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76 releases, 11 highlights: one record number is chasing the next
Releases of the Week 21/2023 with Seven Impale, Ozul, Inhale Existence, Oryad, Godsticks, JD Power Trio, Vexing, Ockra, The Foreshadowing, Shy, Low & Gabi’s Cali Co.
Chasing new record numbers every week: we found 76 releases for the release week of May 26, 2023! Our 11 highlights: Seven Impale, Ozul, Inhale Existence, Oryad, Godsticks, JD Power Trio, Vexing, Ockra, The Foreshadowing, Shy, Low & Gabi’s Cali Co.! Dive in and don’t forget to subscribe to our weekly updated Spotify playlist: https://theprogspace.com/rotw-playlist
Seven Impale - Summit
![SevenImpale_Summit](https://theprogspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/SevenImpale_Summit.jpg)
Bergen, Norway #1: epic jazz rock madness returns with Seven Impale’s long awaited third opus “Summit”. Seven years after “Contrapasso”, the daring listener is treated to four gargantuan compositions, all clocking in somewhere around the 10 minute mark. It’s a long and hard way to the top, especially if you’re ‘Sisyphus’ or ‘Ikaros’. But the view from the “Summit” is quite rewarding if you make your way through the complex, odd, meandering musical pathways Seven Impale is laying out in front of us. It is neither easy listening nor straight forward, but it’s a lot of fun if you’re not afraid of dissonances and the occasional cacophonic craziness. Varied and bold, Seven Impale scale new heights with “Summit”. Will you follow them to the breezy top? Dario
Ozul - Provenance
![Ozul_Provenance](https://theprogspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Ozul_Provenance.jpg)
Bergen, Norway #2: the first of 5 debut full length albums in our highlights this week is “Provenance” from Bergen based project Ozul. Melancholy prog of the Porcupine Tree variety is on the menu and even though the production still leaves some room for improvement on future releases, the nine songs on “Provenance” already leave a very positive scent mark, placing the name Ozul firmly on the list of very promising newcomers in the prog realm. A solo project from musician Paulo Chavarria for now, I’m really curious where the creative paths will lead Ozul next. He’s definitely got my attention. Dario
Inhale Existence - The Spiral
![InhaleExistence_TheSpiral](https://theprogspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/InhaleExistence_TheSpiral.jpg)
Debut album 2 out of 5 this week, “The Spiral” from Chicago based quartet Inhale Existence. Within their ranks: current Fallujah live-guitarist Sam Mooradian (whose recent solo singles you might have heard in our What’s Hot?! playlist) and Aviations/Brand of Sacrifice/Gargoyl/The Anchoret drummer James Knoerl (who is quickly becoming the busiest drummer in modern prog), so the direction is clear: we‘re heading for modern, technical prog metal with a lot of screaming, but just the right amount of melody both in the catchy vocals and the tasty guitar licks department to keep things interesting and varied. This first outing definitely shows great potential. Dario
Oryad - Sacred & Profane
![Oryad_SacredAndProfane](https://theprogspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Oryad_SacredAndProfane.jpg)
It really seems like it has been ages since a new symphonic metal release was able to surprise and excite me. More often than not, it was just some cheesy pop metal songs with boring riffs and some lackluster orchestration put on top of it. The musically exciting stuff as far as metal with symphonic elements was concerned, was more happening in the extreme metal regions. Oryad from Tennessee finally fill that void and make me forget all those interchangeable, generic, mediocre copycats that have been occupying and oversaturating the genre for the most time. Their debut album “Sacred & Profane” knows how to impress with interesting, diverse songwriting, excellent orchestral arrangements and a captivating, demanding vocal performance by Moira Murphy, who seems to be the heart of the whole operation. The third and last single ‘Blood’ for example is building a bridge between Beethoven piano parts and dark Dimmu Borgir-like orchestrations that reach deep into Mordor.. And even though Oryad’s rendition of the ‘Wayfaring Stranger’ is more direct and clear, missing some of Ocean’s of Slumber’s mystery (you can find their haunting version on 2018’s “The Banished Heart” if you haven’t heard it yet), it’s still a great fit for the album, which should appeal to both fans of the genre and those who’ve been disillusioned with it for a while, but are still yearning for an interesting take on it. You might find just that right here with Oryad’s “Sacred & Profane”, and maybe it will even rekindle your love for the genre. Dario
