Elder – Through Zero (Stickman Records) [Rich Piva]I have heard whispers from long time fans that Elder, one of the biggest bands who have broken through out of the heavy underground, have gone too soft. They are too prog, they are more Yes than anything else at this point.
I also saw that Elder’s new record, Through Zero, finished at number one on the May Doom Charts, and it wasn’t even close, even with All Them Witches putting out a record the same day. Is Elder more proggy now? Absolutely. Are they a better band musically now? Yup. Is Through Zero amazing and some of the best stuff they have ever done? A resounding yes indeed.
Sigil To Ruin, the opener, simply rules. How clean the recording can sound without being overproduced is pretty amazing. The guys rip it up on this one too, as we get some seriously killer guitar work to go along with the atmospheric prog. The synths on Capture/Release add to the complexities of the proggy/Krautrock composition that, when it kicks in, is a beautiful piece of art, with Nick DiSalvo’s vocals never sounding better and the guitar work from him and Michael Risberg at another level, even for Elder.
The changes are so great as these guys are just locked in. The title track has a nice chunky riff no one will say is too soft and the build on this one is just epic. If people want to say there is too much Yes going on listening to Through Zero they may call out Strata. This one is eleven minutes of proggy atmospheric goodness, with layered vocals, cool changes, and a ton of complexity. I wonder if the same people who say Elder is too proggy love King Buffalo? To be clear, I love King Buffalo, but I digress.
Sight Unseen goes towards Krautrock again in parts, but there is always this underlying heavy in these songs, no matter if the naysayers want to hear it or not. Just listen at about 5:30 and you will see what I mean. Closing with the most chill song on the record, Blighted Age, is a nice comedown from all of the complexity on the record, and doubles down on the beautiful atmosphere Through Zero brings.
I am probably (absolutely) overstating the new Elder naysayers, but I think they come across louder because there really has been no pushback before on their material. Rest assured people, Through Zero has everything you want from Elder, and more. Yeah, it is not recorded in a garage or shed, and yes more time and money can now go into the recordings, but the songs are still top notch and the band continues to grow as musicians and songwriters.
This is top top top shelf stuff that should not be ignored because they are bigger now. Elder still rules and this record is truly something to behold. 9/10
Prince Of Failure – Prince Of Failure (Kscope) [Matt Bladen]
Daniel Tompkins is one of the premiere voices in the metal world, his work with Tesseract has made them one of the best modern metal bands to come out of the UK in years, moving away from their initial Djent groupings into something more well rounded and brilliant than us lowly journalists could have predicted in the beginning.
Away from that though he’s and in demand guest vocalist and has his own solo project where he can show a side that’s not always heard in Tesseract. Both of his solo albums Castles and Ruins were just as inventive as his day job but added soundscapes that you may not have heard, one was also a reinterpretation of the other so clearly Daniel has a mind that is ever creating.
From that mind comes Prince Of Failure a project that deals with “neurodivergence, masking, and the psychological weight of living out of alignment with expectation” created over a long period of time alongside Paul Ortiz aka Chimp Spanner another originator of that Djent sound that is now so ubiquitous in both metal and modern pop too.
Rather than being a solo project or having it compared to either man’s musical legacy, Prince Of Failure is it’s own creation, a true collaboration that has grown into something familiar but different. The blending of oscillating electronics, intense guitar workouts and floating ambience with the intimately emotive vocals highlights the skillset of both men but never takes this album off into needless virtuosity.
It’s an album that is song focussed and projects it narrative theme through the dynamic music this duo create as Ortiz’s instrumental brilliance drives a darker edged sound than falls back to those djent early days but retains all the modernity of where it is now with track such as the menacing Phantom where Daniel’s vocals are at their rawest and most melodic too, the deeply personal lyrics about living in shame of who you really are and masking that for the everyday really resonating.
It’s told with a narrative arc, from the initial self pity though to self acceptance, built within a world of progressive, atmospheric and expertly crafted instrumentals by Ortiz that accentuate the vocal brilliance of Tompkins, joined by Krystyn Hope of Daedric. Fans of Tesseract, Chimp Spanner will obviously love this but it’s also hinged on the style of Karnivool or any band that is signed to Kscope.
No sign of failure here Ortiz and Tompkins are a winning combination. 9/10
Alunah/Samavayo – Embers Of Belief (Heavy Psych Sounds) [Rich Piva]
I love a good split album. Labels like Ripple Music and Heavy Psych Sounds have really perfected this form of release. The latter are up now with their latest split from two killer bands: UK’s Alunah and Germany’s Samavayo. These two bands have released some killer stuff before, and this does not stop on this split album, titled Embers of Belief.
Starting with four tracks from Alunah, who are now featuring a new lead vocalist, Daisy Savage, who brings a more Pat Benatar poppy feel to the big riffs and proto sounds of the band. When I say “poppy” this is a complement; Savage’s voice fits perfectly with the sound of the band, with case in point being the opener, On Blacklow Hill, which comes along with a killer riff too.
La Pucelle has some killer guitar work and shows a bit of Savage’s range as a vocalist. The other two Alunah tracks are live and feature Savage’s debut as the new singer, taking on two previously recorded tracks, Hazy Jane (from 2024’s Fever Dream) and a melody from their 2019 record, Violent Hour. Both sound excellent and show how Savage will be a welcomed addition to the band.
Samavayo brings their heavy stoner psych stylings to three tracks. First, the crunchy BAVAR, which has interesting origins to the point that is worth checking out the description of it on their Bandcamp page, but all you need to know here is that it is very, very cool. Mottainai is an aggressive number that shows the band’s heavier side and rips it up. California Sky is an interesting one. A ten minute acoustic psych number inspired by their US tour and trip to the desert. Very cool stuff.
Another cool split from Heavy Psych Sounds. It was a great move by Alunah to get some tracks out there with their new singer to show how perfectly she fits in the band, while Samavayo do their thing like they seem to always do. Good stuff from two great bands. 7/10
Leoni Jane Kennedy – Synthetic (Self Released) [Matt Bladen]
There aren’t many artists who can tour with both neo-prog outfit Solstice and veteran blues man Walter Trout, but Leoni Jane Kennedy is just that sort of artist. The PRS Guitars sponsored artist, multi award winner and recipient of the Freddie Mercury Scholarship which financed her university tuition.
She’s previously released acoustic versions for Rush classics on New World Woman but returns with an album of her own material that was financed by her fans through Kickstarter in just 6 days. A few of these songs have been with Kennedy for many years but they are all presented here for the first time to an audience that are now well aware of Kennedy’s style of inventive, progressive rock.
Leoni takes vocals, guitars on the record, co-producing with Eliot Kennedy who mixes, masters and Nick Andrew who assisted in production and engineering while also playing synths and Midi Guitar. It’s a record that sounds lush and vast, which lets Leoni express her inventive sound fully, moving away from the covers many will associate her with and into a world created by her own compositions.
Will Plunkett plays bass, James Jackman plays drums, the driving, expressive rhythms to Kennedy’s fluid playing and soulful vocals ala Susan Tedeschi. From the orchestral title track, through the jazzy Closer, there’s musical dexterity to this release with the dreamy Sloe reminding me of Jeff Buckley while Test The Water and Different Kind Of Woman brings a bit of bluesing.
Synthetic is an excellent record from Leoni Jane Kennedy, blues, prog and more there’s lots here to love. 8/10
