A broad summary of May’s last and June’s first release week

Two years after the revelation that were “The Lost Tapes”, French/English experimental avant-garde prog collective !Gerald! is back with “Music for Broken Elevators”. An almost 27 minute fever dream of an EP. I guess someone took too many mushrooms with them into the elevator that was about to break down. Or something like that. On tour now in Europe for that authentic live feel. Prepare for a mind-altering experience. Dario

When you’re up for rhythm-driven Extreme Metal, June 7^th clearly got you covered with an excellent triple of releases by The Omnific, Dysrhythmia, and Hippotraktor. Let’s take a closer look and listen at the Belgian representative, who already impressed with their marvelous debut in 2021 and high-energetic live shows I was lucky to attend, and who now share their second album, “Stasis”. Since the release of “Meridian” 3 years ago, the band grew from an instrumental trio to a five-piece powerhouse, that clearly left a mark on their sound. By melting the beauty of Haken-esque harmonies with the mind blowing, brutal dissonance of Hypno5e, bringing all together with wonderful creativity and lots of emotion in their performance, they create their own, intense soundscapes, and a musical flow that’s anything else but stasis. Katha

Five years after his solo debut and right in between the massive North American and European legs of the An Evening With/Fauna tour of his main band Haken, British guitarist and songwriter Richard Henshall explores more instrumental territory on his new EP, “Mu Vol. 1”. Between modern prog, fusion and subtle atmospheric post flourishings, he carves his own path in an exciting scene alongside Plini, Syncatto and the likes. Where his axe-partner-in-Haken-crimes Charlie Griffiths excels at riffy, thrashy, Devonian prehistoric prog metal on his solo stuff, Richard makes his home in jazzier spheres. Bring on Vol. 2 and that European leg of the Haken tour. I wouldn’t mind a return of Tiktaalika either, but that’s another story… Dario

A band I’ve heard a lot about in recent years, but never really checked out to this point, for whatever reason, is Italian Barock Project. Led by talented keyboarder and composer Luca Zabbini, their (surprise) classically inspired prog rock surely knows to impress on their seventh album “Time Voyager” with clever compositions and exciting performances all around. Alex Mari’s timbre does remind of Spock’s Beard/Enchant’s Ted Leonard on songs like ‘Summer Set You Free’, yet Barock Project mostly steers clear of merely re-hashing standard prog rock tropes, putting their very own stamp on the overall sound. A fresh progressive rock highlight without a doubt. Dario

Bass Bass Bass, in your face! That has been the mission of Australia’s The Omnific for quite a few years now and that hasn’t changed a bit on their third album “The Law of Augmenting Returns”, out now via Wild Thing Records. If you’re up for a good slapping, The Omnific will provide it – and much more. The grooves and also the melodies (yes, you can play melodies on a bass!) are once again mouthwateringly exquisite, but I do think drummer and mullet-man Jerome Lematua never gets enough credit with that much bass power in your face by Matt Fack and Toby Peterson-Stewart. Such a fun wild ride again – more like The Law of Dropped Jaws or what? Don’t miss them either live on tour or at a festival near you this summer! They will melt your faces! Dario

While we’re sliding into summer here in Europe (hopefully soon again), Marjana Semkina evokes those fall feelings again like no other artist, just like the orange and golden color theme of the cover artwork of her second solo album “Sirin”. Be it in duet with fellow voice magicians Jim Grey or Mick Moss, with her hushed, ethereal vocals at the center or even instrumental, each song is magnificently forged both in terms of composition and arrangement, meticulously crafted down to the very last detail. Frequent iamthemorning/Gleb Kolyadin collaborator Vlad Avy, Grigoriy Losenkov, Agent Fresco drummer Keli Guðjónsson and Charlie Cawood (Knifeworld) play a central role instrumentally, making this as much a collaborative effort as a solo album. An essential art pop gem in any case. Dario

Jan Mikael Sørensen and Håvard Enge have been making music together as long as I’ve been alive – with the first release under the moniker of Laughing Stock not coming out until 2019 though. With the 2021/2022 four act concept work “Zero”, the Norwegians musicians put some of the most melancholic music I’ve ever had the sad pleasure of bathing in, yet the follow up “Songs for the Future” didn’t manage to grab my attention for whatever reason. Now, “Shelter” is back in the sadlands and I’m happy to drown myself in sadness again. Dario

Having started as a Thrash band in 2009, the still remaining genre tag might lead to some head scratching when listening to Shrapnel’s newest album “In Gravity” for the first time, but please don’t let yourself fool by this, as the UK-based quartet developed their sound into a modern Progressive Metal direction. The 10 songs have a serious, thought-provoking background, dealing with traumatic events and how coping mechanisms can become problems themselves, but also deliver an incredibly pushing energy music-wise thanks to their mighty heaviness yet groovy catchiness. Sometimes, Shrapnel’s sound reminds me of Molybaron, but they go further in terms of playfulness, variety and dynamic within their song-writing, with the furious guitar solos and the expressive vocals deserving an extra mention. Crank it up! Katha 

A Progrock debut from Norway, delving into existential themes such as time, alienation, the search for meaning, and humanity’s relationship with nature? Call me intrigued… Musically inspired by the sci-fi and psychedelic aesthetics of the 70s, the Oslo-based quartet Sykofant take their time to evolve the songs, building up the narrative in an amazing way with long instrumental parts and beautiful vocal melodies that sometimes remind me of French proggers Altesia. For most of the time, they dance light-footed between post, prog and blues rock, weave in some jazzy and pop elements, with the focus on atmospheric, musical story-telling – All-together a strong, first album. Katha

Proper doomy instrumental post metal is what’s on the menu with Mountainscape‘s „Iridiscent“. Oh and quite cinematic ambiances too. While certainly retaining a solid quality throughout the whole record, the eleven-minute epic ‘Ignis’ clearly stands out as the towering monolith of a highlight among this iridescent trip through Mountainscapes… Dario