Godsticks - This is What a Winner Looks Like
![Godsticks_ThisIsWhatAWinnerLooksLike](https://theprogspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Godsticks_ThisIsWhatAWinnerLooksLike.jpg)
Godsticks are a classic case of ‘too heavy for rock, not quite heavy enough to be fully considered metal’. Regardless of that, the Welsh quartet keeps on delivering quality stuff for well over a decade now, and their sixth studio album “This is What a Winner Looks Like” is no different. In a way, this sounds like if Queensryche took their early 2000’s “Tribe” sound and progged it up a notch. The songwriting is concise and the arrangements are dense, even though the 10 songs on “This is What a Winner Looks Like” might not be the most immediate hits, they start to reveal their magic with the third spin and now I’m really looking forward to spending more time with them. It still baffles me though, that Godsticks are not on Metal Archives while a band with an objectively much ‘lighter’ sound like Ockra (see below) is. But that’s a discussion for another day… Dario
JD Power Trio - Ivory Tower EP
![JDPowerTrio_IvoryTower](https://theprogspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/JDPowerTrio_IvoryTower.jpg)
After a little detour into acoustic territory with “Charam” last year, Polish-born, Munich-based bandleader JD is back with his Power Trio and a heavily rocking four track EP called “Ivory Tower”. Highlights include, but are not limited to the overall grooviness of the material, some rocking guitar solos and, of course, the epic Jorgen Munkeby saxophone break in ‘Scapegoat’. JD’s powerful vocals remind me a bit of Rage’s Peavy Wagner (if he was fronting a grunge band). “Are you not entertained?” asks JD in the opening track. Well, I for one feel splendidly entertained with “Ivory Tower”. Dario
Vexing - Grand Reproach
![Vexing_GrandReproach](https://theprogspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Vexing_GrandReproach.jpg)
Debut album 4 out of 5: “Grand Reproach” from heavy sludgy prog trio Vexing. Some subtle melodies creep into the abrasive and dissonant heaviness here and there with great effect. Get yourself a healthy dose of filthy prog sludge with Vexing out of Denver, Colorado. Dario
Ockra - Gratitude
![Ockra_Gratitude](https://theprogspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Ockra_Gratitude.jpg)
Debut album 5 out of 5: “Gratitude” from Sweden’s prog doom trio Ockra. Never thought I’d use the term ‘weightless’ with a doom band, but Ockra tick all the boxes of a classic prog sound, despite a certain lack of heaviness, but I don’t mind at all. The distinctive use of Mellotron makes up for it. ‘Weightless Again’? More like for the first time ever. A most curious approach to doom, but it works. Dario
The Foreshadowing - Forsaken Songs EP
![TheForeshadowing_ForsakenSongs](https://theprogspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/TheForeshadowing_ForsakenSongs.jpg)
Continuing with the doom (albeit a bit heavier), as Italy’s gothic doom grandmasters The Foreshadowing compiled a wonderful EP entitled “Forsaken Songs” for us, with 2 leftover songs from album sessions, a re-arrangement of a song from “Second World” (2012) and two absolutely gorgeous cover versions, as different as they might be (Talk Talk’s ‘Such a Shame’ and ‘The Rains of Castamere’ from Game of Thrones). The gravitas of Marco Benevento’s vocals, reminiscent of genre luminaries like Nick Holmes (Paradise Lost), Fernando Ribeiro (Moonspell), Jonas Renkse (Katatonia) or Mikko Kotamäki (Swallow the Sun) is carrying all the songs with ease. A must have for everyone who loves doomy ‘n’ gloomy sounds. Dario
Shy, Low - Babylonica EP
![ShyLow_Babylonica](https://theprogspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/ShyLow_Babylonica.jpg)
From doom to instrumental post: following up their highly acclaimed sixth studio album (and first for their now label home Pelagic Records) “Snake Behind The Sun” in 2021, Shy, Low are back with a little three track EP called “Babylonica”. ‘The Salix’ and ‘Instinctual Estrangement’ are fully fleshed Shy, Low compositions encompassing every little detail and nuance of their sound over the course of their 8 – 9 minutes runtimes. ‘33°24_06.0_N 84°14_48.7_W’ is a little ambient interlude – and I really want to know where those coordinates would lead me. Anyone care to enlighten me? Dario
