Turrigenous - Black Stone Opus

Track Listing:

1. Prima Materia
2. Drawn to an Edge
3. Hegira
4. Render Chaos
5. A Prism Divine
6. Whited Sepulchre
7. Citrinitas
8. The Annealing
9. Zephyr
10. Aurum Nostrum

Band Members:
Greg Giordano - Guitars/Vocals
John Vullo - Guitars
Phil Montalbano - Bass/Backing vocals
Ray Marte - Studio Drums

 This record solidifies the fact that Long Island is a hub for ridiculously good progressive metal. With fantastic guitar work and exceptional vocals, both harsh and clean (another one of those things that's becoming a rarity in modern metal), Turrigenous is dynamic metal indeed.  

One track in particular that stood out to me was The Annealing. It is everything you could want from a classic prog song. Awesome jazz influenced solos with rich full tone, heavy, epic, and melodic riffs, and Matt Barlow-esque vocals that all fit together so nicely. 

Another track, Aurum Nostrum kicks in and we're treated with a mid tempo heavy ass riff. And just as soon as you're getting into it, it kicks you in the nuts, yells "PSYCHE!" and blazes into a twin guitar speed metal riff before morphing into a thrash mosh riff. This song clocks in at 11:38 mind you, and in the first 2 minutes we've gone from groovy to Iced Earth to thrash.  

I won't go into too much more detail about the rest of the album, you're going to have to hear it for yourself. Turrigenous blends Dream Theater's best moments (sans Labrie and keyboards) with Iced Earth speed metal, and then puts its own modern prog spin on it (including the occasional deep gutteral). I'd also like to add that drummer Ray Marte provided drums for this album. He's also in Moon Tooth, which if you've read my blog before you know that I hold them in high regard! All in all, this album is worth your time AND YOUR MONEY.

Support the band at Turrigenous.com

Buy their album on iTunes, or CD Baby
Also check out their live album at Amazon.com

Cryptodira - An Unmarked Grave

Track Listing:

1. Descent

2. An Unmarked Grave

Band Members:
Scott Acquavella - Guitar / Vocals

Shane Kennedy - Bass / Vocals

Mike Monaco - Guitar / Vocals

Matt Taibi - Drums

Cryptodira: Seriously one of my favorite bands out there.This past year they put out a near perfect album, Recursions, (you can read my short review of it on my Best of 2013 blog entry) and now they're releasing a 2 song EP. Needless to say it's their most ambitious release yet. Everything they release is more mature and improves upon the formula they've already crafted of post metal interludes, prog/death metal riffs, and hardcore mentality, and An Unmarked Grave is no exception.

Vocalist and guitarist Scott Acquavella shines with this release. His harsh vocals are strong and his cleans are layered perfectly with reverb and harmonies that showcase his voice far better than their previous releases. Guitarist Mike Monaco has more vocal parts as well, which is a definite plus, bringing more of their hardcore influence to the forefront for a change. The guitar work is astounding, as to be expected, but then so are the bass and drums. Shane Kennedy is still one of the most impressive bassists I've seen and Matthew Taibi continues to blow my mind. Hell, here's a video so he can blow your mind too.

While the EP doesn't drop until Jan. 4th, both tracks can be streamed on the band's soundcloud page, and I highly recommend listening to them (I put them at the bottom for those of you too lazy to find it yourselves). If you're a fan of Converge, Isis, The Dillinger Escape Plan, or Cynic, there's something to love in this band. Even if you aren't a fan of any of those bands, Cryptodira are unique enough to set themselves apart from just about any band you've heard and they're worth your time.

Support the band HERE

Buy their other releases HERE

Moon Tooth - Freaks EP

Track Listing:

1. Ebb/Flow

2. Goon

3. Storm Pill

4. Silver Gallows

Band Members:

Nick Lee - Gutairs, Vocals

Ray Marte - Drums, Vocals

John Carbone - Vocals, Percussion

Vin Romanelli - Bass

Very rarely do I find a metal band that captures my attention so quickly, yet I can't place what genre they are. I've always been one to classify bands into sub-genres for fun, but these guys are so incredibly unique that it makes it difficult to say. However, one thing I can say about them is that they are fantastic and their freshman release "Freaks" just goes to show that there is something proggy in the water up in Long Island, NY.

Right off the bat you're hit with Ebb/Flow which kicks up a fierce driving riff that makes me want to run in circles banging my head (usually I resist, being in public and all). Then the vocals come in.  John Carbone uses a clean vocal style that is very unique to the genre. It's not something you'd hear in a power prog band, but it's not raspy or rough enough to be in a stoner/sludge band. As far as metal vocals go, I have a hard time pinning his style to a particular sound, but I'll tell you this: if works beautifully. The vocal melodies and the timbre of his voice almost contrast with the driving riffs and heavy distortion, and then Nick Lee comes in with harsh backing vocals that add another level of complexity to this baffling style. And damn I love it. And just when you think you've gotten used to the style, they kick it up with the chorus, throwing in major key vocal harmonies and impressive guitar work.

