Notice: Function _load_textdomain_just_in_time was called incorrectly. Translation loading for the media-library-assistant domain was triggered too early. This is usually an indicator for some code in the plugin or theme running too early. Translations should be loaded at the init action or later. Please see Debugging in WordPress for more information. (This message was added in version 6.7.0.) in /customers/8/6/5/powerofmetal.dk/httpd.www/newsite/wp-includes/functions.php on line 6114 Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /customers/8/6/5/powerofmetal.dk/httpd.www/newsite/wp-includes/functions.php:6114) in /customers/8/6/5/powerofmetal.dk/httpd.www/newsite/wp-includes/rest-api/class-wp-rest-server.php on line 1893 Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /customers/8/6/5/powerofmetal.dk/httpd.www/newsite/wp-includes/functions.php:6114) in /customers/8/6/5/powerofmetal.dk/httpd.www/newsite/wp-includes/rest-api/class-wp-rest-server.php on line 1893 Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /customers/8/6/5/powerofmetal.dk/httpd.www/newsite/wp-includes/functions.php:6114) in /customers/8/6/5/powerofmetal.dk/httpd.www/newsite/wp-includes/rest-api/class-wp-rest-server.php on line 1893 Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /customers/8/6/5/powerofmetal.dk/httpd.www/newsite/wp-includes/functions.php:6114) in /customers/8/6/5/powerofmetal.dk/httpd.www/newsite/wp-includes/rest-api/class-wp-rest-server.php on line 1893 Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /customers/8/6/5/powerofmetal.dk/httpd.www/newsite/wp-includes/functions.php:6114) in /customers/8/6/5/powerofmetal.dk/httpd.www/newsite/wp-includes/rest-api/class-wp-rest-server.php on line 1893 Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /customers/8/6/5/powerofmetal.dk/httpd.www/newsite/wp-includes/functions.php:6114) in /customers/8/6/5/powerofmetal.dk/httpd.www/newsite/wp-includes/rest-api/class-wp-rest-server.php on line 1893 Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /customers/8/6/5/powerofmetal.dk/httpd.www/newsite/wp-includes/functions.php:6114) in /customers/8/6/5/powerofmetal.dk/httpd.www/newsite/wp-includes/rest-api/class-wp-rest-server.php on line 1893 Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /customers/8/6/5/powerofmetal.dk/httpd.www/newsite/wp-includes/functions.php:6114) in /customers/8/6/5/powerofmetal.dk/httpd.www/newsite/wp-includes/rest-api/class-wp-rest-server.php on line 1893 {"id":9936,"date":"2016-07-27T20:24:17","date_gmt":"2016-07-27T18:24:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/powerofmetal.dk\/?p=9936"},"modified":"2016-07-27T20:24:17","modified_gmt":"2016-07-27T18:24:17","slug":"third-ion-biolith","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsite.powerofmetal.dk\/reviews\/third-ion-biolith","title":{"rendered":"Third Ion – Biolith"},"content":{"rendered":"

I remember when I got the opportunity to review this album, I jumped at the chance.\u00a0 I mean, it\u2019s not every day you hear about a metal band that boasts an impressive resume of former members of The Devin Townsend Band<\/strong>, Into Eternity<\/strong>, and Annihilator<\/strong>.\u00a0 Having already released their debut \u201c13\/8Bit<\/strong>\u201d (referencing the bands love for eighties video games and odd time signatures) just over a year ago, \u201cBiolith<\/strong>\u201d is my first opportunity to hear the group.<\/p>\n

The thing about not hearing this band but knowing the experience involved is I didn\u2019t exactly know what to expect.\u00a0 I was sure there would be lots of progressive and technical feats interspersed throughout the album, but the three aforementioned former bands all take different approaches in their respective sounds.\u00a0 So there\u2019s some excitement in the discovery process here to be sure.<\/p>\n

And this band is definitely talented, precise, and original.\u00a0 Let\u2019s face it, there aren\u2019t many new bands you can say that about these days.\u00a0 Upon first glance, I found it odd that the first and third song on the album are the longest tracks, which it seems most bands would save till the end of the album.\u00a0 However, they work rather well in the whole scope of this multi-dimensional album.\u00a0 Album opener \u201cState Of Flux<\/strong>\u201d is a chugging technical feast with odd time signatures abounding.\u00a0 While the first half of the song sets it\u2019s course and plays things somewhat safe, it gets vastly more technical and varied at the five minute mark.\u00a0 This wouldn\u2019t be anything to note if it weren\u2019t for the hype regarding their technical prowess in their website bio, but it\u2019s done rather maturely and uses a good sense of song structure.\u00a0 It\u2019s just too bad it took till that late in the song for me to get enthralled, but better late than never, right?\u00a0 The title track being the longest song on the album shows that the 8-bit video game music driven influence is present, especially with a full homage to the eighties in the first 20 seconds of the track.\u00a0 Beautiful syncopation and oddball time signatures abound in this rollicking track, which even adds some harsh vocals from vocalist Dave Padden<\/strong>, which are mostly foreign on this album, but in this case it helps to hammer home the aggressive and potent nature of their talented musical attack.\u00a0 They even throw things off kilter with a more laid-back and acoustic jaunt in the second half of the song which works well within the framework of the song.<\/p>\n

The band does a good job of giving us heaps of technicality on songs like \u201cCosmic Delusion<\/strong>\u201d (which is \u00a0short by prog standards at almost five minutes, but they deliver as much as possible in the somewhat limited time frame) and \u201cTemporal Divide<\/strong>\u201d (a bit of a free-for-all; highly complex but it works).\u00a0 And they get more drawn out and expansive on songs like \u201cLessons Burned<\/strong>\u201d and the already mentioned opening track.\u00a0 This speaks to the depth of the band and how they can please both fans of the mathematically complex and wide-ranging.<\/p>\n

The mature songwriting aspect of the band is something I can appreciate in a big way.\u00a0 And even though they\u2019re all over the map with their instrumentation, they have great song structure which they don\u2019t lose sight of in the sense that they can go crazy but come back to the main song idea and stay grounded.\u00a0 And as far as each member of the band goes, they all stand out in their respective duties as flawless and truly excellent at their craft.\u00a0 They play with passion, and it comes across the speakers in very convincing fashion.<\/p>\n

This is an album that definitely needs to be revisited on a regular basis to truly appreciate how much work went into the sound.\u00a0 The band has enough hooks and memorable chops to hang with the elite of the progressive metal world.\u00a0 Now it\u2019s just a matter of distancing themselves a bit from the video game atmosphere as to not take emphasis away from the band\u2019s musical talent.\u00a0 I think if they go for this idea on the next album, it should set them in a much better position to make a bigger leap into the progressive world.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Tracklist:<\/strong><\/p>\n

01. State Of Flux
\n02. Cosmic Delusion
\n03. Biolith
\n04. Status Undetermined
\n05. Illogical
\n06. Lessons Burned
\n07. Temporal Divide
\n08. Corpus Solaris<\/p>\n

Playing time:<\/strong> 51:31<\/p>\n

Release date:<\/strong> 08 July, 2016<\/p>\n

Label:<\/strong> Glasstone Records<\/p>\n

Website:<\/strong> Official Third Ion Website<\/a><\/p>\n