KETTLESPIDER

1. "The Climber" (2:24) the opening thirty seconds reminds me of some of the classic rock songs of the 70s--Damn Yankees or Loverboy or somebody like that--but then it switches at the forty-five second mark to something more complicated, more prog rock-like, more metal-like. (8.5/10)

2. "Circus" (4:34) the jazzy, delicate, melodic central third is the prize here. (9/10)

3. "Samsara" (2:31) opens with acoustic guitar being gently picked before keys and the rest of the band join in on the weave. They manage to maintain a nice melodic sense throughout this medium-paced instrumental. (9/10)

4. "Break The Safe, Pt. 1" (3:18) opens delicately but then becomes quite in your face in a kind of King Crimson way. Over and over they kind of "trick" you into relaxing and enjoying their beautiful sound groove before they bring in the distorted guitars and power chords. The final odd-time-signatured section is nice. (8.5/10)

5. "Anubis" (7:16) this one has quite a RUSH-like sound and feel to my ears (think of the excellent instrumental music of "Subdivisions"). The shift at the end of the second minute to a gentle and spacious section is quite unexpected and interesting. Steven Wilson comes to mind. Then comes the gun at 3:05 and they're off to the races, breaking into a heavy metal guitar-shredding section that tries to turn jazzy but then gets funneled back into the heavy prog world until 4:15 when another tricky, quirky, almost avant/RIO switcheroo tries to take hold. Just kidding! We're still heavy progging! But that trumpet is trying to say otherwise. Damn the influence of that Latin lover! I like this song because of its tricks and turns, surprises and maintained high quality and high entertainment value. Well done, arachnids! (9.5/10)

6. "Life" (6:06) Djent! Now they're getting into my comfort zone! (Don't know why I love those djenty guitar chords.) But then they turn sharp left in the second minute, trying to trick me again, but, no, it's just a short cut into some heavy prog, semi-djented. Nice work on the batterie, by the way, Simon. And props go out to precision bass work of Colin Andrews. Loving the fourth and fifth minutes: much more humane! And the guitar "ascending" from out of the birth canal effect is brilliant! My favorite song on the album! (10/10)

7. "Rebirth" (7:01) Oh, oh! Are we in for some Norse Black Metal? O Dark :30 and I'm still not sure. Even the delicate soft interlude at the one minute mark has me on pins and needles. 1:40: Here it comes. It's building! 2:10: Oh! It's so cute! It's just a big Totoro! 3:00: or is it the bad Stay Puft Marshmallow Man? We'll know soon. 3:45: He's leaving! He's not going to kill us or destroy our city! He likes Nature! 4:30: And video games. He's social! He has a family! And friends! Aww! He was just looking for his own kind! And they're going to live happily ever after! Such a cinematic gem! (9/10)

8. "Break The Safe, Pt. 2" (4:18) Safe. Solid. Unbreakable. Cohesive. Even pretty. And hypnotic. Cool Devy Townsend ending. Likable and yet unspectacular. (9/10)

A five stars masterpiece of instrumental progressive rock music. While I see lots of potential for improvement--both is sound and composition--these guys are definitely on to something!

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