrate why. The French trio’s third album is an immersive, stop/start jaunt through cosmic planes. First the band lure you into a hypnotised lull with layer upon layer of space rock fuzz. Then, they stamp the accelerator: singer/guitarist Jean Fossat howls in seemingly alien tongues atop wildly technical licks and the flurrying rhythm section of brother bassist Rémi and drummer Canek Flores.

]]> https://www.loudersound.com/features/7-new-progressive-metal-albums-that-are-legitimately-progressive QgvhgMQVDsx8GXg8R2abFE Sat, 20 Jul 2024 09:04:00 +0000 Tue, 18 Mar 2025 14:31:56 +0000 false false false

‘Progressive’ is a pretty loaded term in rock and metal. The word should represent artists who push heavy music forward, expanding its conventions with new sounds and concepts. More commonly, though, what we get is worship for the pioneers of the past, with many ‘experimentalists’ simply conveying their love for Dream Theater, Tesseract and other idols.

This is why the bands who actually have new shit to say deserve to get their voices heard. Below, Metal Hammer has collected seven albums from 2024 that truly sound peerless and progressive. Whether it’s by immersive psychedelia or cinematic black metal, prepare to have your mind expanded.

Metal Hammer graphic line break

Bipolar Architecture – Metaphysicize

Metaphysicize is hellishly oppressive. On their second album, Bipolar Architecture follow post-rock and shoegaze introductions with blasts of ultra-dense metal. Djent rhythm guitars, black metal tremolo picking and the odd hardcore breakdown barrage your ears when this German/Turkish rabble rage at full tilt, and the ambient build-up only makes them hit all the harder. No band in modern metal has cooked the same stew of hideous things to punish you with.

Dvne – Voidkind

On Voidkind, you’ll hear the influence of Mastodon, Neurosis and classic prog. However, Dvne melt those touchstones into rocket fuel and blast off to somewhere distinct. The post-metal cosmonauts’ second album is a tightly wound odyssey, its songs stacked with layers of guitar, melody and space rock synths. Plus, unlike such veterans as Tool, the five-piece are quick to reach their crescendos, making much of this hour as breakneck as a jump to hyperspace.

Ihsahn – Ihsahn

Talk to Ihsahn and he’ll tell you he’s just as inspired by the scores of Jerry Goldsmith as by Iron Maiden and Twisted Sister. With his self-titled album, the Emperor lynchpin fully expresses that cinematic influence: such standouts as Taste Of The Ambrosia don’t use chord progressions typical in rock, but rather those found in classical music. It’s especially clear on the double disc’s second half, which strips away metal to reveal the songs’ sweeping orchestral touches.

Ou – 蘇醒 II: Frailty

Ou’s instrumentalists formed the band after meeting through the Beijing jazz scene. With drummer/songwriter Anthony Vanacore hoping for the project to also scratch his heavy metal itch, they were always going to be a unique prospect, then singer Lynn Wu sealed the deal. Her almost pulsing vocal performance affirms 蘇醒 II: Frailty as a one-of-its-kind release. Meanwhile, the music sounds especially enormous thanks to the production of prog maverick and wall-of-sound master Devin Townsend.

Pallbearer – Mind Burns Alive

Pallbearer are stripping themselves back to move forward. The American troupe were among the most maximalist in doom metal, until 2020’s Forgotten Days switched to more episodic songs. Then, this year, Mind Burns Alive sounds even more sparse, venturing undaunted into ambient post-rock territory. Talk Talk and Peter Gabriel were key inspirations, which, when combined with the hefty metal chords of With Disease, make this band’s fifth album a fascinating anomaly in contemporary music.

Seeyouspacecowboy – Coup De Grâce

Before Coup De Grâce, Seeyouspacecowboy were raw-sounding yet emotionally vulnerable mathcore prospects. Album number three changes almost all of that. Vocalist Connie Sgarbossa favours positive messaging over personal lyricism, while production’s handled by Panic! At The Disco dial-twiddler Matt Squire. Squire pulls out numerous baroque melodies, though their energy is still erratic enough to fit in with the savage hardcore riffs and juddering time signatures. Along with the endorsement of Spiritbox, it all suggests that SYSC are going to go places.

Slift – Ilion

Slift needed four years to make Ilion and even a cursory listen will illustrate why. The French trio’s third album is an immersive, stop/start jaunt through cosmic planes. First the band lure you into a hypnotised lull with layer upon layer of space rock fuzz. Then, they stamp the accelerator: singer/guitarist Jean Fossat howls in seemingly alien tongues atop wildly technical licks and the flurrying rhythm section of brother bassist Rémi and drummer Canek Flores.

]]> <![CDATA[ "Who am I really? Where do I go from here?" Born intersex, Raven van Dorst has struggled with gender norms. With Dool, they're changing the conversation - with the help of devastating progressive metal ]]> When Raven van Dorst was an unruly, rebellious 20- year-old, a chance doctor’s visit led to a revelation. Raven found out they were born intersex - a true hermaphrodite with fused male and female characteristics: externally, chromosomally, psychologically. With the consent of their parents, the doctors had made Raven undergo surgery at birth, removing their male organs. 

Throughout their childhood and teens, and brought up as a girl with the name Ryanne, they were never told their true nature. As a child who’d always felt uncomfortable with gender norms, constantly told by teachers to act like a girl even though they’d tell anyone who’d listen that they weren’t, the news came with a mix of emotions: relief that their intuition had been right, and a sense of betrayal towards their parents who had kept such fundamental knowledge a secret. 

“I felt very disconnected from my family for a long time,” Raven says now. “It wasn’t their fault, because they trusted in the doctors. They couldn’t Google it like you can now. And ever since then, I’ve been trying to put things in place like, ‘Who am I really? Where do I go from here?’ But isn’t that life in general? I think everyone has a story like this, maybe not as intense, but everyone has to deal with shit in their past or shit about their body, or their minds.” 

Raven is speaking from their native Netherlands. Sporting a Type O Negative long-sleeve and a rocker’s leather vest that’s the other side of the coin to their chic stage presence, they’re animated, candid, and driven by a gregarious energy undiminished by the tail-end of a flu. For the last nine years, the vehicle for Raven’s putting of the past, present and future into perspective has been Dool. 

Formed with bassist Job van de Zande and drummer Micha Haring, both formerly of occult rockers The Devil’s Blood, Dool (Dutch for ‘wandering’) have gone beyond genre trappings, refashioning traces of goth, doom, classic and progressive rock to mark out transformative sonic and emotional territory as distinct as it is mercurial. 

“I always try to evolve,” says Raven. “Everything that I’ve done musically in my life so far unlocks new possibilities, because you want to keep exploring. That’s what music is for, no? I would be so bored if I would do the same thing every fucking album. We’ll never be one of those bands whose first and seventh albums sound the same.”

Growing up in Maassluis, near the south-west coast of the Netherlands, the tomboyish Raven was drawn to fellow misfits at school, discovering Nirvana and Slayer in their early teens, before finding a community of squatters, punks and metalheads. 

After briefly joining all-girl pop-rock band Bad Candy as guitarist in 2004 at the insistence of their mother, the role felt too constricting, and Raven found a closer connection to the punk scene – first as a member of pop-punk band The Riplets, and later with garage punks Anne Frank Zappa. 

Raven’s first band in the wake of the knowledge of their hermaphrodite nature was a solo project under the name Elle Bandita, not only a reaction to the normative feminine roles that had been forced upon them, but with the raunchily hyperactive track Ubersex, the stirrings of a coming to terms with their identity. 

“At that point, I had only just found out and I made a joke out of it in a way,” Raven says. “It wasn’t until later that I started to realise what it actually meant to me. I was still young and I found a whole lot of other stuff very important, like partying and being angry at everyone. I was a punk with a very big mouth. 

It wasn’t until later that I felt the emotional impact that it had on me. It was a process, but I lost a lot of the anger. I became more at peace with myself and my history. So I started to look a bit more ahead, to reclaim the right to be Raven, the intersex person, the hermaphrodite. I’ve made a strong fist to get that birthright back.” 

When The Devil’s Blood rhythm section joined, Elle Bandita underwent its own transformation into Dool, and with it came a new personal and musical outlook. One that Raven describes as “less aggressive and angry at the world, and more like ‘how can I teach myself to fit into this world’, trying to analyse yourself in what way you are participating in society and in the world”.

Dool band promo 2024

(Image credit: Press/010)

Where Dool’s first two albums, 2017’s Here Now, There Then and 2020’s Summerland, found Raven – still calling themselves Ryanne - alluding to that birthright through allegory and metaphor, the band’s latest album, The Shape Of Fluidity, is a more head-on examination of what it means to relate to a world without a box to put you in, and the freedom that comes from non-conformity. 

More of a collaborative band effort than ever before, with all the trust and vulnerability that entails, and coming after a period of lockdown-induced self-reflection during which Raven let go of their former name Ryanne and divested themselves of binary pronouns, The Shape Of Fluidity sees the band embrace a newfound sonic scope and a liberating emotional weight. 

While you might find passing references to Ghost on the opening Venus In Flames or Grave Pleasures’ apocalyptic post-punk hedonism on Evil In You, the album as a whole sounds like no one else, in the way that genuinely fearless journeys of self-discovery always do. Like Summerland, it’s an evolutionary leap, emerging with a fresh set of nerve-endings already tingling in response to the vast new vistas spread out before it. 

Psychedelic in nature if not in style, gothic in its lantern-in-the-shadows sensibilities, it’s an album that maps out internal terrain that sounds like it’s being discovered in real time, weaving spidery webs of tension, mammoth grooves and opulent, anthemic riffs around Raven’s fervently searching vocals. It’s simultaneously a grand narrative suite, an intimate testimony and, for all those whose truths feel yet to be told, a potent spell of recognition. 

“I was a bit creatively depressed in the run-up to making this record, because of all the lockdowns and all the cancelled tours after Summerland came out,” Raven admits. ‘But then the guitarists Nick [Polak] and Omar [Iskandr] asked me on writing dates, and they really got me into it. It became a whole different process for me because it was way more intuitive, and a lot of feelings just poured out. I realised it was going to be very personal.” 

The first song the band wrote was Hermagorgon. A play on the words ‘hermaphrodite’ and ‘Gorgon’, a snake-haired monster from Greek myth, it was a means not so much to reconcile their past, but to reclaim it, to understand the power they’d been granted. 

“When I was born, I was thought of as some kind of monster – that’s what they made of me,” Raven explains. “And then they tried to fix me. If I was born in some other time or in another country, I would be like a god or something, but, if you think I’m a monster, I’ll be your monster rather than living the lie that you forced me in. I’m not Adam, I’m not Eve, I’m the fucking snake in your paradise! Ha ha ha!”

As well as examining themes of gender and identity within Dool, Raven has addressed them in a more public forum as a Dutch TV host, whether as a judge on Drag Race or fronting documentaries dealing with those issues. A 2017 documentary series, trying to break the taboo of being in the grey area between defined gender norms, led to a host of heartfelt messages from parents of intersex babies, intersex people themselves and the wider trans community. 

“I was aware of the responsibility that I had,” says Raven. “I’d never felt heard or represented, but there are probably a lot more little Ravens out there, looking for a feeling of belonging. It was a really moving time, and it still is, because there are a lot of people who feel that I represent something in public that’s like them.” 

For a band with such a personal yet embracing outlook, whose constant, open-ended need to keep evolving has made them a singular identity within the wider metal world, Dool have found a broad, committed community to embrace them back. 

“I see people from so many different walks of life coming to the show,” says Raven. “There are the occult, black metal-ish people because of our connection to The Devil’s Blood, and then there’s queer kids who come for my story, and there are old rockers in the back. I think that’s a unique thing about Dool, that we have such a diverse audience. People who are looking for something, who are soul-searching, they might end up at a Dool concert. It’s all people who don’t feel finished… and love some good guitar work! Ha ha ha!”

The Shape Of Fluidity is out now via Prophecy. 

]]> https://www.loudersound.com/features/how-dool-are-challenging-gender-norms-with-the-shape-of-fluidity YM8niPmiCoZrYL5bRonuPF Fri, 10 May 2024 08:00:02 +0000 Tue, 18 Mar 2025 14:31:56 +0000 false false false

When Raven van Dorst was an unruly, rebellious 20- year-old, a chance doctor’s visit led to a revelation. Raven found out they were born intersex - a true hermaphrodite with fused male and female characteristics: externally, chromosomally, psychologically. With the consent of their parents, the doctors had made Raven undergo surgery at birth, removing their male organs. 

Throughout their childhood and teens, and brought up as a girl with the name Ryanne, they were never told their true nature. As a child who’d always felt uncomfortable with gender norms, constantly told by teachers to act like a girl even though they’d tell anyone who’d listen that they weren’t, the news came with a mix of emotions: relief that their intuition had been right, and a sense of betrayal towards their parents who had kept such fundamental knowledge a secret. 

“I felt very disconnected from my family for a long time,” Raven says now. “It wasn’t their fault, because they trusted in the doctors. They couldn’t Google it like you can now. And ever since then, I’ve been trying to put things in place like, ‘Who am I really? Where do I go from here?’ But isn’t that life in general? I think everyone has a story like this, maybe not as intense, but everyone has to deal with shit in their past or shit about their body, or their minds.” 

