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░ ██ ██ Artist: Caligula's Horse ██ ██
▓ █░░ ■█ Album: In Contact █■ ░░█
■ █▓▀ █ Year: 2017 █ ▀▓█ ░
█ ▓ Rel. Date: 2017-12-10 ▓ █
▒ ▒ Genre: Progressive Rock ▒ ▒
█▄ ░ Label: Inside Out Music / Sony Music ░ ▄█
░ █▄ ░ Source: CD ░ ▄█
░ █▓ Type: Album ▓█ ░
▓ █ Quality: VBR, 44.1kHz, Joint Stereo █ ░ ▓
▓ █ █ ░ ▓
▄ ■ ■ ▓ ■
░█ █░ ▀
█ 2011's Moments from Ephemeral City established █
█ Australian quintet CaligulaÆs Horse as one of the █
█ top up-and-coming progressive metal acts █
█ worldwide. As itùand follow-ups The Tide, The █
█ Thief & RiverÆs End (2013) and Bloom █
█ (2015)ùshowcased, the bandÆs knack for mesmerizing █
█ rhythms and riffs, enchanting melodies and vocals, █
█ alluringly poetic lyricism, and elegant dynamic █
█ shifts (between light and dark personas) is █
█ virtually unmatched by any stylistic sibling. █
█ Fortunately, the groupÆs fourth studio outing, In █
█ Contact, ranks alongside them as another █
█ beautiful, commanding, and all-around impressive █
█ album. While it doesnÆt offer anything too █
█ surprising or outright outdo its predecessors, its █
█ emphasis on conceptuality, narration, and flow █
█ makes it their most focused, refined, and █
█ seamlessly sequenced work yet. █
█ Storytelling and social commentary have always █
█ been a fruitful part of progressive music, and In █
█ Contact is no different. Specifically (and █
█ according to its press release), the record █
█ ôdiscuss[es] the nature of art and creativityö and █
█ acts as öa celebration of what connects us as █
█ human beingsùthe shared space across our many █
█ differences. Told over four separate chapters, it █
█ is an album full of deeply personal stories, █
█ characters with their own bittersweet hope and █
█ tragedy.ö ItÆs also worth noting that this is █
█ their first release with newcomers Adrian Goleby █
█ (guitars) and Josh Griffin (drums), who replace █
█ Zac Greensill and Geoff Irish, respectively. █
█ Although these changes may only be noticeable to █
█ die-hard listenersùas each surely brings their own █
█ subtle flair to the roleùthereÆs no doubt that █
█ both players help make the full-length very █
█ striking. █
█ Opener ôDream the Deadö illustrates how In Contact █
█ offers some of the cleverest temperamental █
█ transitions in the fivesomeÆs discography. A █
█ thunderous blend of harsh chords, brutal █
█ syncopation, faint arpeggios, and soaring guitar █
█ lines soon gives way to a gentle backing as Jim █
█ Grey continues to shine as a singer. His harmonies █
█ and falsettos are especially affective and █
█ notable, helping him equal peers like Daniel █
█ Tompkins (TesseracT) and Einar Solberg (Leprous) █
█ in terms of impeccably forceful yet fragile █
█ renditions. Halfway through, lead guitarist Sam █
█ Vallen launches into a feisty guitar solo prior to █
█ a build-up of sparse, moody emotionality. From █
█ there, various elements come back for a █
█ transcendent, multilayered conclusion. ItÆs a █
█ striving, gorgeous, aggressive, and masterful █
█ starting point. █
█ "WillÆs Song (Let the Colors Run)ö is far more █
█ crushingùevoking the hostile side of Hakenùand █
█ ôThe Hands Are the Hardestö provides many angelic █
█ atmospheres and intriguing counterpoints while █
█ also packing in plenty of complex guitarwork and █
█ unpredictable rhythmic shifts. In contrast, ôLove █
█ Conquers Allö is an acoustic ballad with dim █
█ percussion that easily stands as one of the bandÆs █
█ most heartfelt and tasteful compositions to date. █
█ Grey sounds serene yet broken with every line, and █
█ in general, this three-track sequential set alone █
█ demonstrates how varied CaligulaÆs Horse can be. █
█ One of the most interesting aspects of In Contact █
█ is its Shakespearean allusions. While the entire █
█ collection contains airs of comparable tragedy and █
█ conflict, two of its selectionsùôCapuletö and █
█ ôInertia and the Weapon of the Wallöùreally drive █
█ it home. For one thing, the former piece is titled █
█ after one of the two families at the forefront of █
█ Romeo & Juliet. ItÆs fitting, then, that its █
█ musicùanother acoustic odeùis ripe with gorgeous █
█ heartache in the form of devastating melodies and █
█ discreet yet impactful arrangements. As for the █
█ latter, itÆs remarkably atypical in that itÆs a █
█ three-minute soliloquy whose dramatic outcries █
█ instantly conjure the Bard. Sure, itÆs a bit █
█ long-winded and opaque at times, but thereÆs no █
█ denying the power of the performance and the █
█ ambition of its inclusion. █
█ In Contact ends with ôGraves,ö a nearly █
█ sixteen-minute masterwork bursting with engaging █
█ changes and vibrant textures (including what █
█ sounds like a saxophone). It encapsulates all of █
█ the previous specialties (sans the monolog) and █
█ even concludes with invigorating chants that █
█ cement the overarching epic scale. ItÆs a █
█ breathtaking finale in terms of both narrative and █
█ musical arcs, and it further solidifies how █
█ special the album and its creators are. In Contact █
█ may feel a bit too familiar and/or tedious at █
█ times, but the vast majority of it is an █
█ astounding effort, making it one of the year's █
█ best progressive metal records thus far. █
▓ ▓
▒ ▒
░ 1. Dream the Dead 8:09 ░
░ 2. Will's Song (Let the Colours Run) 4:42 ░
░ 3. The Hands are the Hardest 4:26 ░
░ 4. Love Conquers All 2:21 ░
░ 5. Songs for No One 7:43 ░
░ 6. Capulet 3:23 ░
░ 7. Fill My Heart 6:42 ░
░ 8. Inertia and the Weapon of the Wall 2:57 ░
░ 9. The Cannon's Mouth 5:56 ░
░ 10. Graves 15:31 ░
░ 61:50 ░
░ ▒ ▒
▓ █ ░ ▓ ░
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