When a hard-rock quartet cites a wide array of influences from progressive monolith KING CRIMSON and classic-rock icon LED ZEPPELIN to blues revivalists, such as THE BLACK KEYS, and even to the straight-up funk outfit, TOWER OF POWER, you know that it’s a must to check them out. It does not happen every day that hard-rock stylings get mixed with funk and prog rhythms but that’s exactly the trump card played by this four-piece from Salt Lake City, USA, in order to make a stand in the ever-expanding universe of progressive rock. The band’s name is a subtle, yet clever wordplay on astrophysical singularities, ADVENT HORIZON, and they just released their third studio album “A Cell to Call Home” independently on October 6th, 2023. Actually, I stumbled upon their music by chance – thanks to Facebook algorithms! – but even that short, perhaps 30-second snippet sounded awesome enough to prompt me to dig deeper. It turned out that these proggers had released their debut “Immured” already in 2011 and their sophomore effort “Stagehound” in 2015 with the in-between EP “Tequila Mockingbird” in 2017. The good news is that, when I’m done with their latest endeavor, there will be more stuff to dig into! It might not happen anytime soon, though, because this new selection is infested with such brilliant bangers that it’s going to keep me busy for quite some time!
The album kicks off with a genuine one. In fact, it was the unisono riff in “Water” that first hooked me through that social media ad. The song is layered with such exquisite vocal harmonies and quantum riffs that it instantly triggers some nice VOLA flashbacks. I could think of dozens of worse ways to make a good first impression! This Salt Lake City bunch is a tad less djenty in their approach to progressive riffing but, perhaps due to those vocal layers, it shares that ”Hey, it’s THE BEACH BOYS playing progressive metal!” air with those great polyrhythmic Danes. And then, there’s that riff! If there was a ”Progressive Riff of the Year” category in the Grammy Awards, this banger should definitely be nominated! (Yeah, why isn’t there?!)
The second single, “How Did It Get So Good,” nods toward the vintage prog from the 1970s, resonating with the air of bands such as CAMEL and KANSAS. The serpentine guitar riffs crawl all over the place and the chorus has a bit of ear-worm quality about it. Sandwiched between the opener and this catchy little devil is a brief piano interlude entitled “Snow Child”, one that draws from the impressionistic pool of classical music so deliciously that it’s a kind of a bugger it’s so short. So, three songs into the album, I am already pretty sure this endeavor will rank rather high on my Album of the Year list. The band convinced me in less than 15 minutes. Okay, the rest of the album could have thrown in some unpleasant surprises, you could say, but… Nope. Judging by the quality of the first three songs on the outing, it was a no-brainer that the rest was likely to be of the same pristine quality – and it is.
To tell you the truth, what I was perhaps the most anxious to know was how these proggers would deliver up to that claim about having some funk in the mix as well. Okay, there is no horn section blowing their brains out with some New Orleans stuff anywhere on the album, but there are some nice and prominent funk vibes in “Truth,” which features Kristen McDonald as a guest vocalist. Here, the funk is filtered through the prism of somewhat 1990s-tinted hard rock from the likes of, say, EXTREME. That said, the song throws in a good amount of vintage prog on the side, so you kind of get the best of parallel worlds – I cannot say ”of both” because the band has a delicious knack for mixing more than two ingredients in their rhythm cuisines.
The latter half of the album might come off a bit balladeering at first glance – and as some of you might already know, I’m not exactly a fan of such conduct. However, I still do stand up to my claim that this endeavor is very likely to fare rather well when the time comes to rank the albums of 2023. So, how do these prog ruffians pull this off? Hippie folk in compound 12/8 meter with a hint of Steven–Wilson-esque pop-prog is one way to do it, like in the song, “Your Flaws.” Widescreen-cinematic and atmospheric flourishes always do the trick and here the honor falls to “Control.” Acoustic minimalism works too, at least when it’s executed as brilliantly as in “Maybe.”
The ballad-esque air is balanced out with a couple of more banging numbers. “Calling It Off” features Jordan Rudess of DREAM THEATER as a guest keyboardist, with the song being a nice rundown of all the best qualities of this prog monolith – soaring solos and slapping riffs served in just the right proportions. Then, the title could be a sly homage to the arena prog of RUSH, and, last, the album is closed with the nice mid-tempo riffs of “Hold Me.” The vocal layers in the closing track work wonders with the somewhat ANATHEMA-like piano and guitar arpeggios. Perhaps due to the fact that this band is the brainchild of producer Rylee McDonald, who takes care of the vocal duties, and drummer Mike Lofgreen, the album is distinctly song-oriented rather than a showcase of instrumental virtuosity, albeit each musician has his moment in the limelight in this respect as well. The songcraft is nothing short of sublime – and, of course, the album has that one riff to rule them all! Yes, “Water” is one of the absolute best riffathons released this year! Overall, the album is such a show of strength that it should cement ADVENT HORIZON in the pantheon of prog as a force to be reckoned with.
Written by Jani Lehtinen
Tracklist
- Water
- Snow Child
- How Did It Get So Good?
- Rain On Open Water
- Your Flaws
- Truth
- Calling It Off
- Control
- Maybe
- Cell to Call Home
- Hold Me
Lineup
Rylee McDonald – vocals
Mike Lofgreen – drums
Benjamin Shell – guitars, vocals
Cason Wood – bass
Label
Independent
Links
https://www.adventhorizonmusic.com/