Raven is speaking from their native Netherlands. Sporting a Type O Negative long-sleeve and a rocker’s leather vest that’s the other side of the coin to their chic stage presence, they’re animated, candid, and driven by a gregarious energy undiminished by the tail-end of a flu. For the last nine years, the vehicle for Raven’s putting of the past, present and future into perspective has been Dool. 

Formed with bassist Job van de Zande and drummer Micha Haring, both formerly of occult rockers The Devil’s Blood, Dool (Dutch for ‘wandering’) have gone beyond genre trappings, refashioning traces of goth, doom, classic and progressive rock to mark out transformative sonic and emotional territory as distinct as it is mercurial. 

“I always try to evolve,” says Raven. “Everything that I’ve done musically in my life so far unlocks new possibilities, because you want to keep exploring. That’s what music is for, no? I would be so bored if I would do the same thing every fucking album. We’ll never be one of those bands whose first and seventh albums sound the same.”

Growing up in Maassluis, near the south-west coast of the Netherlands, the tomboyish Raven was drawn to fellow misfits at school, discovering Nirvana and Slayer in their early teens, before finding a community of squatters, punks and metalheads. 

After briefly joining all-girl pop-rock band Bad Candy as guitarist in 2004 at the insistence of their mother, the role felt too constricting, and Raven found a closer connection to the punk scene – first as a member of pop-punk band The Riplets, and later with garage punks Anne Frank Zappa. 

Raven’s first band in the wake of the knowledge of their hermaphrodite nature was a solo project under the name Elle Bandita, not only a reaction to the normative feminine roles that had been forced upon them, but with the raunchily hyperactive track Ubersex, the stirrings of a coming to terms with their identity. 

“At that point, I had only just found out and I made a joke out of it in a way,” Raven says. “It wasn’t until later that I started to realise what it actually meant to me. I was still young and I found a whole lot of other stuff very important, like partying and being angry at everyone. I was a punk with a very big mouth. 

It wasn’t until later that I felt the emotional impact that it had on me. It was a process, but I lost a lot of the anger. I became more at peace with myself and my history. So I started to look a bit more ahead, to reclaim the right to be Raven, the intersex person, the hermaphrodite. I’ve made a strong fist to get that birthright back.” 

When The Devil’s Blood rhythm section joined, Elle Bandita underwent its own transformation into Dool, and with it came a new personal and musical outlook. One that Raven describes as “less aggressive and angry at the world, and more like ‘how can I teach myself to fit into this world’, trying to analyse yourself in what way you are participating in society and in the world”.

Dool band promo 2024

(Image credit: Press/010)

Where Dool’s first two albums, 2017’s Here Now, There Then and 2020’s Summerland, found Raven – still calling themselves Ryanne - alluding to that birthright through allegory and metaphor, the band’s latest album, The Shape Of Fluidity, is a more head-on examination of what it means to relate to a world without a box to put you in, and the freedom that comes from non-conformity. 

More of a collaborative band effort than ever before, with all the trust and vulnerability that entails, and coming after a period of lockdown-induced self-reflection during which Raven let go of their former name Ryanne and divested themselves of binary pronouns, The Shape Of Fluidity sees the band embrace a newfound sonic scope and a liberating emotional weight. 

While you might find passing references to Ghost on the opening Venus In Flames or Grave Pleasures’ apocalyptic post-punk hedonism on Evil In You, the album as a whole sounds like no one else, in the way that genuinely fearless journeys of self-discovery always do. Like Summerland, it’s an evolutionary leap, emerging with a fresh set of nerve-endings already tingling in response to the vast new vistas spread out before it. 

Psychedelic in nature if not in style, gothic in its lantern-in-the-shadows sensibilities, it’s an album that maps out internal terrain that sounds like it’s being discovered in real time, weaving spidery webs of tension, mammoth grooves and opulent, anthemic riffs around Raven’s fervently searching vocals. It’s simultaneously a grand narrative suite, an intimate testimony and, for all those whose truths feel yet to be told, a potent spell of recognition. 

“I was a bit creatively depressed in the run-up to making this record, because of all the lockdowns and all the cancelled tours after Summerland came out,” Raven admits. ‘But then the guitarists Nick [Polak] and Omar [Iskandr] asked me on writing dates, and they really got me into it. It became a whole different process for me because it was way more intuitive, and a lot of feelings just poured out. I realised it was going to be very personal.” 

The first song the band wrote was Hermagorgon. A play on the words ‘hermaphrodite’ and ‘Gorgon’, a snake-haired monster from Greek myth, it was a means not so much to reconcile their past, but to reclaim it, to understand the power they’d been granted. 

“When I was born, I was thought of as some kind of monster – that’s what they made of me,” Raven explains. “And then they tried to fix me. If I was born in some other time or in another country, I would be like a god or something, but, if you think I’m a monster, I’ll be your monster rather than living the lie that you forced me in. I’m not Adam, I’m not Eve, I’m the fucking snake in your paradise! Ha ha ha!”

As well as examining themes of gender and identity within Dool, Raven has addressed them in a more public forum as a Dutch TV host, whether as a judge on Drag Race or fronting documentaries dealing with those issues. A 2017 documentary series, trying to break the taboo of being in the grey area between defined gender norms, led to a host of heartfelt messages from parents of intersex babies, intersex people themselves and the wider trans community. 

“I was aware of the responsibility that I had,” says Raven. “I’d never felt heard or represented, but there are probably a lot more little Ravens out there, looking for a feeling of belonging. It was a really moving time, and it still is, because there are a lot of people who feel that I represent something in public that’s like them.” 

For a band with such a personal yet embracing outlook, whose constant, open-ended need to keep evolving has made them a singular identity within the wider metal world, Dool have found a broad, committed community to embrace them back. 

“I see people from so many different walks of life coming to the show,” says Raven. “There are the occult, black metal-ish people because of our connection to The Devil’s Blood, and then there’s queer kids who come for my story, and there are old rockers in the back. I think that’s a unique thing about Dool, that we have such a diverse audience. People who are looking for something, who are soul-searching, they might end up at a Dool concert. It’s all people who don’t feel finished… and love some good guitar work! Ha ha ha!”

The Shape Of Fluidity is out now via Prophecy. 

]]> <![CDATA[ "We chose to be a progressive metal band because it meant that we could do whatever we want." Periphery ]]> In 2023, when the US prog metallers released Periphery V: Djent Is Not A Genre Prog spoke to guitarist Misha Mansoor about taking Periphery back to the band they always wanted it to be.

As another Periphery album makes its way into the world, the prog and metal communities find themselves polarised once more. This is a record defined by a heady mix of sparkling pop hooks, aggressive heavy metal mathematics and complex structures that unravel like a whodunnit. But, in what must feel like Groundhog Day for the Washington quintet, the internet is inconclusive about what to make of it. 

“We chose to be a progressive metal band because it meant that we could do whatever we want,” says guitarist Misha Mansoor. “We love really heavy stuff. We also love really poppy stuff. It’s all kosher in this band. We have so many critics, but no one can agree on why they hate it.” 

To some, when vocalist Spencer Sotelo sings, the band are ruined – they would rather the quintet were instrumental. For others, it’s only when he sings that Periphery’s modern, genre- fluid approach to making music is palatable. There are circles where their heaviness is considered reductive and guilty of tainting their genuinely beautiful turns. These are turns which, for another segment of the band’s dizzying Venn diagram of fans, unnecessarily sprinkle sugar onto what should be a staunchly savoury dish. Pleasing everyone is an impossible task. 

“But that’s okay,” Mansoor returns. “I don’t think we’re the band that’s gonna convince anyone of anything. We’re not for everybody and we don’t want to be for everybody.” 

Periphery: V: Djent Is Not A Genre

(Image credit: Press)

For all their naysayers, the band’s penchant for crafting music that genuinely stands out – for better or for worse – has garnered a career that’s now seven albums deep. It’s earned them a Grammy nomination. The venues they play across the world have grown progressively bigger. Mansoor and his fellow guitarists, Mark Holcomb and Jake Bowen, have been on the cover of guitar magazines countless times, hailed, deservedly, as generational talents for their approach to modern guitar playing. They don’t restrict what is and isn’t welcome in the Periphery melting pot. Their love for music of all kinds bleeds into their writing, be it hellishly heavy, sickeningly sweet, or neckbreakingly left-field.

Says Mansoor, “Any diversity that you’re hearing is just because we like all these different styles. We like to just follow the song. When we start to write, we might have discussions about what we see an album being like, but the album we do write is never, ever what we expect it to be. We’ve learned that you can try and box a song into your arbitrary idea of what you thought it was gonna be, or you can just run with it and let the song take on a life of its own before your very eyes.” 

While their current release, Periphery V: Djent Is Not A Genre, doesn’t stray too far from the musical mantra the band were founded on, their conviction at blending their widescreen imagination into cohesive songwriting is sharper than ever. Yet, having a pandemic-prolonged period to make this record nearly broke the band. 

“When you work on something for so long, you can start to lose perspective. It’s hard to see the forest for the trees and take a holistic view of it because you’re just so entrenched in the details,” Mansoor explains. “There’d be long periods where we'd be sitting on these ideas, absorbing them all to see how we really felt about them. I always feel like there’s quite a bit of recency bias with any new song we do, and the best way to know how you really feel about a song is to write another song. So we wrote about two albums’ worth of material and scrapped half. That can be demoralising and frustrating at times. 

“There were definitely times where I felt we weren’t going to be able to put this out. We all had very candid discussions about not knowing how we were going to get to that finish line because, personally, I didn’t want to put this album out unless I felt, not good, but great about it. 

“But it’s certainly the most refined album that we’ve ever put together, because we had so much time to go over all the details with a fine-tooth comb and get everything just right. It all just sort of came together at the end and I think when we were done, we had an internal discussion, like, ‘I think we have something really special, genuinely.’”  

After four years of wrangling with uncertainty, self-doubt and pain-staking perfectionism, Periphery V… becomes their second record to be released under 3Dot Recordings. Their own label, it was founded after the band’s split from Sumerian Records in 2018. It’s grown since too, with Astronoid, Italian prog metallers Destrage, and the members’ various side-projects, including Haunted Shores (Mansoor and Halbomb) and King Mothership (Sotelo) on its roster. For Mansoor, that move was symbolic of the band’s emboldened DIY approach and unacceptance to bend to external whims, pressures and expectations. 

“We’ve always been very DIY,” Mansoor returns. “Every time people have said, ‘That’s not going to work’, we just went ahead and did it anyway.” 

As has become commonplace for the band, comments about what they are doing wrong and what might make them more successful, accessible and enjoyable began surfacing as the record’s first singles, Wildfire and Zagreus, dropped. 

“Regardless of what people say, we’re still allowed to make music, we’re still allowed to tour and we still have fans,” says Mansoor. “We may not get published in every magazine, and there may be some people that don’t give us attention, but I’ll tell you what, man, from the beginning that’s always been the case. We’ve never been the cool band who’s gotten the cool tours. We’ve had to make our own way.” 

Periphery

(Image credit: Ekaterina Gorbacheva)

Undeterred by the supposed limitations of the band because of how flippantly they trade musical extremities within their music, today, Mansoor is more focused on enjoying why Periphery began existing in the first place. 

“If you could see how much the band are laughing and how much we’re cracking each other up during writing sessions and on tour, you’ll see why the joy for us is just getting together. The albums and the fans are a by-product, which I’m extremely grateful for, but the best part of being in a band is laughing in the studio with your best friends.  

“That’s something that got lost for a little while,” he admits. “Once you get sort of sucked into the machine, and it’s happened to us in varying degrees over time because, all of a sudden, what can be better than your passion is becoming your job? And then you realise the hard way that, actually it sucks when your passion’s your job. What we’ve had to do collectively is actually turn Periphery back into our passion so that we don’t worry about how successful we could be or if we wrote a three-minute song it could be on the radio. We own our label, our management is basically part of the band and everyone is on our team. So there are no arguments about silly things. We just get to operate the band like the passion project it always was, when the goal was like, ‘Hey, you know what’s fun? Making music together.’ So whenever someone comes up to us and says, ‘You could be more successful if you did this’, it shows a fundamental misunderstanding of why we and a lot of people make music.”

Across Periphery V…’s wildly diverse tracks, the band have never sounded so fiercely independent. Free from the desire to convert the corporates and cynics to maximise record sales, they are producing the best music of their lives, writing like starry-eyed teenagers once more. For every person that detests their heaviness, sweetness or craziness, there’s a legion of fans hanging off their every note. 

]]> https://www.loudersound.com/features/we-chose-to-be-a-progressive-metal-band-because-it-meant-that-we-could-do-whatever-we-want-periphery dFFf57AUgczEMcauZBU7qC Sun, 10 Mar 2024 14:41:45 +0000 Tue, 18 Mar 2025 14:31:57 +0000 false false false

In 2023, when the US prog metallers released Periphery V: Djent Is Not A Genre Prog spoke to guitarist Misha Mansoor about taking Periphery back to the band they always wanted it to be.

As another Periphery album makes its way into the world, the prog and metal communities find themselves polarised once more. This is a record defined by a heady mix of sparkling pop hooks, aggressive heavy metal mathematics and complex structures that unravel like a whodunnit. But, in what must feel like Groundhog Day for the Washington quintet, the internet is inconclusive about what to make of it. 