Gabi’s Cali Co. - Calico EP
![GabisCaliCo_Calico](https://theprogspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/GabisCaliCo_Calico.jpg)
Our little bonus highlight this week comes in the form of a distantly prog related singer/songwriter EP, and it sees Delsey Hill’s Gabi Chesnet following her calling to Southern California and coming back with the wonderful “Calico” EP, released under the new moniker Gabi’s Cali Co. and written and recorded in California with legendary session guitarist, songwriter and producer Ira Ingber (Bob Dylan, Captain Beefheart, Canned Heat and many more). Culminating in the Tarantino meets Radiohead ‘Chasing Moonlight’, that also features a surprise flute solo by Oingo Boingo mainman Steve Bartek. Big names on a wonderful little EP that certainly deserves some attention from anyone who likes singer-songwriter/indie-folk. That might not be many among The Progspace readers, but those who do might just discover a beautiful gem to cherish. Dario
More releases for 26 May, 2023
- Phlebotomized - Clouds of Confusion (Hammerheart Records) Bandcamp
- Aphir - The Halo Is Shapeless (Art As Catharsis) Bandcamp
- The Intersphere - Wanderer
- The Way of Purity - The Order of The Deep Roots
- RIFFT - Dead World Wanderer Bandcamp
- Amun - Spectra and Obsession Bandcamp
- Bosparans Fall – Götterspiel: Dunkle Zeiten Bandcamp
- Øresund Space Collective - Everyone Is Evil (May 27) Bandcamp
- Maud the moth & trajedesaliva - Bordando el manto terrestre (Time Released Sound, Woodford Halse) Bandcamp
- Wake of Dawn - Brinicles EP
- Sea in the Sky - Fall in Place Bandcamp
- Littus - Instrumental State Bandcamp
- Ice Sealed Eyes - Vol. 1: Torments
- Kalmah - Kalmah
- Ten Jinn - Ardis (Melodic Revolution Records) Bandcamp
- Vonavibe - Bleed to Life
- S.U.P. - Octa
- The Great Manta - Ignis Fatuus
- The Coldwell Conspiracy - Not For Me, You (May 22, The Swamp Records) Bandcamp
- Nibiru - Anamorphosis (Argonauta Records)
- Sietse de Krieger/Crisis Theory - Dishonor (Split)
- Kostnatění - Úpal Bandcamp
- Isolation Tank Ensemble - Heliography Bandcamp
- You Bred Raptors? - Lysine Bandcamp
- A Constant Knowledge of Death - Dissecting a One-Winged Bird Bandcamp
- DZONOT - Tongue Bandcamp
- Astral Magic - Cosmic Energy Flow Bandcamp
- Resolution 13 - Derelict (May 23, Sliptrick Records) Bandcamp
- Sirenia - 1977 (Napalm Records) Bandcamp
- Mud Spencer - Kliwon (Argonauta Records) Bandcamp
- Shrinkwrap Killers - Feed the Clones Pt. 1 (Transylvanian Tapes) Bandcamp
- Black Corona - Resurgence
- Inherus - Beholden (Hypnotic Dirge Records) Bandcamp
- Olkoth - At the Eye of Chaos (Everlasting Spew Records) Bandcamp
- Victory Over the Sun - Dance You Monster to My Soft Song! Bandcamp
- Megatheria - Gateway Bandcamp
- LYF - Chronoscape (May 27) Bandcamp
- Metal Church - Congregation of Annihilation (Rat Pak Records)
- The Mon - Eye (Supernatural Cat) Bandcamp
- Mesarthim - Arrival (Avantgarde Music) Bandcamp
- Strange Horizon - Skur 14 (Apollon Records) Bandcamp
- The Pines of Rome - The Unstruck Bell (Solid Brass Records) Bandcamp
- Perfumed Saturnine Angels - Saccharine Curses Exhaled in the Wind (May 22, Lilang Isla) Bandcamp
- Oceanlord - Kingdom Cold (Magnetic Eye Records) Bandcamp
- Marked;Life - Rare Candy EP
- Chain of Flowers - Never Ending Space (A L T E R) Bandcamp
- Teitan - In Oculus Abyss (Onism Productions/Void Wanderer Productions) Bandcamp
- Suffering Quota - Collide (Tartarus Records) Bandcamp
- itSELF - The Absence Bandcamp
- Mossai Mossai - Faces (Figures Libres Records) Bandcamp
- True Home - Black Lotus Bandcamp
- Yet No Yokan - Wir Sind Da (Hummus Records) Bandcamp
- Ǥứŕū - Nova Lux Bandcamp
- Sauf les drones - Versions du vivant (May 25) Bandcamp
- Ethereal Void - Gods of A Dead World (Abstrakted Records) Bandcamp
- Usnea - Bathed in Light (Translation Loss Records) Bandcamp
- Speedwhore - Visions of a Parallel World (Dying Victims Productions) Bandcamp
- Mournful Congregation - The Exuviae of Gods (20 Buck Spin) Bandcamp
- Vorder - False Haven (Suicide Records) Bandcamp
- Cloak - Black Flame Eternal (Season of Mist) Bandcamp
- The Silent Rage - Nuances of Life (Scarlet Records) Bandcamp
- The Slyde - Live at Rivoli Bandcamp
- Ashinoa - Stellar Frequencies Sessions (Live) Bandcamp
- SOM - Faith (Sonic Ritual Recordings)
- Mike Oldfield - Tubular Bells (50th Anniversary Edition)