Infinite Earths - Spiral From Spacetime (EP) (2014)

As someone who has been completely awash in the sea of all things metal for years now, I can speak from personal experience when I say that they, the outsiders, think we are collectively stupid; that we are somehow mentally deficient because we like heavy music. Maybe you've heard that mumbled in your direction as well. Afterall, metal is just Satanic worship and unintelligible growls, right? While we know that to be far from the truth, sometimes it takes a good example to sway somehow off of their near sighted viewpoint. Infinite Earths, once the side project of Fire In The Cave guitarist Kenneth Michael Reda, has now taken on a life of its own. And tangled in their web of experimental blackened metal are many of life's biggest questions, nagging at our minds for years at a time. To say they are just another band trying to be different is a disservice to both the band and their music. But perhaps one listen to their debut EP, "Spiral From Spacetime," and anyone who has questioned the intellect of metal fans and bands might feel differently.

There are moments of chaos that you'll find scattered over the course of Compliance & Complacency, though none of them veer too far off the beaten path. The greatest victories come in and around those moments, when brutal riffing gives way to eerie atmospheres and silken bass lines. Around the three minute mark, the strict dichotomy of styles clashes, a bursting set of guitars, drums, bass and vocals simply cutting out in favor of something nearly serene.When they return, they have changed; darting notes come back crisper and far more deadly. It's bizarre and almost nonsensical in its operation, but the end result is fascinating. The second track, Prelude, is nothing short of sublime, a dazzling movement of piano keys that moves as quickly as fingers up and down the fret board. The way it fades, rises, and launches the demonic bastard child known as The Godhelm into action is about the starkest contrast you'll ever be witness to. If there is something to be sure to note here, it is the complexity of the lyrics; they read like philosophical conversation and are far deeper in meaning than the grating screams of frontman J.J. Mazorra would let on. His clean vocals, however, manage to carry much of the weight of the topic at hand. The rarity this embodies - the combination of thought provoking material and brutally heavy instrumental - is mind altering.

Not to be lost, though, is how easily accessible this sound is. Intricacies in the guitars are easy to latch on to, but the fundamentals here are all right. Progressive influences can be heard throughout the record, but the opening riffs to When The World Was Infringed Upon scream forward thinking. Rapid fire notes walk the neck of the guitar while huge snare sounds crash from every angle. Mazorra walks the fine line between his vocal styles, each instance coming dangerously close to toppling the entire track on its head. But when it feels as though things are about to break apart, the entire band shifts gears and regains balance. In the final minute, you have a perfect example of a band who know their strengths and use them accordingly. A catchy hook in the guitar lead, a powerful vocal, and devastating rhythm section. If you do yourself the favor of reading the lyrics as they pour through your speakers, something else might strike you. The storytelling here, tied to those aforementioned existential lyrical quandaries, forms quite the tale of self discovery and growing universal awareness. This is surely no mistake, as every piece of music on this album ties together in what would seem to be an endless ball of yarn. And whether you see the title track, Spiral From Spacetime, as he beginning, end, or some point in between, it's hard to shake the feeling you get from screams fading over clean guitars.

Far be it from me to try to wrap up this album in a neat little bow; I don't think my grasp on the language has prepared me to lay down a string of metaphors or labels that will help you understand what it is Infinite Earths are doing here. To be quite frank, there are times in the course of this disc that I find myself wondering if I even understand it. But regardless of the ability to wrap one's head around the lyrical content and the life changing questions they may ask, there is an immediate sense of immersion in this music. It jumps all over the map from one moment to the next, yet it somehow feels right. It breeds chaos in one section, and perfect, seamless order in the next. How that comes together is anybody's guess. New mathematics might be needed. As you find that point in time and space where melody and merciless energy come together, you best jump on, tie it up, and keep it with you at all times, because you may never stumble on it again. Infinite Earths seem to have done exactly that, and captured that moment on "Spiral From Spacetime."