“We chose to be a progressive metal band because it meant that we could do whatever we want,” says guitarist Misha Mansoor. “We love really heavy stuff. We also love really poppy stuff. It’s all kosher in this band. We have so many critics, but no one can agree on why they hate it.” 

To some, when vocalist Spencer Sotelo sings, the band are ruined – they would rather the quintet were instrumental. For others, it’s only when he sings that Periphery’s modern, genre- fluid approach to making music is palatable. There are circles where their heaviness is considered reductive and guilty of tainting their genuinely beautiful turns. These are turns which, for another segment of the band’s dizzying Venn diagram of fans, unnecessarily sprinkle sugar onto what should be a staunchly savoury dish. Pleasing everyone is an impossible task. 

“But that’s okay,” Mansoor returns. “I don’t think we’re the band that’s gonna convince anyone of anything. We’re not for everybody and we don’t want to be for everybody.” 

Periphery: V: Djent Is Not A Genre

(Image credit: Press)

For all their naysayers, the band’s penchant for crafting music that genuinely stands out – for better or for worse – has garnered a career that’s now seven albums deep. It’s earned them a Grammy nomination. The venues they play across the world have grown progressively bigger. Mansoor and his fellow guitarists, Mark Holcomb and Jake Bowen, have been on the cover of guitar magazines countless times, hailed, deservedly, as generational talents for their approach to modern guitar playing. They don’t restrict what is and isn’t welcome in the Periphery melting pot. Their love for music of all kinds bleeds into their writing, be it hellishly heavy, sickeningly sweet, or neckbreakingly left-field.

Says Mansoor, “Any diversity that you’re hearing is just because we like all these different styles. We like to just follow the song. When we start to write, we might have discussions about what we see an album being like, but the album we do write is never, ever what we expect it to be. We’ve learned that you can try and box a song into your arbitrary idea of what you thought it was gonna be, or you can just run with it and let the song take on a life of its own before your very eyes.” 

While their current release, Periphery V: Djent Is Not A Genre, doesn’t stray too far from the musical mantra the band were founded on, their conviction at blending their widescreen imagination into cohesive songwriting is sharper than ever. Yet, having a pandemic-prolonged period to make this record nearly broke the band. 

“When you work on something for so long, you can start to lose perspective. It’s hard to see the forest for the trees and take a holistic view of it because you’re just so entrenched in the details,” Mansoor explains. “There’d be long periods where we'd be sitting on these ideas, absorbing them all to see how we really felt about them. I always feel like there’s quite a bit of recency bias with any new song we do, and the best way to know how you really feel about a song is to write another song. So we wrote about two albums’ worth of material and scrapped half. That can be demoralising and frustrating at times. 

“There were definitely times where I felt we weren’t going to be able to put this out. We all had very candid discussions about not knowing how we were going to get to that finish line because, personally, I didn’t want to put this album out unless I felt, not good, but great about it. 

“But it’s certainly the most refined album that we’ve ever put together, because we had so much time to go over all the details with a fine-tooth comb and get everything just right. It all just sort of came together at the end and I think when we were done, we had an internal discussion, like, ‘I think we have something really special, genuinely.’”  

After four years of wrangling with uncertainty, self-doubt and pain-staking perfectionism, Periphery V… becomes their second record to be released under 3Dot Recordings. Their own label, it was founded after the band’s split from Sumerian Records in 2018. It’s grown since too, with Astronoid, Italian prog metallers Destrage, and the members’ various side-projects, including Haunted Shores (Mansoor and Halbomb) and King Mothership (Sotelo) on its roster. For Mansoor, that move was symbolic of the band’s emboldened DIY approach and unacceptance to bend to external whims, pressures and expectations. 

“We’ve always been very DIY,” Mansoor returns. “Every time people have said, ‘That’s not going to work’, we just went ahead and did it anyway.” 

As has become commonplace for the band, comments about what they are doing wrong and what might make them more successful, accessible and enjoyable began surfacing as the record’s first singles, Wildfire and Zagreus, dropped. 

“Regardless of what people say, we’re still allowed to make music, we’re still allowed to tour and we still have fans,” says Mansoor. “We may not get published in every magazine, and there may be some people that don’t give us attention, but I’ll tell you what, man, from the beginning that’s always been the case. We’ve never been the cool band who’s gotten the cool tours. We’ve had to make our own way.” 

Periphery

(Image credit: Ekaterina Gorbacheva)

Undeterred by the supposed limitations of the band because of how flippantly they trade musical extremities within their music, today, Mansoor is more focused on enjoying why Periphery began existing in the first place. 

“If you could see how much the band are laughing and how much we’re cracking each other up during writing sessions and on tour, you’ll see why the joy for us is just getting together. The albums and the fans are a by-product, which I’m extremely grateful for, but the best part of being in a band is laughing in the studio with your best friends.  

“That’s something that got lost for a little while,” he admits. “Once you get sort of sucked into the machine, and it’s happened to us in varying degrees over time because, all of a sudden, what can be better than your passion is becoming your job? And then you realise the hard way that, actually it sucks when your passion’s your job. What we’ve had to do collectively is actually turn Periphery back into our passion so that we don’t worry about how successful we could be or if we wrote a three-minute song it could be on the radio. We own our label, our management is basically part of the band and everyone is on our team. So there are no arguments about silly things. We just get to operate the band like the passion project it always was, when the goal was like, ‘Hey, you know what’s fun? Making music together.’ So whenever someone comes up to us and says, ‘You could be more successful if you did this’, it shows a fundamental misunderstanding of why we and a lot of people make music.”

Across Periphery V…’s wildly diverse tracks, the band have never sounded so fiercely independent. Free from the desire to convert the corporates and cynics to maximise record sales, they are producing the best music of their lives, writing like starry-eyed teenagers once more. For every person that detests their heaviness, sweetness or craziness, there’s a legion of fans hanging off their every note. 

]]> <![CDATA[ “Tesseract are pushing for broad appeal while maintaining their intelligence – and it’s working!” Tesseract, Unprocessed and The Callous Daoboys just played the progressive metal concert of 2024 ]]> It’s hard to fathom nowadays that, when they released their debut album 13 years ago, Tesseract were very much an outsider’s option in the UK metal scene. Metalcore upstarts like Bring Me The Horizon and While She Sleeps were the darlings of the day, while this Milton Keynes quintet were channelling Meshuggah and Pink Floyd, not to mention barely removed from their bedroom-studio origins. Compare that standing to tonight: a headliner at London’s prestigious O2 Forum Kentish Town, which sold out so far in advance that the band could likely have upgraded to somewhere even larger if they wanted to.

Tesseract have amassed a varied progressive metal bill to kickstart their biggest-ever concert in the capital. On paper, THE CALLOUS DAOBOYS could not be further removed from tonight’s headliner, their “prog” credentials earned by their genre-smashing jams of mathcore, baroque pop and nu metal. A venue this cavernous means the drops between styles lose some of their impact, but the band overcome through sheer charisma. In the space of half an hour, London moshes, waves and even sings along to a Sweet Caroline sample.

UNPROCESSED, on the other hand, studied at the same school of thought as Polyphia. Lead singer/guitarist Manuel Gardner Fernandes is a stunningly fast shredder, as even a cursory visit to his Instagram will attest to. Yet, the Germans’ set is no mere wankathon, songs like Hell and Thrash boasting plenty of pop prowess during their choruses. Such tasteful technicality is unquestionably in vogue right now, so we can’t imagine this lot will be a support band for much longer.

Lastly, TESSERACT make a compelling case for a spot in the heavy metal mainstream. Sure, they first emerged with a half-hour-long EP that consisted of [checks notes] one whole song, but this a band that’s increasingly valued catharsis and melody over scope for its own sake. Natural Disaster, opener of last year’s War Of Being, instantly proves it by plummeting into primal seven-string riffs and frontman Daniel Tompkins’ screams. It’s an intensity that ignites the Kentish Town masses, though they’re soon stilled by the more sumptuous singing of Echoes.

Fan favourite Nocturne then barges in early, and by this point it’s clear Tesseract’s visual presentation is just as arena-ready as their music. Tubes of light surround the stage, while spotlights above flicker with the band’s every spasming polyrhythm. Though it’s an obvious pull from the Meshuggah playbook, it’s also fucking dazzling, so who’s complaining?

The theatricality, both in presentation and sonic pomp, strikes a midpoint zenith during War Of Being’s title track. For 10 minutes, this career highlight contorts through crushing guitars, then crescendos with a best-ever vocal performance from Tompkins. It’s a callback to the extravagance of early releases, absolutely, yet it’s also clearly not alienating a fast-growing audience: when asked who here is at their first-ever Tesseract gig, more than half the room shoot hands into the air.

A closing push through Juno and Concealing Fate keeps everybody moving up until the finish line. First there’s room-wide jumping then, most impressively, the entire auditorium starts moshing for a breakdown backed by incredible lights. Prog metal cult prospect no more, Tesseract are pushing for broad appeal while maintaining their splendour and intelligence – and, based on this evening, it’s bloody well working!

Tesseract setlist – O2 Forum Kentish Town, London, February 23

Natural Disaster
Echoes
Nocturne
Dystopia
King
War Of Being
Smile
The Arrow
Legion
The Grey
Juno

Encore:
Concealing Fate, Part One: Acceptance
Concealing Fate, Part Two: Deception

]]> https://www.loudersound.com/reviews/tesseract0unprocessed-the-callous-daoboys-london-2024 bwArraX8BZEMUHVLxJGDaN Sat, 24 Feb 2024 11:14:38 +0000 Tue, 18 Mar 2025 14:31:56 +0000 false false false

It’s hard to fathom nowadays that, when they released their debut album 13 years ago, Tesseract were very much an outsider’s option in the UK metal scene. Metalcore upstarts like Bring Me The Horizon and While She Sleeps were the darlings of the day, while this Milton Keynes quintet were channelling Meshuggah and Pink Floyd, not to mention barely removed from their bedroom-studio origins. Compare that standing to tonight: a headliner at London’s prestigious O2 Forum Kentish Town, which sold out so far in advance that the band could likely have upgraded to somewhere even larger if they wanted to.

Tesseract have amassed a varied progressive metal bill to kickstart their biggest-ever concert in the capital. On paper, THE CALLOUS DAOBOYS could not be further removed from tonight’s headliner, their “prog” credentials earned by their genre-smashing jams of mathcore, baroque pop and nu metal. A venue this cavernous means the drops between styles lose some of their impact, but the band overcome through sheer charisma. In the space of half an hour, London moshes, waves and even sings along to a Sweet Caroline sample.

UNPROCESSED, on the other hand, studied at the same school of thought as Polyphia. Lead singer/guitarist Manuel Gardner Fernandes is a stunningly fast shredder, as even a cursory visit to his Instagram will attest to. Yet, the Germans’ set is no mere wankathon, songs like Hell and Thrash boasting plenty of pop prowess during their choruses. Such tasteful technicality is unquestionably in vogue right now, so we can’t imagine this lot will be a support band for much longer.

Lastly, TESSERACT make a compelling case for a spot in the heavy metal mainstream. Sure, they first emerged with a half-hour-long EP that consisted of [checks notes] one whole song, but this a band that’s increasingly valued catharsis and melody over scope for its own sake. Natural Disaster, opener of last year’s War Of Being, instantly proves it by plummeting into primal seven-string riffs and frontman Daniel Tompkins’ screams. It’s an intensity that ignites the Kentish Town masses, though they’re soon stilled by the more sumptuous singing of Echoes.

Fan favourite Nocturne then barges in early, and by this point it’s clear Tesseract’s visual presentation is just as arena-ready as their music. Tubes of light surround the stage, while spotlights above flicker with the band’s every spasming polyrhythm. Though it’s an obvious pull from the Meshuggah playbook, it’s also fucking dazzling, so who’s complaining?

The theatricality, both in presentation and sonic pomp, strikes a midpoint zenith during War Of Being’s title track. For 10 minutes, this career highlight contorts through crushing guitars, then crescendos with a best-ever vocal performance from Tompkins. It’s a callback to the extravagance of early releases, absolutely, yet it’s also clearly not alienating a fast-growing audience: when asked who here is at their first-ever Tesseract gig, more than half the room shoot hands into the air.

A closing push through Juno and Concealing Fate keeps everybody moving up until the finish line. First there’s room-wide jumping then, most impressively, the entire auditorium starts moshing for a breakdown backed by incredible lights. Prog metal cult prospect no more, Tesseract are pushing for broad appeal while maintaining their splendour and intelligence – and, based on this evening, it’s bloody well working!

Tesseract setlist – O2 Forum Kentish Town, London, February 23

Natural Disaster
Echoes
Nocturne
Dystopia
King
War Of Being
Smile
The Arrow
Legion
The Grey
Juno

Encore:
Concealing Fate, Part One: Acceptance
Concealing Fate, Part Two: Deception

]]> <![CDATA[ The 10 best progressive metal albums of 2023 ]]> While other subgenres weather peaks and valleys of relevance, progressive metal is always there, testing the boundaries of what heavy musicians think they can do. It’s no surprise, then, that the genre had yet another stellar year in 2023, with so many of its albums wowing both critics and fans.