I'll spare you the details for the rest of the EP, because I won't be able to do it justice; you'll have to listen to it for yourself. I will say this: Moon Tooth is a band that I'm EAGERLY awaiting new material from. I've had a taste of four tracks by this incredible band and now I'm starving for more.

Storm Pill (Official Video)

Download the EP HERE

Follow the band on FACEBOOK 

Mandroid Echostar - Citadels

Track Listing:

1. A Death Marked Dream

2. Ancient Arrows

3. Haunted Vows

4. To the Wolves

5. The Sleeper

6. Ethereal Dawn

7. Citadels

Band Members:

Stephen Richards - Guitar

Sam Pattison - Guitar

Michael Ciccia - Vocals

James Krul - Guitar, Vocals

Matt H-K - Drums

Adam Richards - Bass

Here's a release that I've been waiting for for about a year now! Mandroid Echostar blew me away with their self titled release, playing a catchy progressive metal that took the vocals and clever songwriting of Coheed And Cambria (don't judge) and the progressive prowess of Protest the Hero, finding an beautiful grey area between the two. Citadels is no exception, although I think it pushes more into the Protest the Hero side of the spectrum this go around. The music is catchy, melodic, and technical with impressive, sometimes straight soulful vocals.

Starting off with track 1, A Death Marked Dream, we're greeted with an acoustic intro, complete with harmonizing vocals. It's very beautifully done and the melody is gorgeous. All in all it's pretty standard for a prog release, but it's still a great track on its own.

The second track starts off similarly with a clean riff and hi-hat, building up to… a fucking power metal epic! This song sounds like a video game soundtrack and I love it! Twin harmonizing guitar solos, sweeping and noodling all over the place before the vocals come in and you're dropped right into Mandroid Echostar's fantastic progressive formula. The verse sports technical riffs bouncing around behind a unique vocal rhythm. The song stays pretty upbeat throughout and is a perfect opening song for any album.

This album does a very good job of being diverse without being completely all over the place, which I've always considered the mark of an on point prog band. Each song is different and brings a new flavor to the album while still sounding like the band. Check it out for yourself when the album comes on on Nov. 21st!

Buy the album HERE

Follow the band on FACEBOOK

Optic - Iris In

Tracklist:

1. Hemlock

2. Blind Apathy

3. Falling From the Sky

4. Breathe New Life

5. Moment of Impact

6. Withhold The Sun

7. Drown the Earth

8. Etched in Grey

Band Members:

Steve Christopher - Guitars, Vocals

Scott Genovese - Drums, Percussion

Mike Intrieri - Bass

Kenny Mahoney - Lead Vocals

Ryan Patane - Keyboards/Synths, Vocals

After waiting and waiting and waiting, Long Island NY's prog geniuses Optic finally give us their full length album Iris In, and it is every bit as impressive as expected. The songs are drenched in Dream Theater influence, which is NOT a bad thing, especially when it comes to the vocals. The musical prowess displayed on this album is nothing short of phenomenal. This is not the sound of a freshman release of an unsigned prog band.

The album opens with a short instrumental in "Hemlock," however, the song can stand on its own (albeit a bit shorter than the rest of the album) as a good song instead of just an introduction to the album. From "Hemlock" we get thrown into "Blind Apathy," which has a drive that sends me back to my early days of metal listening to Dream Theater and Blind Guardian. Clean vocals are something that I've come to miss in metal these days, and Optic does it so well. The vocals range from power/prog clean singing (FAR better than that of LaBrie I might add) to melodic death metal growls. One awesome things bout the harsh vocals is that they never seem forced and always compliment the music that's being played.

After a wonderful riff/solo filled track, we get the first epic clocking in at 10:45 with "Falling From the Sky." One of the things I've found that I love about this band is how prominent the keyboard is throughout the album. Ryan Patane doesn't sit in the back layering the songs with obnoxious synth noises, but rather is at the forefront of the band laying down solos as impressive as any guitarist. It's just something that you don't see a lot of in metal these days. Then, just as expected, the song takes a turn for the fast as it picks up speed and the harsh vocals kick in. These guys layer clean and harsh vocals very well, something that I've found most bands do poorly, sounding like a symphonic pile of generic boredom. And then we come to the first bass solo of the album, and yes it's good. The solo sections on this album feel important, at times feeling like riffs to the song more so than wanking for the sake of wanking. The keyboards never compete with the guitars as they seem to switch places and take turns in the spotlight of the song.

For those of you who haven't already been blown away by the Drown the Earth EP, both tracks are on the album and have been punched up in production a bit. One of these tracks includes the 13:19 epic Drown the Earth which is what drew me to this band in the first place. Withhold the Sun was also released early as a teaser for the album, so you've already heard that as well, right?

I'm not going to sit here and break down every song on the album for you, you can do that yourself by buying the album on bandcamp.

Buy the album HERE
Follow the band on FACEBOOK