9.5/10

Bandcamp - http://infiniteearths.bandcamp.com/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/InfiniteEarths

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Maelstrom - 3725 (2013)

With each release, Italy's Maelstrom have carved out a larger place in our consciousness. Ferdinando Valsecchi, much like his peers in the other one man bands that we have covered, isn't just another artist in a studio, playing music to get noticed, get rich, or grace the cover of a magazine. He believes in what he plays, and he believes in the work he has put out. If anything, he is harder n himself that his critics, who are few and far between. But still, he pushes on, working harder, smarter, and longer to continue writing and recording his unique take on melodic post rock and post metal. We all know that, in 2014, being an independent musician, or even a major label backed one, isn't as lucrative as it once was, leaving many to do their musical work as a side job to the one that pays the bills. And just the same Valsecchi has managed to find the time and funds necessary to release his third disc, titled "3725." With a lyrical hand from Matteo Simonelli, he gives your heart license to float away like the balloon that graces the cover, all the while keeping you from going too high, too fast.

While it remains hard to judge anything on the strength of a cover track, Valsecchi takes to "Space Oddity" like a duck to water, executing all of the signature moments that Bowie had written in a delicate and appropriate manner, even tackling the vocals better than most, besides the great William Shatner. His strength, though, lies in his musicianship, something he shows early and often on Hymn to Life, Ode to Death, a winding display of clean guitar riffs, crisp programming on drums, and a set of strings that floats above the rest. His ability to not only carve out layers, but to subsequently reassemble them is dumbfounding. The vocals, isolated to the heavier moments on the track, come spoken over waves of guitars. This doesn't lessen their impact, though, if anything making them resonate much further. You can apply that same principle to Paradise Lost, though there is a clear star to be found there. The string and piano work is well beyond expectation, a beautiful addition to an already mood setting offering. With each reset of the timer, each track can go in any multitude of directions, relying entirely on Valsecchi to steer the course.

The Choice may begin as a light hearted piece, but the reliance on distortion int he leads adds a stark contrast between parts of the whole. You aren't going to find a blistering solo or dense chugging action, but there is a power to his playing that shines through in every chord. The lyrics, written by Simonelli, can move you without a word of Italian in your repertoire. Even a simple, and often ineffective Google translation gives you a taste into the mind of both men, As High As The Kite Can Fly speaking of the fears that cloud our lives, even when all is brightest. Even the seemingly easy to read Memory's Drops goes deeper than the surface would indicate, including some of the most delicate and detailed instrumental work on the album around the midway point. It is tracks like this that Valescchi can let things grow around him, rather than being held to a rigid structure or plan. It is also a tale of two vocal deliveries, with his spoken word and clean singing combining to handle the bulk of the load here. While the former is more successful as a whole, there is a merit tot he clean melodies that he delivers. And while Long Lasting Friends fades, you are left hanging on one sentence amidst a sea of drums, guitars, synths, and horns; "Laughing has never been easier."

It has been a rare pleasure to be allowed in on the ground floor of a career, and see an artist grow with each and every release. Maelstrom is a project that, in name, has begun to represent so much of the dedication and struggle that goes into making a one man band truly work. With each piece at his fingertips, "3725" is yet another piece of him on display. In the way the tracks rise and fall, Valsecchi reminds us of what we often forget; music is an art form, and this is all an expression of the artist. We can criticize, lambast, or spill a series of words to describe our opinion of what any artist does, but the relationship they have with the music is what will matter decades down the line. And whether you take the music, the lyrics that he has been given, the artwork, or even the most basic breakdown of the processes that go into making a release of this caliber work, you can see that this is a man who is one with his music and his message. And when the musicians you listen to care as much about their art as their fans do, you have something you won't soon forget.