The past 12 months’ great prog metal albums came from all directions. While such experimentalists as Enslaved and Tesseract stayed the course and stuck with the genre, we saw arena-metal heavyweights like Avenged Sevenfold barge in. Newcomers such as Unprocessed also announced their worth more loudly than ever before. All these bands and more are celebrated below, as Metal Hammer names the 10 best prog metal albums of 2023:

Metal Hammer line break

Avenged Sevenfold – Life Is But A Dream… (Warner)

Avenged Sevenfold had already embraced prog grandeur with 2016's The Stage, but in truth the seeds for the psychedelia-laced fever dream that is their eighth studio album were laid all the way back in 2007. A Little Piece Of Heaven showed a more whimiscal and genre-blurring side of the band that's taken 16 years to rise again, but where Heaven... was a curio against their more traditional rock and metal fare, Life Is But A Dream... is packed to the gills with stylistic left-turns and huge creative leaps. 

Needless to say, it's been divisive, but even the most furious naysayer would have to admit that the fact a band of A7X's stature are even still considering taking such massive risks is worthy of praise. This is progressive metal in the truest sense of the word, a brilliantly balanced opus which we can't wait to see live. Roll on Download Festival 2024. RICH HOBSON

Enslaved – Heimdal (Nuclear Blast)

For their 16th album, Viking explorers Enslaved started anew, sourcing inspiration from the prog and metal bands they listened to as teenagers. The resulting music pushed them further into cosmic experimentation, such as on the synthy, dreamlike Caravans To The Outer Worlds. Yet, the likes of the frostbitten Congelia also rediscovered the Norwegians’ roots in seedy black metal. How this lot can sound so fresh after so long remains mesmerising. MATT MILLS

Katatonia – Sky Void Of Stars (Napalm)

Although there’s no such thing as a bad Katatonia album, the Swedish misery merchants sounded particularly majestic on Sky Void Of Stars. Jonas Renkse, Anders Nyström and company tapped inspiration not from your usual prog suspects, but rather Kiss and pop-rockers Kent, making this arguably their tightest-ever collection of anthems. While Atrium shimmered with beautiful melancholy, Birds used high-energy riffing to captivate and Colossal Shade proved a scarily catchy ode to Satan. MATT MILLS

Ne Obliviscaris – Exul (Season Of Mist)

Striking a delicate balance between the bluster and brutality of extreme metal and prog intricacy, Ne Obliviscaris' fourth album is the best showcase of their unique fusion of styles. Violinist/vocalist Tim Charles provides heart-wrenching melodies that lend a sense of scale and heart to the band's music, while the sheer force of Xenoyr's roars should surely scratch the itch any old-school Opeth fans have over a decade since that band ditched their heavier inclinations. RICH HOBSON

The Ocean – Holocene (Pelagic)

In 2020, The Ocean seemingly wrapped up a three-album series that explored the entire history of Earth. But then they released this surprise epilogue. Holocene lyrically chronicled the current state of humanity, lamenting the epidemic of misinformation and our shallow obsession with youth. Alongside these modern themes came a more modern sound, as the band emphasised electronica to frame their dynamic post-metal. It proved another triumphant adventure for prog’s conceptual masterminds. MATT MILLS

Ohhms – Rot (Church Road)

After six albums and almost ten years as a band, Ohhms announced their surprise split in November with a final performance at Damnation. But, as the band themselves put it, "no drama - just riffs" and their sixth album Rot is testament to this philosophy, expansive cosmic noodling over a sludgy, almost post-metal framework setting the scene for some transcendental listening. They will be missed.

RICH HOBSON

Periphery – V: Djent Is Not A Genre (3DOT)

Opener Wildfire sets the tone for Djent Is Not A Genre; a whiplash-inducing excercise in unpredictable song structures, veering from brutal breakdowns and breakout anthemic choruses to jazzy interludes in a seven-minute sonic odyssey. The rest of the album doesn't ease off the pedal either: Periphery's seventh studio album is a brilliant showcase of the incredible musicianship of its members whilst retaining the massive songwriting talents that have helped the band grow bigger with each release. London's Roundhouse beckons in February, but right now the sky's the limit. RICH HOBSON

Tesseract – War Of Being (Kscope)

On their first album in five years, Tesseract both stayed the course and returned to roots. The preceding decade had seen the UK’s djent beloveds slowly ratchet their long-running prog suites into more forceful and immediate songs. Although War Of Being maintained that accessibility on such standouts as The Grey, the likes of the title track rediscovered the band’s sweeping grandeur. 20 years in, Tesseract made their best album to date. MATT MILLS

Unprocessed – …And Everything In Between (self-released)

It isn’t fair how talented Manuel Gardner Fernandes is. Not only is the man a ridiculously gifted shredder (see his YouTube channel for proof); in Unprocessed, he also proves himself to be a powerhouse singer and melody-maker. As easy as it would have been for Manuel to hand out nine songs of him noodling, …And Everything In Between is rife with immense hooks, plus some tasteful cameos from fellow guitar gods Polyphia. MATT MILLS

Voyager – Fearless In Love (Season Of Mist)

Voyager wrote their eighth album as they were gunning for Eurovision success, so it would have been easy for the Aussies to betray their synthy prog metal origins in favour of saccharine pop. Instead, they doubled down on their accessible yet avant-garde ways: Promise (which reached the top 10 in the 2023 Song Contest) was cast bravely against the heaviness of Prince Of Fire and the textured Gren (Fearless In Love). MATT MILLS

]]> https://www.loudersound.com/features/the-10-best-progressive-metal-albums-of-2023 x3KtAjt8HpxfWz8J2S3oHX Sun, 17 Dec 2023 12:15:16 +0000 Tue, 18 Mar 2025 14:31:57 +0000 false false false

While other subgenres weather peaks and valleys of relevance, progressive metal is always there, testing the boundaries of what heavy musicians think they can do. It’s no surprise, then, that the genre had yet another stellar year in 2023, with so many of its albums wowing both critics and fans.

The past 12 months’ great prog metal albums came from all directions. While such experimentalists as Enslaved and Tesseract stayed the course and stuck with the genre, we saw arena-metal heavyweights like Avenged Sevenfold barge in. Newcomers such as Unprocessed also announced their worth more loudly than ever before. All these bands and more are celebrated below, as Metal Hammer names the 10 best prog metal albums of 2023:

Metal Hammer line break

Avenged Sevenfold – Life Is But A Dream… (Warner)

Avenged Sevenfold had already embraced prog grandeur with 2016's The Stage, but in truth the seeds for the psychedelia-laced fever dream that is their eighth studio album were laid all the way back in 2007. A Little Piece Of Heaven showed a more whimiscal and genre-blurring side of the band that's taken 16 years to rise again, but where Heaven... was a curio against their more traditional rock and metal fare, Life Is But A Dream... is packed to the gills with stylistic left-turns and huge creative leaps. 

Needless to say, it's been divisive, but even the most furious naysayer would have to admit that the fact a band of A7X's stature are even still considering taking such massive risks is worthy of praise. This is progressive metal in the truest sense of the word, a brilliantly balanced opus which we can't wait to see live. Roll on Download Festival 2024. RICH HOBSON

Enslaved – Heimdal (Nuclear Blast)

For their 16th album, Viking explorers Enslaved started anew, sourcing inspiration from the prog and metal bands they listened to as teenagers. The resulting music pushed them further into cosmic experimentation, such as on the synthy, dreamlike Caravans To The Outer Worlds. Yet, the likes of the frostbitten Congelia also rediscovered the Norwegians’ roots in seedy black metal. How this lot can sound so fresh after so long remains mesmerising. MATT MILLS

Katatonia – Sky Void Of Stars (Napalm)

Although there’s no such thing as a bad Katatonia album, the Swedish misery merchants sounded particularly majestic on Sky Void Of Stars. Jonas Renkse, Anders Nyström and company tapped inspiration not from your usual prog suspects, but rather Kiss and pop-rockers Kent, making this arguably their tightest-ever collection of anthems. While Atrium shimmered with beautiful melancholy, Birds used high-energy riffing to captivate and Colossal Shade proved a scarily catchy ode to Satan. MATT MILLS

Ne Obliviscaris – Exul (Season Of Mist)

Striking a delicate balance between the bluster and brutality of extreme metal and prog intricacy, Ne Obliviscaris' fourth album is the best showcase of their unique fusion of styles. Violinist/vocalist Tim Charles provides heart-wrenching melodies that lend a sense of scale and heart to the band's music, while the sheer force of Xenoyr's roars should surely scratch the itch any old-school Opeth fans have over a decade since that band ditched their heavier inclinations. RICH HOBSON

The Ocean – Holocene (Pelagic)

In 2020, The Ocean seemingly wrapped up a three-album series that explored the entire history of Earth. But then they released this surprise epilogue. Holocene lyrically chronicled the current state of humanity, lamenting the epidemic of misinformation and our shallow obsession with youth. Alongside these modern themes came a more modern sound, as the band emphasised electronica to frame their dynamic post-metal. It proved another triumphant adventure for prog’s conceptual masterminds. MATT MILLS

Ohhms – Rot (Church Road)

After six albums and almost ten years as a band, Ohhms announced their surprise split in November with a final performance at Damnation. But, as the band themselves put it, "no drama - just riffs" and their sixth album Rot is testament to this philosophy, expansive cosmic noodling over a sludgy, almost post-metal framework setting the scene for some transcendental listening. They will be missed.

RICH HOBSON

Periphery – V: Djent Is Not A Genre (3DOT)

Opener Wildfire sets the tone for Djent Is Not A Genre; a whiplash-inducing excercise in unpredictable song structures, veering from brutal breakdowns and breakout anthemic choruses to jazzy interludes in a seven-minute sonic odyssey. The rest of the album doesn't ease off the pedal either: Periphery's seventh studio album is a brilliant showcase of the incredible musicianship of its members whilst retaining the massive songwriting talents that have helped the band grow bigger with each release. London's Roundhouse beckons in February, but right now the sky's the limit. RICH HOBSON

Tesseract – War Of Being (Kscope)

On their first album in five years, Tesseract both stayed the course and returned to roots. The preceding decade had seen the UK’s djent beloveds slowly ratchet their long-running prog suites into more forceful and immediate songs. Although War Of Being maintained that accessibility on such standouts as The Grey, the likes of the title track rediscovered the band’s sweeping grandeur. 20 years in, Tesseract made their best album to date. MATT MILLS

Unprocessed – …And Everything In Between (self-released)

It isn’t fair how talented Manuel Gardner Fernandes is. Not only is the man a ridiculously gifted shredder (see his YouTube channel for proof); in Unprocessed, he also proves himself to be a powerhouse singer and melody-maker. As easy as it would have been for Manuel to hand out nine songs of him noodling, …And Everything In Between is rife with immense hooks, plus some tasteful cameos from fellow guitar gods Polyphia. MATT MILLS

Voyager – Fearless In Love (Season Of Mist)

Voyager wrote their eighth album as they were gunning for Eurovision success, so it would have been easy for the Aussies to betray their synthy prog metal origins in favour of saccharine pop. Instead, they doubled down on their accessible yet avant-garde ways: Promise (which reached the top 10 in the 2023 Song Contest) was cast bravely against the heaviness of Prince Of Fire and the textured Gren (Fearless In Love). MATT MILLS

]]> <![CDATA[ “We started seeing this crossroads in the progressive metal scene. Bands were going towards art-rock – more technical. We wanted to preserve that metal vibe”: Soen keep it heavy with latest album Memorial ]]> Joel Ekelöf looks incredibly zen. The Soen frontman is sitting in what he calls the “Japanese house” in his back garden, Swedish sunshine peering into the bright room as he slowly puffs on a cigarette. His video call with Prog is taking place in July and it looks like he’s enjoying a perfect summertime in Stockholm.

“It was very warm in June, but it’s a bit windy now,” the singer calmly states as he gazes past the camera. He breaks into the smallest of smiles. “You’ll never get a warm summer in Sweden.”

Prog and Ekelöf have only been talking for a few seconds, but he already strikes as a constantly composed person. He speaks in short sentences with a serious yet quiet tone. His demeanour is the polar opposite of Soen’s music, which is a particularly high-energy and bombastic form of prog.

When the five-piece’s formation was officially announced in 2010, they were a supergroup of established players with a sprawling and melodic style many happily compared to Tool. However, in the decade since, the band have legitimised themselves as a full-time force and chiselled a soundscape very much their own.

Soen songs nowadays condense the majesty of heavy prog – the soaring vocals, studied riffs and mighty, crescendoing choruses – into episodic form. Their sixth album, Memorial, is a concise collection that could theoretically find radio success. The songs are powerhouse calls to arms marching along using iron-clad rock riffing, Ekelöf’s commanding vocals and arena-ready choruses. The longest track, closing ballad Vitals, barely scratches the five-minute mark.

Ekelöf likens Soen’s musical evolution to that of Genesis, one of his favourite bands, and one whose career famously grew more direct and pop-minded as it progressed. It’s easy to imagine Soen as the modern but heavier rock equivalent.

“I’m also a fan of the albums that Peter Gabriel made [after leaving Genesis in 1975],” Ekelöf says. “They were a bit more straightforward as well. But I also think that the old albums have really good, strong songs with strong emotions. That’s the core to everything, which is much more important to me than technicality. I miss those kinds of great songs and great songwriting nowadays.”

To that end, Soen began to push in the opposite musical direction that they perceived the rest of the prog genre to be heading in in the 2010s. “We started seeing this crossroads in the progressive metal scene. A lot of bands were going more and more towards art-rock – more technical. We just wanted to preserve that metal vibe: the power and energy of the music. If you go to a Soen show, it’s a show with a lot of power.”

