PLANTOID

"Is That You" takes its time to set the scene and imprint the style of the band. A long instrumental build-up with Jazz sounds opens the door to the very pure voice of Chloe Coyne which could have come out of a Bossa-nova album from the 50s. The mixture of vocal softness and instrumental groove is a real success and constitutes a strong point of the group. At the end, the atmosphere changes to make way for "fuzzy" instrumentation which tends towards Psychedelic Rock. Would my favorite streaming app have directed me to another band between the first and second songs? No, it's still Plantoid on "Pressure", a Pop-Punk-Garage track which completely contrasts with the rest of the album. I would describe it as "oddity", certainly intentional. The fundamentals are restored on "Modulator", and we happily find the soft voice, the up-tempo jazz and beautiful flights of solo guitar. We will also notice layers of keyboards broken by slightly dissonant chords which bring spice to the composition. "It's Not Real" is a short instrumental, as if escaped from a dream, with a very elaborate atmosphere thanks to the contribution of different sounds and sound effects. Then comes the hyper-syncopated riff of "Dog's Life", on which a very melodic singing develops despite the incessant changes of tone. The second part of the song is marked by a furious Jazz-psyche break. It is a stripped-down arrangement of complex harmony that characterizes "Only When I'm Thinking", on which the vocals are clearly highlighted. The following 3 titles follow one another to form a suite. This begins with "Wander/Wonder", the start of which made me think of certain Sade titles from the 80s. After the "Wander" part, it's time for the very effective instrumental passage "Wonder", a marvel of riffs and sounds, rhythmic breaks and Jazz-Rock improvisations. The segue into "Insomniac (Don't Worry)" is almost imperceptible. This title seems to express in music the disturbed phases of sleep and awakening on a rhythm that runs after time. And it is the energetic instrumental "GY Drift" which ends the suite in the style of a modern-day Santana . To gently close the record, the aptly named "Softly Speakin " surprises with its Dream Pop-style piano accompaniment of which the main voice once again constitutes the central element.

This first Plantoid album is a success. The group manages to share its universe, sometimes ethereal, sometimes more furious, but with constant instrumental mastery. This "bi-polarity" is embodied on one side by the angelic voice of singer Chloe Coyne and on the other side by the organic and earthy instruments guided by Tom Coyne 's guitar . A first record which calls for others. We will not fail to closely follow the development of this promising new group.

Review originally posted on www.progcritique.com.

Terrapath begins with the gentle, jazzy guitar of "Is That You". It builds slowly, and the vocals have an otherworldly quality to them. This track does a great job of establishing the mood for this sci-fi-inspired album. It ends on a bit of majestic, fuzzed-out psych that acts as a fitting capstone to this opening track. "Pressure", in contrast, kicks off with a tense, high-energy riff. The drums and lead guitar skitter and jump around each other, maintaining a constant sense of excitement. The ending is a bit jarring, and it almost feels as if this song ended a bit sooner than it should have.

The energy tones back down on "Modulator". Plantoid embraces jazz on all elements of this song: melody, instrumental tone, and modal choices. Ugly, dissonant chords arise near this song's end, and I really like the contrast between the start and end of this piece. The brief instrumental interlude "It's Not Real" features woozy percussion and a lush sound palette.

"Dog's Life" has a jumpy, mathy main riff that reminds me a lot of late '00s prog acts like RX Bandits, Ticktockman, and Children of Nova. Despite the anxiety of that main guitar line, things remain rather restrained. Things finally explode in the last minute, with extraterrestrial synth embellishments and twisting, distorted guitar lines.

As much as I like the mellow jazziness of this album, I really enjoyed the contrast at the end of "Dog's Life", while the short "Only When I'm Thinking" brings us back to the usual calmness of Terrapath. A bit more grit here and there would have been nice.

"Wander Wonder" starts off a bit slow, but around the two-minute mark, the arrangement becomes stripped-back as a groovy but tense guitar line takes the lead. The arrangement gradually becomes richer and fuller, and it takes some fun instrumental detours. "Insomniac (Don't Worry)" flows naturally out of the preceding cut and keeps the upbeat tempo. It's got a catchy, caffeinated pulse that evokes the delirium of sleepless nights.

The heaviest riff yet on Terrapath opens "G.Y. Drift". It's a strange, ugly phrase, but it eventually resolves into a Latin-flavored guitar solo. In sharp contrast to the preceding instrumental, the album closes with "Softly Speaking". This song features fittingly subdued piano and quiet vocals, ending the record on a calm note.

Plantoid's debut LP is a solid bit of hazy, murky psychedelic prog. Airy vocal arrangements, jazzy clean guitar lines, and splashes of heavy fuzzed-out rock give this record an intriguing retro-futuristic feel. I'm excited to see how this band evolves in the future and how the balance of heavy and light compositions will continue to develop.

Review originally posted here: theeliteextremophile.com/2024/03/18/album-review-plantoid-terrapath/

Debuting in 2024 with the first release TERRAPATH, this band offers a very interesting mix of jazz rock infused with psychedelic rock, heavier math rock guitar outbursts and a tad of indie rock which guarantees that PLANTOID is no one trick pony and goes above and beyond the call of duty in crafting a unique slice of varied eclectic prog for the 2020s. While beginning with an ethereal echoey guitar sequence it's tempting to think that this will be one of the trippiest lysergic psychedelia experiences set to sound that you could possibly experience in the 3D construct of consciousness but then PLANTOID reveals itself to be a master of exotic spices by taking musical twists and turns that culminate into a hard indie rock / punk guitar frenzy. And that's just the first track.

The album only continues to meander from track to track with staccato guitar stomps, neo-psychedelic atmospheres and jazz-infused percussive workouts. Add to that the divine feminine charm of lead singer Chloe Coyne whose angelic contributions anchor the project more to ethereal space rock but when her soft spoken lyrical delivers drop out of the scene the time signature prog rock outbursts of the guitar, bass and drums take over making this a wild ride of an album as best experienced on the single "Dog's Life" which somehow integrates the world of math rock and post-punk into the confines of what should be a trippy psychedelic dream pop track. This trio is a master of this crazy fusion approach all the while never leaving the jazz-infused chord progressions to wander off too distantly far.

The dramatic contrast of the angelic with the caustic is juggled with razor-sharp precision always threatening to fall off the tightrope but results in mastering the art of balance like a seasoned Cirque du Soleil performer. The whole thing is quite original in how it offers an alienating effect while finding just enough Earthly elements to keep you anchored to traditional orthodoxies. If you ask me the way Chloe Coyne places her vocal phrasing in conjunct with the instrumentation reminds me a lot of Brazilian samba and the whole jazzy softer parts cement that connection even further. Except for the heavier outbursts that don't happen as much as the softer tones and timbres, the album feels like a drift in the clouds like some sort of Star Wars cantina lounge act that offers a universal approach to its extension of an Earth music known as jazz.

A very interesting newbie band for sure with lots of interesting creativity infused into its musical Frankenstein that is part math rock, part jazz, part psychedelia, part dream pop, part funk, part jam band and completely experimental but in a really easily accessible type of way. This is the kind of band that takes familiar sounds and juxtaposes them just a little bit out of the norm and then adds other elements in places where you wouldn't exactly expect and then pacifies the soul with angelic vocal delivers, mesmerizing atmospheric backdrops and a touch of normalcy to keep the whole project from becoming too detached from the gravitational forces of the mother planet. This is quite a pleasant album and a fascinating new band that screams with vitality and freshness. Definitely a band to look out for. This creative first offering is very scrumptious indeed.