The Under - Mercurial (Self-Release)
By Chris Barnes
February 26, 2009
The bio for this Boston-trio of like-minded modern heavy prog trio The Under mentions Rush, Black Sabbath, Voivod, Baroness, The Obsessed and High on Fire as being musical kin. At first I think the band is playing it smart by “covering all the alternative press bases”. This is done by mentioning a key band representing every validated form of heavy music even if the band in question has no resemblance whatsoever except for a distorted guitar. The Under’s “RIYL” section is pretty accurate, but I swear to God I can’t help think of Bruce Dickinson’s shamefully unknown “Skunkworks” project on almost every song. The Under has the same sort of genre-free quality that Skunkworks had aside from being a heavy music band with progressive tendencies.
These three guys do rock man, I have to say. They have a spatial way of arranging songs, so even the hyper-chug skull-splitter that is “Anaximander” contains ethereal, hypnotic passages. Dan the guitar player is frighteningly talented, reminds me a lot of Against Nature/Revelation guitarist John Brenner, both equally capable at both rhythm and solo. There is a definite Alex Lifeson-esque quality to Dan’s playing and in fact, if you didn’t know better you’d think that Alex did a guest turn on the solo for “Mecurial” and the intro on “The Only Path” (which both are friggin’ phenomenal songs, btw). That being said, Dan’s own style only becomes apparent after listening to the whole album a couple of times – he borrows styles from here and there and everywhere, but he’s got the fundamental flow and style of an original. He’s also a very capable vocalist and as all capable vocalists should do, Dan sings clean, even hitting Halford-style highs on “Boundless”. That is territory where precious few should tread because it often only ends up in heartache, ridicule or, in extreme cases, polyps on your vocal cords. The Jason Walker/Randy Odierno rhythm section is a monster, but not the typical Heavy Metal Butler/Ward monster one would expect. Their style is much more technical and fluid, something you’d expect from those that have delved into the worlds of jazz… or listened to shitloads of Rush and Voivod. Both musicians can be in complete sequence then go off and do their own thing, then seamlessly fall back into sequence again. So either they are that good, or thank God for Pro Tools.
I’d love to check out these guys live. The songs get so intricate and complicated at points that it must require a tremendous amount of focus let alone a lot of rehearsing to get through a gig. The fact that Guitar Player Dan sings at the same time as he’s playing would provide extra jaw-dropping and beer-raising impact. Next time I’m in Boston, hopefully I can catch these guys out live. I encourage you to check out their songs on their web pages (see links below) to get an idea of what they’re all about, I think it’d be worth your while.
Visit The Under website at www.theunderband.com and www.myspace.com/theunder
BannerXchange
Linear Mode