Although Memorial represents a streamlined and simplified Soen that, true to their frontman’s words, clearly places more stock in tonality than flamboyant chops, Ekelöf steadfastly believes they haven’t moved far. “I would definitely say that we are still a progressive band,” he insists. “If you listen to the detail in what we do and the musicianship behind it, it all comes from that legacy, from progressive music.”

Sure enough, the song Sincere opens Memorial in a scramble of off-kilter, progressive drumming before its main riff kicks in. The title track frequently escalates in drama by having oddly timed staccato riffs grow more and more intense, while Incendiary dissipates from hulking metal into a section of Pink Floyd-like atmospherics during its bridge. The end result is an album that, although direct and often catchy, also flies above meathead heavy metal clichés. Memorial is blatantly as smart as it is easily listenable.

There’s a similar intelligence to the lyrics. Memorial is thematically the spiritual sequel to its predecessor, 2021’s Imperial. While that album was a staunch political statement about rising up against oppression, this one is about more quietly understanding the world: not fighting, but considering everything that, potentially, needs to be fought against.

“It’s more about just recognising the situation we’re in,” Ekelöf explains. “We’re in a darker stage in the world than we’ve ever been, especially in the Soen years, so the themes are about what’s happening right now. It may not be in the rebellious way Imperial was – [but] a more mature way.”

Self-distinction has always been the driving force of Soen. The band were founded by Martin Lopez in the early 2000s: the drummer was a member of Opeth from 1997 to 2006, before stepping down for health reasons. Soen were planned as a way for him to finally lead his own project and write his own music, as opposed to his place in the Mikael Åkerfeldt-founded and masterminded Opeth.

“I always had the idea to write my own music and do my own thing while playing in other people’s bands,” Lopez told heavy music blog MetalSucks in 2017. “I felt that that time was the right one to start a band.”

He first reached out to guitarist Joakim Platbarzdis and bass player Steve Di Giorgio, the latter of whom found prominence playing with extreme progressive metal band Death in the 1990s. He’s also known to metalheads for his stints in thrash groups Testament and Sadus. Ekelöf joined last, thanks to Platbarzdis being a fan of his old band Willowtree.

“The first album [2012’s Cognitive] was a lot of exploring,” Ekelöf remembers. “We were trying to find what was us: ‘How can we get our musical inspirations together?’ The project basically started with the match between my way of singing and Martin’s rhythmic, aggressive way of playing, but that was unexpected: I think Martin, making those first demos, was expecting growled vocals.”

The frontman admits that, with much of the band already being well-known musicians, Soen were treated as a novelty when they first formed. “In the beginning, everyone was asking us, ‘Are you a supergroup? Will you do more albums, or is this a one-off?’ We had to answer a lot of questions over whether this band was ‘real.’ We knew all the time, though, that this was real and it would be the main thing we’d dedicate our time to.”

Not all the band made it through the early days. Di Giorgio amicably left to pursue his myriad other projects, now replaced by Oleksii Kobel, and guitars are currently played by Cody Lee Ford and Lars Åhlund. Ekelöf reflects that it was Soen’s second album, 2014’s Tellurian, that legitimised them as a full-time pursuit: not only did it come just two years after Cognitive, but it pushed the band into a prolific schedule of headline tours.

“We started touring more heavily after the second album,” Ekelöf says. “We did one with [gothic metal band] Paradise Lost but, after that, we just started doing our own tours in Europe. Me and Martin especially are very stubborn; we want things a certain way and to be in control when we tour. If you go out as a support, you’re just thrown into something else and have to adjust.”

Since then, Soen have been relentlessly active. They’ve done four further albums in just nine years, while maintaining a rigorous touring lifestyle. All the while, they’ve been refining their fiercely anthemic and infectious style of music. The culmination of the journey so far is a space Ekelöf is happy in. He exudes pride in Memorial, and admits he has no plans for the musical future, preferring to relish the now. Whether or not you believe the Soen of 2023 are prog, their music’s powerful and successful – and it’s bloody good.

“I really like the place we’re in right now,” Ekelöf concludes. “We feel very comfortable here, and I regard this new album as the best Soen album. Some people ask me when we’re going to do another Tellurian, but I don’t think there’s going to be another Tellurian. There’s no point redoing old stuff. What we do next could well be intricate and experimental – but it will never be the same.”

]]> https://www.loudersound.com/features/soen-memorial DgsCZJz39468rtH2aEFtVA Tue, 21 Nov 2023 15:30:21 +0000 Wed, 17 Sep 2025 06:07:47 +0000 false false false

Joel Ekelöf looks incredibly zen. The Soen frontman is sitting in what he calls the “Japanese house” in his back garden, Swedish sunshine peering into the bright room as he slowly puffs on a cigarette. His video call with Prog is taking place in July and it looks like he’s enjoying a perfect summertime in Stockholm.

“It was very warm in June, but it’s a bit windy now,” the singer calmly states as he gazes past the camera. He breaks into the smallest of smiles. “You’ll never get a warm summer in Sweden.”

Prog and Ekelöf have only been talking for a few seconds, but he already strikes as a constantly composed person. He speaks in short sentences with a serious yet quiet tone. His demeanour is the polar opposite of Soen’s music, which is a particularly high-energy and bombastic form of prog.

When the five-piece’s formation was officially announced in 2010, they were a supergroup of established players with a sprawling and melodic style many happily compared to Tool. However, in the decade since, the band have legitimised themselves as a full-time force and chiselled a soundscape very much their own.

Soen songs nowadays condense the majesty of heavy prog – the soaring vocals, studied riffs and mighty, crescendoing choruses – into episodic form. Their sixth album, Memorial, is a concise collection that could theoretically find radio success. The songs are powerhouse calls to arms marching along using iron-clad rock riffing, Ekelöf’s commanding vocals and arena-ready choruses. The longest track, closing ballad Vitals, barely scratches the five-minute mark.

Ekelöf likens Soen’s musical evolution to that of Genesis, one of his favourite bands, and one whose career famously grew more direct and pop-minded as it progressed. It’s easy to imagine Soen as the modern but heavier rock equivalent.

“I’m also a fan of the albums that Peter Gabriel made [after leaving Genesis in 1975],” Ekelöf says. “They were a bit more straightforward as well. But I also think that the old albums have really good, strong songs with strong emotions. That’s the core to everything, which is much more important to me than technicality. I miss those kinds of great songs and great songwriting nowadays.”

To that end, Soen began to push in the opposite musical direction that they perceived the rest of the prog genre to be heading in in the 2010s. “We started seeing this crossroads in the progressive metal scene. A lot of bands were going more and more towards art-rock – more technical. We just wanted to preserve that metal vibe: the power and energy of the music. If you go to a Soen show, it’s a show with a lot of power.”

Although Memorial represents a streamlined and simplified Soen that, true to their frontman’s words, clearly places more stock in tonality than flamboyant chops, Ekelöf steadfastly believes they haven’t moved far. “I would definitely say that we are still a progressive band,” he insists. “If you listen to the detail in what we do and the musicianship behind it, it all comes from that legacy, from progressive music.”

Sure enough, the song Sincere opens Memorial in a scramble of off-kilter, progressive drumming before its main riff kicks in. The title track frequently escalates in drama by having oddly timed staccato riffs grow more and more intense, while Incendiary dissipates from hulking metal into a section of Pink Floyd-like atmospherics during its bridge. The end result is an album that, although direct and often catchy, also flies above meathead heavy metal clichés. Memorial is blatantly as smart as it is easily listenable.

There’s a similar intelligence to the lyrics. Memorial is thematically the spiritual sequel to its predecessor, 2021’s Imperial. While that album was a staunch political statement about rising up against oppression, this one is about more quietly understanding the world: not fighting, but considering everything that, potentially, needs to be fought against.

“It’s more about just recognising the situation we’re in,” Ekelöf explains. “We’re in a darker stage in the world than we’ve ever been, especially in the Soen years, so the themes are about what’s happening right now. It may not be in the rebellious way Imperial was – [but] a more mature way.”

Self-distinction has always been the driving force of Soen. The band were founded by Martin Lopez in the early 2000s: the drummer was a member of Opeth from 1997 to 2006, before stepping down for health reasons. Soen were planned as a way for him to finally lead his own project and write his own music, as opposed to his place in the Mikael Åkerfeldt-founded and masterminded Opeth.

“I always had the idea to write my own music and do my own thing while playing in other people’s bands,” Lopez told heavy music blog MetalSucks in 2017. “I felt that that time was the right one to start a band.”

He first reached out to guitarist Joakim Platbarzdis and bass player Steve Di Giorgio, the latter of whom found prominence playing with extreme progressive metal band Death in the 1990s. He’s also known to metalheads for his stints in thrash groups Testament and Sadus. Ekelöf joined last, thanks to Platbarzdis being a fan of his old band Willowtree.

“The first album [2012’s Cognitive] was a lot of exploring,” Ekelöf remembers. “We were trying to find what was us: ‘How can we get our musical inspirations together?’ The project basically started with the match between my way of singing and Martin’s rhythmic, aggressive way of playing, but that was unexpected: I think Martin, making those first demos, was expecting growled vocals.”

The frontman admits that, with much of the band already being well-known musicians, Soen were treated as a novelty when they first formed. “In the beginning, everyone was asking us, ‘Are you a supergroup? Will you do more albums, or is this a one-off?’ We had to answer a lot of questions over whether this band was ‘real.’ We knew all the time, though, that this was real and it would be the main thing we’d dedicate our time to.”

Not all the band made it through the early days. Di Giorgio amicably left to pursue his myriad other projects, now replaced by Oleksii Kobel, and guitars are currently played by Cody Lee Ford and Lars Åhlund. Ekelöf reflects that it was Soen’s second album, 2014’s Tellurian, that legitimised them as a full-time pursuit: not only did it come just two years after Cognitive, but it pushed the band into a prolific schedule of headline tours.

“We started touring more heavily after the second album,” Ekelöf says. “We did one with [gothic metal band] Paradise Lost but, after that, we just started doing our own tours in Europe. Me and Martin especially are very stubborn; we want things a certain way and to be in control when we tour. If you go out as a support, you’re just thrown into something else and have to adjust.”

Since then, Soen have been relentlessly active. They’ve done four further albums in just nine years, while maintaining a rigorous touring lifestyle. All the while, they’ve been refining their fiercely anthemic and infectious style of music. The culmination of the journey so far is a space Ekelöf is happy in. He exudes pride in Memorial, and admits he has no plans for the musical future, preferring to relish the now. Whether or not you believe the Soen of 2023 are prog, their music’s powerful and successful – and it’s bloody good.

“I really like the place we’re in right now,” Ekelöf concludes. “We feel very comfortable here, and I regard this new album as the best Soen album. Some people ask me when we’re going to do another Tellurian, but I don’t think there’s going to be another Tellurian. There’s no point redoing old stuff. What we do next could well be intricate and experimental – but it will never be the same.”

]]> <![CDATA[ 10 up-and-coming progressive metal bands every self-respecting metalhead should know ]]> It’s always exciting being a progressive metal fan. Since its origins, this is a subgenre explicitly dedicated to pushing itself forward, from the days of Dream Theater and Tool all the way Mastodon, Gojira and now Sleep Token. Progressive metal’s restless evolution also opens up the neverending question of, where can it go next? Fortunately, we think we have the answer. Metal Hammer’s compiled 10 up-and-coming extreme and experimental bands who could well dictate the future of heavy music for the next generation.

Metal Hammer line break

Unprocessed

Finding viral success as a “shredder” doesn’t automatically mean you can write excellent songs. However, while many of his peers’ music starts and stops at guitar theatrics, Unprocessed leader Manuel Gardner Fernandes makes urgent and catchy prog in his band. New album …And Everything In Between is crammed with powerhouse hooks.

The Callous Daoboys

Whether it’s through their mathcore-meets-baroque-pop music or incomprehensible merchandise, The Callous Daoboys are one of the most chaotic bands in the scene. Their latest album, Celebrity Therapist, has been compared to everybody from The Dillinger Escape Plan to Panic! At The Disco, and their live show even includes samples of Sweet Caroline. Madness. 

Sugar Horse

Sugar Horse are an unforgettable live experience. The prog/post-metal four-piece could be the loudest band in the world, so not even the densest earplugs you can buy will hinder their sludgy yet melodic attack. New EP Truth Or Consequences, New Mexico distils their noisy excellence into one 18-minute masterpiece.

The Anchoret

If you use Bandcamp, you’ve doubtlessly seen The Anchoret’s debut album rock up in your “Discover” tab lately. It All Began With Loneliness has become something of a cult hit, mixing the urgency of metal with plenty of classic prog cues, like mellotrons and saxophones. Give it a go if you haven’t.

Mountain Caller

Mountain Caller live in the dusty landscape where stoner, prog and post-rock converge. The instrumental trio’s dynamic tunes have already made them mainstays in London’s experimental music underground, where they frequently bludgeon with their climactic riffs. A new album is expected to land in 2024, so expect their excellence to extend even further.

Parius

Parius were a technical yet melodic death metal force, until they reinvented themselves as a progressive rock band on their 2022 album, The Signal Heard Throughout Space. No matter which version of the band you delve into first, though, you’ll be greeted by some infectious and forceful music crammed to the brim with riffs.

