Persefone - Aathma

This Andorran sextet knows how to write some incredible djenty prog, and I. am. loving. it.I am well on record by now for extolling one of the main virtues of heavy metal, specifically the subgenre of progressive metal, as being its ubiquity. I mean you can find practitioners pretty much anywhere on the globe. And that includes the tiny, independent principality of Andorra with the band Persefone.

Their new album, Aathma, is the latest bit of melodic pyrotechnics from this talented sextet, and fans of classic subgenre heroes like Dream Theater or Symphony X would do well to check them out if they haven't already. There's a rather djenty vibe to it all, but the addition of melodeath growls and progressive breaks, as heard in One Of Many, Prison Skin, and No Faced Mindless (check out the exhilarating piano interlude at around 3:12) make for a compelling musical stew I can't get enough of. Especially how that aforementioned progressive element plays itself out in the dynamics that devotees love on slower tracks like the haunting, delayed guitars of the atmospheric Cosmic Walkers or the pensive opening to Living Waves. This is just really well done music, people. All of which culminates in the frenetic, four-part, 20 minute Aathma suite. Just in case you wanted to know if they really know their progmetal chops.

The Bottom Line: This is djenty progmetal along the lines of TesseracT that takes you on a thrilling musical ride from the opening track to the last. 'Nuff said.

- Genghis would eat nails to see these cats on a bill with TesseracT - and maybe Animals As Leaders...