9/10

Bandcamp - http://maelstrompost.bandcamp.com/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/Maelstrompost

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Alcest - Shelter (2014)

It's no secret where Alcest stands on the list of this humble blog and, in particular, this humble writer; mastermind Neige has secured his project a place in the "can do no wrong" arena. But there has been a tectonic shift in both sound and concept, one that has changed the very landscape of Alcest's music. And with the new year upon us, a new album has been readied, moving the band further down the melodic, almost soothing path that came to center stage on "Les Voyages de L'âme," almost exactly to years ago. While the pained screams and black metal homage has not completely vanished, it is now a background player; a shadow to the well lit body of the music itself. This does not speak to the sounds quality, of course, but its appeal has evolved and, in the opinions of some, alienated the core audience Neige has enjoyed over his lengthy and extensive career. It was inevitable, of course, for things to move down the line. But on "Shelter," Alcest reel in their art metal tendencies for a trip through the divine' with some speed bumps along the way.

Rather than the brooding, moody tone of past works, "Opale" starts on the lighter side of the spectrum, a delicately strummed and darting set of riffs cascading alongside a beautifully melodic vocal. What the band gives us in emotion, it regains in accessibility; it would be a crime not to find yourself swaying to the beat. It's light and fluffy in texture, and it's simplicity that keeps it fresh. Forming the bridge between tracks, "Wings" is sullen and airy, a reprise of the previous structure, albeit stripped down to a bare bones minute and a half. It stirs the pot in a barely noticeable way, bringing about a more intricate approach in "La Nuit Marce Avec Moi." Singing in his normal French, Neige has a way of crafting his vocal melodies to supersede language barriers; whether or not you speak French, you feel as though you can understand. What is missing here, though, is a sense of contrast, something that was always achieved on previous works by a short screamed passage, or high speed drum work. You will begin to expect that first sign of aggression, sitting in anticipation as the first clean chords of "Voix Sereines" trickle from your speakers. But this is neither the time nor the place for that, as Neige relies heavily on the structural integrity of his melodies, rather than the short bursts of bleakness.

Even the extended intro to "L'Eveil Des Muses" feels like it is hiding something just below the surface. The drumming becomes more insistent, each tap of cymbal and snare cutting through the mix with a snap of energy. It's as though the mood has completely changed, leaving behind the sugary sweet in favor of the uptempo melancholy. The tempo builds, but with only a bevy of repeated chords and melodies, it fails to get over that final hump, rolling backwards to where it started. And therein lies the logistical problem the album faces, as it simply lacks the burst to get over the top. The title track is beautiful, not to mention fitting of the title, but it only adds to the wheels spinning in the mud, lacking any forward motion or advancement of the albums theme. And then "Away" happens. Rest assured, this is the same man, the same band you're hearing, but in a way that you never expected, and likely never wanted. Gone are the poetic French wordsmiths and the distinctly moody lyrical themes. In their place, a lyric sheet with English words that fail to deliver any sort of emotional investment. It is, sadly, a bland and uninspired effort. In an album of a different arc, "Delivrance" would be a fitting and enjoyable finale; but without a standout moment to look back on, it simply does the best with what it is. It bends and sways in profoundly beautiful stanzas, but it builds only to a simmer, rather than a rolling boil of distortion, snare beats and energy.

It is difficult to separate what you want from an album from what you inevitably get. Perhaps Alcest are now victims of their own skill, their fans growing to expect too much with each effort. Or, more likely, they have outgrown the sounds of "Le Secret" and "Ecailles de Lune," and have moved on to a new, and wholly separate, side of the music world. To say this album is disappointing is unfair, nor does it tell the whole story. There is a lot to like scattered over these eight songs, but far less to love. From a lesser band, this album might even be seen as the next step towards greatness. But for an established band, and a top tier artist in Neige, it won't be able to hold up when compared to the rest of the back catalog. The saving grace, if there is one to hang your hat on, is that these songs, for better or worse, are a live show waiting to happen. Having seen and heard what can be done with these delicate numbers on a small venue stage, it leaves a great deal of hope for the future of Alcest, as a studio and live. "Shelter" might not be the album you wanted, or the album you needed right now; but it is the album you get.

7/10

Official Site - http://www.alcest-music.com/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/alcest.official

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