The Hirsch Effekt

These German maestros have been going since 2009, so some may disqualify them from the “up-and-coming” description. But, over their 14-year existence, they’ve remained criminally overlooked. The three-piece are all virtuosos on their instruments and together write songs that leap from math rock to prog and metalcore without ever skimping on a good, meaty hook.

Giant Walker

We here at Hammer once labelled Giant Walker as “UK prog metal’s next big thing”. We stand by that assessment. The Newcastle-based quartet cast hulking, downtuned riffs against the melodic vocals of lead singer Steff Fish on 2022 debut All In Good Time, and album two will doubtlessly be even more special.

Kardashev

Progressive death metal newcomers Kardashev claim to be responsible for a new style of music, “deathgaze”. Regardless of whether or not you want extreme metal to have yet another subgenre on its hands, the Americans are certainly unique. Latest album Liminal Rites is somehow brutal and ethereal simultaneously. 

Dvne

Whatever you love in your extreme, progressive metal, Dvne supply it in spades. The Edinburgh five-piece have a seemingly infinite bag of skull-crushing riffs, yet can also be soft and ambient and surprisingly catchy. New album Etemen Ænka was one of the best metal releases of 2021, and we’re counting the days until its follow-up.

]]> https://www.loudersound.com/features/up-and-coming-progressive-metal-bands DsqSskZFpFoDFF6qedkueT Mon, 30 Oct 2023 09:24:36 +0000 Tue, 18 Mar 2025 14:31:57 +0000 false false false

It’s always exciting being a progressive metal fan. Since its origins, this is a subgenre explicitly dedicated to pushing itself forward, from the days of Dream Theater and Tool all the way Mastodon, Gojira and now Sleep Token. Progressive metal’s restless evolution also opens up the neverending question of, where can it go next? Fortunately, we think we have the answer. Metal Hammer’s compiled 10 up-and-coming extreme and experimental bands who could well dictate the future of heavy music for the next generation.

Metal Hammer line break

Unprocessed

Finding viral success as a “shredder” doesn’t automatically mean you can write excellent songs. However, while many of his peers’ music starts and stops at guitar theatrics, Unprocessed leader Manuel Gardner Fernandes makes urgent and catchy prog in his band. New album …And Everything In Between is crammed with powerhouse hooks.

The Callous Daoboys

Whether it’s through their mathcore-meets-baroque-pop music or incomprehensible merchandise, The Callous Daoboys are one of the most chaotic bands in the scene. Their latest album, Celebrity Therapist, has been compared to everybody from The Dillinger Escape Plan to Panic! At The Disco, and their live show even includes samples of Sweet Caroline. Madness. 

Sugar Horse

Sugar Horse are an unforgettable live experience. The prog/post-metal four-piece could be the loudest band in the world, so not even the densest earplugs you can buy will hinder their sludgy yet melodic attack. New EP Truth Or Consequences, New Mexico distils their noisy excellence into one 18-minute masterpiece.

The Anchoret

If you use Bandcamp, you’ve doubtlessly seen The Anchoret’s debut album rock up in your “Discover” tab lately. It All Began With Loneliness has become something of a cult hit, mixing the urgency of metal with plenty of classic prog cues, like mellotrons and saxophones. Give it a go if you haven’t.

Mountain Caller

Mountain Caller live in the dusty landscape where stoner, prog and post-rock converge. The instrumental trio’s dynamic tunes have already made them mainstays in London’s experimental music underground, where they frequently bludgeon with their climactic riffs. A new album is expected to land in 2024, so expect their excellence to extend even further.

Parius

Parius were a technical yet melodic death metal force, until they reinvented themselves as a progressive rock band on their 2022 album, The Signal Heard Throughout Space. No matter which version of the band you delve into first, though, you’ll be greeted by some infectious and forceful music crammed to the brim with riffs.

The Hirsch Effekt

These German maestros have been going since 2009, so some may disqualify them from the “up-and-coming” description. But, over their 14-year existence, they’ve remained criminally overlooked. The three-piece are all virtuosos on their instruments and together write songs that leap from math rock to prog and metalcore without ever skimping on a good, meaty hook.

Giant Walker

We here at Hammer once labelled Giant Walker as “UK prog metal’s next big thing”. We stand by that assessment. The Newcastle-based quartet cast hulking, downtuned riffs against the melodic vocals of lead singer Steff Fish on 2022 debut All In Good Time, and album two will doubtlessly be even more special.

Kardashev

Progressive death metal newcomers Kardashev claim to be responsible for a new style of music, “deathgaze”. Regardless of whether or not you want extreme metal to have yet another subgenre on its hands, the Americans are certainly unique. Latest album Liminal Rites is somehow brutal and ethereal simultaneously. 

Dvne

Whatever you love in your extreme, progressive metal, Dvne supply it in spades. The Edinburgh five-piece have a seemingly infinite bag of skull-crushing riffs, yet can also be soft and ambient and surprisingly catchy. New album Etemen Ænka was one of the best metal releases of 2021, and we’re counting the days until its follow-up.

]]> <![CDATA[ “We were just a progressive metal band going about our business… the next minute we’re on the world’s stage!” But playing to 160 million people hasn’t changed Voyager ]]> Many artists would follow a mainstream moment with the most accessible music of their career. However, weeks after finishing in the Top 10 at the Eurovision Song Contest, Voyager have doubled down on their heavy synth-prog with new album Fearless In Love. Ahead of the last-minute cancellation of their 2023 European tour, Singer Danny Estrin, guitarist Simone Dow and bassist Alex Canion tell Prog about life after playing to more than 160 million people.

It’s early June when Prog video-calls Voyager frontman Danny Estrin, guitarist Simone Dow and bassist/singer Alex Canion, and the trio are midway through being smashed back into reality. This time last month, the Perth-based band (rounded out by drummer Ashley Doodkorte and Dow’s co-guitarist Scott Kay) were jet-setting in luxury. They were traipsing across Europe and getting interviewed by countless glossy magazines, all part of the run-up to them representing Australia to more than 160 million TV viewers live at the Eurovision Song Contest. Now they’re back home – and getting hammered by a storm so violent that it routinely wipes out their internet connection and freaks out Canion’s dog, Seamus.

“We played the WA Day festival [in Perth] yesterday,” Dow tells us, camera off to put less stress on the struggling WiFi, “and our booking agent sent us a video of the backstage area after we left. You should have seen the flooding! It was insane!”

Although Mother Nature is trying to quite literally rain on their parade, there’s no denying that Voyager became progressive music’s newest superstars this spring. Eurovision is touted worldwide as an international celebration of top-shelf songwriting (despite it frequently showcasing the most OTT pop possible) – and the synth-prog quintet had been chasing that rainbow from the moment Australia joined, in 2015.

They came tantalisingly close with their pop-prog anthem Dreamer in 2022, finishing second in Eurovision: Australia Decides, the nationally televised competition to select the country’s representative. This year, they finally got sent to the semi-finals when they were held in Liverpool, thanks to the electro- rock singalong of Promise.

Voyager advanced to the grand final and – after an 80s-throwback performance, replete with sequinned jackets, keytar solos and larking about on a Toyota MR2 sports car – finished a massively respectable ninth out of the 20 finalists.

The band couldn’t overcome the litany of public votes for Finnish rapper Käärijä, nor the jury’s collective passion for Sweden’s now-two-time winner Loreen. However, for five people playing prog in the isolation of Western Australia, it marked an underdog triumph.

“It’s pretty incredible!” Estrin exclaims. “We were just a progressive metal band from Perth going about our business and, the next minute, we’re on the world’s stage! The comedown’s been real, but it’s been dampened by the insane amount of publicity we’ve done. It’s kept that spark of Eurovision alive: we’re selling out shows, particularly in the UK. Eurovision has given us the platform to continue doing what we were doing on a much bigger level.”

The numbers certainly agree. At time of writing, Promise is Voyager’s biggest song, with more than eight million Spotify streams. The music video’s been watched two million times on YouTube, with the footage of that grand final performance firmly in the seven-digit mark.

Estrin’s vow of his band sticking with what they’ve always done going forward isn’t hollow, either. A week before Voyager played Eurovision, they released another single called Prince Of Fire. It was every bit as proggy and high-energy as longtime fans would expect. Plus, with its leaps from synthy verses to sturdy rock choruses, it was powerfully dynamic. No kowtowing to the masses with simpler songwriting or a saccharine ballad here, thank you very much!

“It showed that we hadn’t vastly changed,” Canion says. “I did see some comments when we released Dreamer: people were worried that we were gonna change our sound. But Prince Of Fire is an indication that we’re still the same band. We still have the same melancholy and dark heaviness about us.”

The single, alongside Eurovision entries Dreamer and Promise, appears on Voyager’s eighth album, Fearless In Love. And said album doesn’t just mark Voyager continuing to be Voyager despite the newfound mainstream intrigue: it contains the most out-there and genre-agnostic music of the band’s career.

The Best Intentions opens Fearless In Love with a pulsing dance beat, joined by Estrin’s graceful vocals before the band dive into some heavy, off-kilter rocking. Submarine smacks you into a wall of guitar hefty enough to belong in a TesseracT or Devin Townsend tune, before Twisted’s synths and irresistible hook feel comparable to Signals-era Rush. That’s all before semi-title track Gren (Fearless In Love) wraps these 45 minutes up with an atmospheric and guitar-powered symphony. It’s arguably the most nuanced, evocative song Voyager have ever put their name to.

“Fearless In Love is one of our synthiest and most melodic albums, but it’s also the heaviest,” Estrin summarises. “It was during the Eurovision process that we wrote it, so I guess we had a bit more focus on song structures and making sure there’s no extra fluff. We’ve got playful guitar solos and more prog than was on the last album [2019’s Colours In The Sun].”

Dow adds: “We started writing around the time of Australia Decides and [the release of] Dreamer, and the writing process was very different. We did it all at Scott’s little studio in his house. That way we could edit and change things as we went along, rather than doing it all in the rehearsal studio. Then, when we recorded the album, everything was all done. It’s been a huge process, but it was one of the most rewarding and creative processes we’ve gone through with an album.”

It comes as no surprise that Eurovision hasn’t changed Voyager since Estrin, who formed the band in 1999, says that the contest was one of his very first musical inspirations. He was born in the North German town of Buchholz In Der Nordheide before his family relocated to Perth, and while growing up in Germany, Eurovision and classical music were his two greatest musical loves. “That knack for melody and a really catchy chorus came very early on and stayed with me from the very beginning,” he says. “It’s why I’m the catchy chorus guy in Voyager!”

Estrin started the band at just 18 years old – by which point, he says, “I was living and breathing metal.” As a result, their 2003 debut, Element V, packed more high-speed power metal drumming than later albums. However, it also flaunted a love of operatic melody, prog and keytar playing that still defines their sound to this day.

“The goal was to make music sustainable: to write and record music and tour around the world,” Estrin remembers of the early days. “Living in one of the most isolated cities in the world has made that very, very difficult because, wherever you go, it’s very, very expensive. It’s even more difficult when you play a niche form of music.”

Making things even harder was an Australian underground that seemed more smitten with extreme metal than anything else, as well as Voyager’s revolving-door line-up. Dow (friends with then-guitarist Mark De Vattimo) joined in 2005, six years after the band formed, and is today the second-longest serving member. Canion, who played with Dow in a thrash act called Psychonaut, joined in 2007.

“I immediately recognised that Voyager were one of the top bands in the scene,” the bassist says. “Danny had this X-factor that no other band had. He was driving forward a sound that was almost too daring for the metal scene to adopt.”

By 2012, Kay and Doodkorte had completed the line-up, which hasn’t shifted since. Three years later, with the announcement that Australia would become an honorary competitor in Eurovision, the band began campaigning to represent their country. They started the Twitter hashtag #VoyagerForEurovision and submitted songs every year, to no avail. Even after being the runner-up to singer-songwriter Sheldon Riley on Australia Decides in 2022, though, they were never disheartened. “It was never like, ‘We have to do Eurovision or we’re a failure!’” Estrin says. “It was more like, ‘However far we can get, that’s awesome!’”

Australia Decides was canned in 2023. Instead, Voyager were simply told over the phone by broadcaster SBS that they’d be going to Liverpool. When there, they had the same outlook: a win would be nice, but simply representing prog and band-made music to millions of people is already brilliant enough. “If you’re a Eurovision fan, you know the juries don’t like heavy music, or bands in general,” says Estrin. “So the fact that we came sixth in the jury vote is incredible.”

That casual attitude made its way on screen. When Voyager won the second round of Eurovision’s semi-finals, they sprayed people around them with water that they’d put in a champagne bottle. During the final, almost as talked-about as Promise was the fact that, when the band were given top marks by the Portuguese jury, a camera caught them snacking on some ham sandwiches. Cue memes aplenty across social media.

“It was Marks & Spencer’s, so it was a quality sandwich,” Estrin chuckles. “We were told off after the semi-final for the splash incident, so we thought, ‘If we can’t drink, we’re going to eat something.’ These are gruelling nights and days, so there’s nothing like having a little sandwich in your pocket.”

Voyager were far from the first heavy rock band to play Eurovision. Rock’n’roller Freddy Quinn represented the genre (and Germany) at the inaugural Contest in 1956. Then Finnish masked monster mash Lordi and Italian glam bunch Måneskin won the whole thing in 2006 and 2021, respectively. Even this year, Voyager were contending with German gothic metal quintet Lord Of The Lost, who sadly finished in last place.

