The Contortionist are one of my favourite bands and I have followed them from the beginning as they have transitioned and evolved along the way. This is album number two for the band and was the last to feature vocalist Jonathan Carpenter, who would be replaced by the amazing Michael Lessard. The progressive metal genre is very packed and overcrowded and you have to be something special to get noticed. They can play the most crushingly heavy riffs and grooves and in a blink of an eye, the most serene and beautiful takes over.
Holomovement opens up the album and is just that, a superb beautiful noise that grooves, chugs, and chills all at the same time. Definitely my favourite song. Feedback Loop crushes instantly before a beautiful harmonic progression takes over. That riff towards the end is epic! Causality closes out the first side with lots of D-tuned goodness and some seriously low end grooves.
The time and groove changes on Sequential Vision are insane, and man is this one heavy! Geocentric Confusion starts like a death metal band on substance abuse then the progisms interject at select intervals. Totally insane! Killer intro to Dreaming Schematics which at times feels as though everything is on a different time signature. Superb tune!
Side 3 opens up with Anatomy Anomalies and for a brief moment we have a normal groove and riff, but then we are off to the great unknown. The bass sound and groove to the start of Cortical is soooo good and the mix for this vinyl release is superb. Solipsis is the shortest piece on the album and yet in such a short space they just crush your ears.
Side 4 is given up to Parallel Trance both with and without vocals. I feel as though this would have been great in Blade Runner because its ambient sounds would fit perfectly.
A great band who are a one off, and while at times it can be tough to keep your brain trained to all that is happening, they are ultimately a sonically rewarding band.
9.5/10 from The Grooveman.
