Day in day out Metal heads the world over decide to dissect music to its core. Made up of countless genre’s and hair splitting the online community in particular thrive off of it. But what about a genre’s inception? More and more we are beginning to see the new age of Prog come about, bands germinate retaining similar tendencies sometimes even down to the most minute of details. This does beg the question though, is there enough individuality.
[tracklist]
1. Bloom
2. Marigold
3. Firelight
4. Dragonfly
5. Rust
6. Turntail
7. Daughter Of The Mountain
8. Undergrowth
[/tracklist]
[details]
[length]45:00[/length]
[record_label]Inside Out[/record_label]
[release_date]16th October 2015[/release_date]
[/details]
Currently on tour with British visionaries Tesseract on their home ground of Australia the band see the release of their brand new album. “Bloom”, the album’s title track begins with a sound reminscent of folk before the acoustic rug is pulled from the listener revealing very much modern Metal DNA underneath the Prog Rock ideals. Though the band might unfairly be labelled as similar to Karnivool simply by sharing the same geographic location, the band seem to be an illusion of an amalgamation of the scene. However as we delve into the record there are infinitely more intriguing facets that come to light.
Deftly walking the line between overzealous technicality and simplistic writing the band dance across “Marigold“. Beginning with a classic Watershed Opeth style riff the song quickly becomes the bands own, seasoned with a beautiful guitar solo in the mid section, causing the six minute plus opener to fly by. Showing that the band can do the Prog epic in the form of “Dragonfly” where the band showcase the classic evolutionary elements present though are just as deft at the quick fire “Turntail” with a bedrock of a strong melodic funk style riff capitalised with vocalist Jim Grey‘s beautiful vocals. Falling between this craft of a compromise of classic heritage of the with the accoutrements of Modern Metal, giving their sound a lofty presence associated with Prog yet bringing their sound racing into the present.
Nevertheless the band do kick it into a heavier gear with “Rust” bred on Bass guitar the track builds on a foundation of simplistic riffs that coalesce to create an intricate web before the defiant breakthrough chorus. Added with a more technically focused bridge the song ebbs and flows. Caligula’s Horse seem to have understood the blend of both simplistic and technical flurry. Steve Vai influenced guitar solo’s crop up but never overstay their welcome, beautifully executed. “Daughter Of The Mountain” show that the band might wear their heart on their sleeve but confidently stamp their own musical identity. Anchored by our vocalists sonic personality the singer hold his own instead of sitting out sections for minutes on end a la Dream Theater.
Caligula’s Horse tread a fine line between the lofty sense of technicality that is synonymous with the etymologies of Prog yet all the while creating a streamlined experience. With each members various flourishes shining through the band have successfully crafted an album that eludes predictability, suppresses boredom and though at first the band might seem similar to others carves it’s individual niche.
[verdict]Yes[/verdict]
[why]With Bloom Caligula’s Horse have created a synthesis of all that embodies the modern day values of Prog. Incorporating interesting songs with modest technicality the band have crafted a fantastic gateway into the world of Prog.[/why]
If you like what you read / heard then you can pick up the album here!