However, competing in a mainstream programme mostly reserved for pop singers/songwriters has led to purists sometimes denouncing bands as ‘Eurovision groups’, like it’s a derogatory term. Dow claims Voyager haven’t weathered any such pushback, though.

“The feedback we had during the whole process was super-supportive,” the guitarist says. “People were stoked that we were putting progressive metal on the map. Now, we’ve got sold-out shows across Europe and Australia. You could not ask for anything more than that.”

Currently, Voyager are only weeks removed from Eurovision, but they already have a full touring cycle directly ahead of them. Eager to see their litany of new fans in the flesh, Estrin, Dow and Canion are all impatient to get onto the road. “I hope Eurovision will allow us to keep upgrading with each subsequent tour,” the bassist says. “I hope it’ll let us craft the kind of show that I’ve wanted to put on with Voyager since I joined.”

Looking beyond this year, they want to have a legacy as the band that brought both fearlessness and consistent quality to not just Eurovision, but the broader rock and prog scenes. “I want us to go down as a band that doesn’t sound like anyone else, regardless of at what point you pick up a Voyager album and listen to it,” Estrin states.

“We’ve always done things differently, but we’ve always sounded quintessentially Voyager,” Canion adds. “I think that, now we’re eight albums in, that’s never going to change.”

]]> https://www.loudersound.com/features/voyager-eurovision-fearless-in-love iHDKDSDNa24kYjVmu2KEFA Thu, 21 Sep 2023 08:14:38 +0000 Tue, 18 Mar 2025 14:31:57 +0000 false false false

Many artists would follow a mainstream moment with the most accessible music of their career. However, weeks after finishing in the Top 10 at the Eurovision Song Contest, Voyager have doubled down on their heavy synth-prog with new album Fearless In Love. Ahead of the last-minute cancellation of their 2023 European tour, Singer Danny Estrin, guitarist Simone Dow and bassist Alex Canion tell Prog about life after playing to more than 160 million people.

It’s early June when Prog video-calls Voyager frontman Danny Estrin, guitarist Simone Dow and bassist/singer Alex Canion, and the trio are midway through being smashed back into reality. This time last month, the Perth-based band (rounded out by drummer Ashley Doodkorte and Dow’s co-guitarist Scott Kay) were jet-setting in luxury. They were traipsing across Europe and getting interviewed by countless glossy magazines, all part of the run-up to them representing Australia to more than 160 million TV viewers live at the Eurovision Song Contest. Now they’re back home – and getting hammered by a storm so violent that it routinely wipes out their internet connection and freaks out Canion’s dog, Seamus.

“We played the WA Day festival [in Perth] yesterday,” Dow tells us, camera off to put less stress on the struggling WiFi, “and our booking agent sent us a video of the backstage area after we left. You should have seen the flooding! It was insane!”

Although Mother Nature is trying to quite literally rain on their parade, there’s no denying that Voyager became progressive music’s newest superstars this spring. Eurovision is touted worldwide as an international celebration of top-shelf songwriting (despite it frequently showcasing the most OTT pop possible) – and the synth-prog quintet had been chasing that rainbow from the moment Australia joined, in 2015.

They came tantalisingly close with their pop-prog anthem Dreamer in 2022, finishing second in Eurovision: Australia Decides, the nationally televised competition to select the country’s representative. This year, they finally got sent to the semi-finals when they were held in Liverpool, thanks to the electro- rock singalong of Promise.

Voyager advanced to the grand final and – after an 80s-throwback performance, replete with sequinned jackets, keytar solos and larking about on a Toyota MR2 sports car – finished a massively respectable ninth out of the 20 finalists.

The band couldn’t overcome the litany of public votes for Finnish rapper Käärijä, nor the jury’s collective passion for Sweden’s now-two-time winner Loreen. However, for five people playing prog in the isolation of Western Australia, it marked an underdog triumph.

“It’s pretty incredible!” Estrin exclaims. “We were just a progressive metal band from Perth going about our business and, the next minute, we’re on the world’s stage! The comedown’s been real, but it’s been dampened by the insane amount of publicity we’ve done. It’s kept that spark of Eurovision alive: we’re selling out shows, particularly in the UK. Eurovision has given us the platform to continue doing what we were doing on a much bigger level.”

The numbers certainly agree. At time of writing, Promise is Voyager’s biggest song, with more than eight million Spotify streams. The music video’s been watched two million times on YouTube, with the footage of that grand final performance firmly in the seven-digit mark.

Estrin’s vow of his band sticking with what they’ve always done going forward isn’t hollow, either. A week before Voyager played Eurovision, they released another single called Prince Of Fire. It was every bit as proggy and high-energy as longtime fans would expect. Plus, with its leaps from synthy verses to sturdy rock choruses, it was powerfully dynamic. No kowtowing to the masses with simpler songwriting or a saccharine ballad here, thank you very much!

“It showed that we hadn’t vastly changed,” Canion says. “I did see some comments when we released Dreamer: people were worried that we were gonna change our sound. But Prince Of Fire is an indication that we’re still the same band. We still have the same melancholy and dark heaviness about us.”

The single, alongside Eurovision entries Dreamer and Promise, appears on Voyager’s eighth album, Fearless In Love. And said album doesn’t just mark Voyager continuing to be Voyager despite the newfound mainstream intrigue: it contains the most out-there and genre-agnostic music of the band’s career.

The Best Intentions opens Fearless In Love with a pulsing dance beat, joined by Estrin’s graceful vocals before the band dive into some heavy, off-kilter rocking. Submarine smacks you into a wall of guitar hefty enough to belong in a TesseracT or Devin Townsend tune, before Twisted’s synths and irresistible hook feel comparable to Signals-era Rush. That’s all before semi-title track Gren (Fearless In Love) wraps these 45 minutes up with an atmospheric and guitar-powered symphony. It’s arguably the most nuanced, evocative song Voyager have ever put their name to.

“Fearless In Love is one of our synthiest and most melodic albums, but it’s also the heaviest,” Estrin summarises. “It was during the Eurovision process that we wrote it, so I guess we had a bit more focus on song structures and making sure there’s no extra fluff. We’ve got playful guitar solos and more prog than was on the last album [2019’s Colours In The Sun].”

Dow adds: “We started writing around the time of Australia Decides and [the release of] Dreamer, and the writing process was very different. We did it all at Scott’s little studio in his house. That way we could edit and change things as we went along, rather than doing it all in the rehearsal studio. Then, when we recorded the album, everything was all done. It’s been a huge process, but it was one of the most rewarding and creative processes we’ve gone through with an album.”

It comes as no surprise that Eurovision hasn’t changed Voyager since Estrin, who formed the band in 1999, says that the contest was one of his very first musical inspirations. He was born in the North German town of Buchholz In Der Nordheide before his family relocated to Perth, and while growing up in Germany, Eurovision and classical music were his two greatest musical loves. “That knack for melody and a really catchy chorus came very early on and stayed with me from the very beginning,” he says. “It’s why I’m the catchy chorus guy in Voyager!”

Estrin started the band at just 18 years old – by which point, he says, “I was living and breathing metal.” As a result, their 2003 debut, Element V, packed more high-speed power metal drumming than later albums. However, it also flaunted a love of operatic melody, prog and keytar playing that still defines their sound to this day.

“The goal was to make music sustainable: to write and record music and tour around the world,” Estrin remembers of the early days. “Living in one of the most isolated cities in the world has made that very, very difficult because, wherever you go, it’s very, very expensive. It’s even more difficult when you play a niche form of music.”

Making things even harder was an Australian underground that seemed more smitten with extreme metal than anything else, as well as Voyager’s revolving-door line-up. Dow (friends with then-guitarist Mark De Vattimo) joined in 2005, six years after the band formed, and is today the second-longest serving member. Canion, who played with Dow in a thrash act called Psychonaut, joined in 2007.

“I immediately recognised that Voyager were one of the top bands in the scene,” the bassist says. “Danny had this X-factor that no other band had. He was driving forward a sound that was almost too daring for the metal scene to adopt.”

By 2012, Kay and Doodkorte had completed the line-up, which hasn’t shifted since. Three years later, with the announcement that Australia would become an honorary competitor in Eurovision, the band began campaigning to represent their country. They started the Twitter hashtag #VoyagerForEurovision and submitted songs every year, to no avail. Even after being the runner-up to singer-songwriter Sheldon Riley on Australia Decides in 2022, though, they were never disheartened. “It was never like, ‘We have to do Eurovision or we’re a failure!’” Estrin says. “It was more like, ‘However far we can get, that’s awesome!’”

Australia Decides was canned in 2023. Instead, Voyager were simply told over the phone by broadcaster SBS that they’d be going to Liverpool. When there, they had the same outlook: a win would be nice, but simply representing prog and band-made music to millions of people is already brilliant enough. “If you’re a Eurovision fan, you know the juries don’t like heavy music, or bands in general,” says Estrin. “So the fact that we came sixth in the jury vote is incredible.”

That casual attitude made its way on screen. When Voyager won the second round of Eurovision’s semi-finals, they sprayed people around them with water that they’d put in a champagne bottle. During the final, almost as talked-about as Promise was the fact that, when the band were given top marks by the Portuguese jury, a camera caught them snacking on some ham sandwiches. Cue memes aplenty across social media.

“It was Marks & Spencer’s, so it was a quality sandwich,” Estrin chuckles. “We were told off after the semi-final for the splash incident, so we thought, ‘If we can’t drink, we’re going to eat something.’ These are gruelling nights and days, so there’s nothing like having a little sandwich in your pocket.”

Voyager were far from the first heavy rock band to play Eurovision. Rock’n’roller Freddy Quinn represented the genre (and Germany) at the inaugural Contest in 1956. Then Finnish masked monster mash Lordi and Italian glam bunch Måneskin won the whole thing in 2006 and 2021, respectively. Even this year, Voyager were contending with German gothic metal quintet Lord Of The Lost, who sadly finished in last place.

However, competing in a mainstream programme mostly reserved for pop singers/songwriters has led to purists sometimes denouncing bands as ‘Eurovision groups’, like it’s a derogatory term. Dow claims Voyager haven’t weathered any such pushback, though.

“The feedback we had during the whole process was super-supportive,” the guitarist says. “People were stoked that we were putting progressive metal on the map. Now, we’ve got sold-out shows across Europe and Australia. You could not ask for anything more than that.”

Currently, Voyager are only weeks removed from Eurovision, but they already have a full touring cycle directly ahead of them. Eager to see their litany of new fans in the flesh, Estrin, Dow and Canion are all impatient to get onto the road. “I hope Eurovision will allow us to keep upgrading with each subsequent tour,” the bassist says. “I hope it’ll let us craft the kind of show that I’ve wanted to put on with Voyager since I joined.”

Looking beyond this year, they want to have a legacy as the band that brought both fearlessness and consistent quality to not just Eurovision, but the broader rock and prog scenes. “I want us to go down as a band that doesn’t sound like anyone else, regardless of at what point you pick up a Voyager album and listen to it,” Estrin states.

“We’ve always done things differently, but we’ve always sounded quintessentially Voyager,” Canion adds. “I think that, now we’re eight albums in, that’s never going to change.”

]]> <![CDATA[ Tesseract's War Of Being is a progressive metal masterpiece and a frontrunner for album of the year ]]> If you had a baby on the day that Tesseract released their last album, that child would now be starting primary school. Five years and one global pandemic separate War Of Being from Sonder but, according to the band, the dry spell was a blessing. As well as recording the Portals livestream and upgrading their stage show, the UK prog metal luminaries got the time to fine-tune the biggest release of their lives.

Tesseract’s fifth album makes their comeback in the most monumental manner. When it was unveiled, the band also announced a seven-month world tour and released the 11-minute-long title track as a single. The song War Of Being is a career- consolidating opus, pulling from the screaming djent and atmospheric prog of 2011 debut One, as well as the mature melodies of their later career. The rest of the album feels similarly all- encompassing, given it’s a staggering, hour-long concept piece.

Natural Disaster opens War Of Being in excitingly rampant form. Flaunting the persistent roars of singer Dan Tompkins, it’s the nastiest the band have sounded since One, with that bedrock of seven-string djent riffing keeping everything heavy, even during a melodically sung hook. On the other hand, Tender lives up to its title; over a four- minute runtime, with a succinctness that echoes the 36-minute Sonder album, its guitar notes flutter towards a post- rock crescendo. Finale Sacrifice stretches that evolutionary tone to its fullest extent, weaving between beauty and heaviness for more than double the time. 

In that way, War Of Being couldn’t have hit a more appropriate end. It’s
a comprehensive masterpiece that summarises every emotional frequency and style of songwriting that Tesseract have touched since they emerged. Instantly, it’s affirmed itself as this band’s quintessential release – not to mention a frontrunner for metal album of the year.

]]> https://www.loudersound.com/reviews/tesseract-war-of-being-review G7G6bVkDU3WLn3kEAX2TET Thu, 14 Sep 2023 16:04:28 +0000 Tue, 18 Mar 2025 14:31:56 +0000 false false false

If you had a baby on the day that Tesseract released their last album, that child would now be starting primary school. Five years and one global pandemic separate War Of Being from Sonder but, according to the band, the dry spell was a blessing. As well as recording the Portals livestream and upgrading their stage show, the UK prog metal luminaries got the time to fine-tune the biggest release of their lives.

Tesseract’s fifth album makes their comeback in the most monumental manner. When it was unveiled, the band also announced a seven-month world tour and released the 11-minute-long title track as a single. The song War Of Being is a career- consolidating opus, pulling from the screaming djent and atmospheric prog of 2011 debut One, as well as the mature melodies of their later career. The rest of the album feels similarly all- encompassing, given it’s a staggering, hour-long concept piece.

Natural Disaster opens War Of Being in excitingly rampant form. Flaunting the persistent roars of singer Dan Tompkins, it’s the nastiest the band have sounded since One, with that bedrock of seven-string djent riffing keeping everything heavy, even during a melodically sung hook. On the other hand, Tender lives up to its title; over a four- minute runtime, with a succinctness that echoes the 36-minute Sonder album, its guitar notes flutter towards a post- rock crescendo. Finale Sacrifice stretches that evolutionary tone to its fullest extent, weaving between beauty and heaviness for more than double the time. 

In that way, War Of Being couldn’t have hit a more appropriate end. It’s
a comprehensive masterpiece that summarises every emotional frequency and style of songwriting that Tesseract have touched since they emerged. Instantly, it’s affirmed itself as this band’s quintessential release – not to mention a frontrunner for metal album of the year.

]]> <![CDATA[ The 10 best Mastodon songs ]]> Since forming in 2000, Mastodon have released six studio albums and two live compilations.

The Atlanta quartet – whose line-up features guitarist Bill Kelliher, drummer Brann Dailor, bassist Troy Sanders, and guitarist Brent Hinds (all share vocal duties) – released their seismic debut album Remission in 2002. With each subsequent release, their genre-defying sound has mutated to include elements of prog, sludge and metal and has influenced a whole generation of new bands.

One of which are Brighton’s Black Peaks, who released their debut album Statues earlier this year. Here’s guitarist Joe Gosney with his ultimate Mastodon playlist…

CRUSHER DESTROYER (Remission, 2002)

Joe: “If you’ve only recently heard Mastodon, I think it’d be easy to dismiss their early material as they’ve evolved so much over their career. But of you go back to tracks like Crusher Destroyer, it really shows where this band have come from and what they’re capable of. This track, from Remission, is a smash-and-grab coming in at only two minutes long. In that time, I think they manage to make a huge ‘no fucks given’ statement and set a precedent of what was to come.”

HEARTS ALIVE (Leviathan, 2004)

“When Mastodon put out Leviathan, we went to London to catch them live for the first time. They opened up with this 14-minute track and it totally blew my mind. Every time I hear this song it reminds me of that show and I think it perfectly encapsulates everything that Mastodon is about. It’s brutal in all the right places, yet flows effortlessly from section to section.”

AQUA DEMENTIA (Leviathan, 2004)

“I’ve listened to this song regularly for the last 10 years. I think it was this song and Leviathan in general that the band started to come out of their shell and began to show the world that they were doing something radically different. It’s easy to see why the world started to pay attention to Mastodon when this record was released. They’re one of the main reasons I play guitar and continue to be a huge inspiration.”

MEGALODON (Leviathan, 2004)

“This track was something of a rarity on Leviathan. On an album of frenzied time changes and rapidly moving sections, Megalodon had the most mighty riff which they weren’t scared to sit on for a good amount of time. It’s impossible not to headbang along to this song.”


COLONY OF BIRCHMEN (Blood Mountain, 2006)

“This behemoth of a song features none other than Josh Homme of Queens Of The Stone Age and has one of the most amazing guitar solos at the end of the song. What could be better than that?”

PENDULOUS SKIN (Blood Mountain, 2006)

“This is the last track from their third album, Blood Mountain. Think Mastodon meets Pink Floyd and you’re half way there. This is a slow paced beauty of a song that has acoustic guitars layered all over it. Pendulous Skin has one of Brent Hinds’ finest solos and it’s one of those songs that would be perfect to wake up to or listen to right before you fall asleep. A masterpiece.”

QUINTESSENCE (Crack The Skye, 2009)

“It took me a fair few listens to even begin to understand Crack The Skye. It was so different to their previous work and it’s one of the most stunning albums I’ve ever heard. Quintessence was the first track to really jump out. It has an amazing flow to it and it’s really dark and spacey sounding. I think this track in particular welcomed a new sound that Mastodon would continue with for the rest of this album.”

THE CZAR: I. USURPER II. ESCAPE III. MARTYR IV. SPIRAL (Crack The Skye, 2009)

“This song takes Mastodon back to Leviathan’s proggy ideas, but to a whole new level. The word ‘masterpiece’ doesn’t do enough to describe this song, but I feel this took the band to a whole new level.”

SPECTRELIGHT (The Hunter, 2011)

“This was one of the first songs from The Hunter album that I connected with. It’s a brutally heavy track. Simple as that. It has all the signature Mastodon moments you’d expect, plus it features Scott Kelly from Neurosis on vocals. Another perfect combination.”

HIGH ROAD (Once More ‘Round The Sun, 2014)

“Taken from the band’s latest album, High Road shows another side to this beast of a band. It’s almost like they’re playing a more refined version of Iron Maiden’s sound and tops it off with a huge hook of a chorus.”

Black Peaks play Brighton’s Concorde 2 on December, then tour the UK in January.

Progressive Metal Quiz

]]> https://www.loudersound.com/features/the-10-best-mastodon-songs DAUNoWom8eaz2RoV2KC24g Wed, 08 May 2019 17:22:34 +0000 Wed, 08 May 2019 17:24:19 +0000 false false false

Since forming in 2000, Mastodon have released six studio albums and two live compilations.

The Atlanta quartet – whose line-up features guitarist Bill Kelliher, drummer Brann Dailor, bassist Troy Sanders, and guitarist Brent Hinds (all share vocal duties) – released their seismic debut album Remission in 2002. With each subsequent release, their genre-defying sound has mutated to include elements of prog, sludge and metal and has influenced a whole generation of new bands.

One of which are Brighton’s Black Peaks, who released their debut album Statues earlier this year. Here’s guitarist Joe Gosney with his ultimate Mastodon playlist…

CRUSHER DESTROYER (Remission, 2002)

Joe: “If you’ve only recently heard Mastodon, I think it’d be easy to dismiss their early material as they’ve evolved so much over their career. But of you go back to tracks like Crusher Destroyer, it really shows where this band have come from and what they’re capable of. This track, from Remission, is a smash-and-grab coming in at only two minutes long. In that time, I think they manage to make a huge ‘no fucks given’ statement and set a precedent of what was to come.”

HEARTS ALIVE (Leviathan, 2004)

“When Mastodon put out Leviathan, we went to London to catch them live for the first time. They opened up with this 14-minute track and it totally blew my mind. Every time I hear this song it reminds me of that show and I think it perfectly encapsulates everything that Mastodon is about. It’s brutal in all the right places, yet flows effortlessly from section to section.”

AQUA DEMENTIA (Leviathan, 2004)

“I’ve listened to this song regularly for the last 10 years. I think it was this song and Leviathan in general that the band started to come out of their shell and began to show the world that they were doing something radically different. It’s easy to see why the world started to pay attention to Mastodon when this record was released. They’re one of the main reasons I play guitar and continue to be a huge inspiration.”

MEGALODON (Leviathan, 2004)

“This track was something of a rarity on Leviathan. On an album of frenzied time changes and rapidly moving sections, Megalodon had the most mighty riff which they weren’t scared to sit on for a good amount of time. It’s impossible not to headbang along to this song.”


COLONY OF BIRCHMEN (Blood Mountain, 2006)

“This behemoth of a song features none other than Josh Homme of Queens Of The Stone Age and has one of the most amazing guitar solos at the end of the song. What could be better than that?”

PENDULOUS SKIN (Blood Mountain, 2006)

“This is the last track from their third album, Blood Mountain. Think Mastodon meets Pink Floyd and you’re half way there. This is a slow paced beauty of a song that has acoustic guitars layered all over it. Pendulous Skin has one of Brent Hinds’ finest solos and it’s one of those songs that would be perfect to wake up to or listen to right before you fall asleep. A masterpiece.”

QUINTESSENCE (Crack The Skye, 2009)

“It took me a fair few listens to even begin to understand Crack The Skye. It was so different to their previous work and it’s one of the most stunning albums I’ve ever heard. Quintessence was the first track to really jump out. It has an amazing flow to it and it’s really dark and spacey sounding. I think this track in particular welcomed a new sound that Mastodon would continue with for the rest of this album.”

THE CZAR: I. USURPER II. ESCAPE III. MARTYR IV. SPIRAL (Crack The Skye, 2009)

“This song takes Mastodon back to Leviathan’s proggy ideas, but to a whole new level. The word ‘masterpiece’ doesn’t do enough to describe this song, but I feel this took the band to a whole new level.”

SPECTRELIGHT (The Hunter, 2011)

“This was one of the first songs from The Hunter album that I connected with. It’s a brutally heavy track. Simple as that. It has all the signature Mastodon moments you’d expect, plus it features Scott Kelly from Neurosis on vocals. Another perfect combination.”

HIGH ROAD (Once More ‘Round The Sun, 2014)

“Taken from the band’s latest album, High Road shows another side to this beast of a band. It’s almost like they’re playing a more refined version of Iron Maiden’s sound and tops it off with a huge hook of a chorus.”

Black Peaks play Brighton’s Concorde 2 on December, then tour the UK in January.

Progressive Metal Quiz

]]> <![CDATA[ Prog manager Andy Farrow lists his favourite live shows and recordings ]]> FARROW’S FAVES

FIVE FAVOURITE RECORDINGS

1. Draconian Times Paradise Lost, MFN/Relativity, 1995.

“That was the massive breakthrough album for them in Europe.”

2. Blackwater Park Opeth, MFN/Koch, 2001.

“A groundbreaking record for me.”

3. Casualties Of Cool Casualties Of Cool, HevyDevy, 2014.

“Devin came to me and said he wanted to do something different than metal. It was an Americana/blues kind of record and I really love to sit back and listen to that record.”

4. Weather Systems Anathema, Kscope, 2012.

“Although I got involved after this record, I really like it as an album.”

5. The Fall Of Hearts Katatonia, Peaceville, 2016.

“Katatonia keep improving – tremendous songwriting, and great lyrics. The melancholy really uplifts me.”

FARROW’S FAB FIVE

TOP LIVE PERFORMANCES

1. Opeth: Royal Albert Hall, London, April 5, 2010.

“We were filming it. Mikael was blown away with it. That was a really important one for them.”

2. Devin Townsend Project: The Retinal Circus, Roundhouse, London, October 27, 2012.

“I came up with this idea of Devin as a fairground ringleader. We got the imagery together; it sold out straight away.”

3. Anathema: Starmus Festival, Tenerife, June 30, 2016.

“They played a cover of Pink Floyd’s Keep Talking and were joined on stage by Stephen Hawking – a great spectacle to witness.

4. 65daysofstatic: Koko, London, March 27, 2014.

“The tenth anniversary show for Fall Of Math.”

5. Katatonia: Koko, London, May 6, 2011.

“The band’s 20th anniversary show at Koko.”

Devin Townsend Project performing The Retinal Circus

Devin Townsend Project performing The Retinal Circus (Image credit: Kevin Nixon)
]]> https://www.loudersound.com/features/prog-manager-andy-farrow-lists-his-favourite-live-shows-and-recordings amESzGsWMjA3RyBbAmMqwA Thu, 18 Aug 2016 20:20:00 +0000 Mon, 26 Mar 2018 11:49:53 +0000 false false false

FARROW’S FAVES

FIVE FAVOURITE RECORDINGS

1. Draconian Times Paradise Lost, MFN/Relativity, 1995.

“That was the massive breakthrough album for them in Europe.”

2. Blackwater Park Opeth, MFN/Koch, 2001.

“A groundbreaking record for me.”

3. Casualties Of Cool Casualties Of Cool, HevyDevy, 2014.

“Devin came to me and said he wanted to do something different than metal. It was an Americana/blues kind of record and I really love to sit back and listen to that record.”

4. Weather Systems Anathema, Kscope, 2012.

“Although I got involved after this record, I really like it as an album.”

5. The Fall Of Hearts Katatonia, Peaceville, 2016.

“Katatonia keep improving – tremendous songwriting, and great lyrics. The melancholy really uplifts me.”

FARROW’S FAB FIVE

TOP LIVE PERFORMANCES

1. Opeth: Royal Albert Hall, London, April 5, 2010.

“We were filming it. Mikael was blown away with it. That was a really important one for them.”

2. Devin Townsend Project: The Retinal Circus, Roundhouse, London, October 27, 2012.

“I came up with this idea of Devin as a fairground ringleader. We got the imagery together; it sold out straight away.”

3. Anathema: Starmus Festival, Tenerife, June 30, 2016.

“They played a cover of Pink Floyd’s Keep Talking and were joined on stage by Stephen Hawking – a great spectacle to witness.

4. 65daysofstatic: Koko, London, March 27, 2014.

“The tenth anniversary show for Fall Of Math.”

5. Katatonia: Koko, London, May 6, 2011.

“The band’s 20th anniversary show at Koko.”

Devin Townsend Project performing The Retinal Circus

Devin Townsend Project performing The Retinal Circus (Image credit: Kevin Nixon)
]]>