VOX HUMANA

'Vox Humana' - Kyros (68/100)

Progressive rock has had its ups and downs over the past few decades. Although this is arguably the same for every genre of music, well, ever, you would think a style that's purportedly meant to advanced its genre forward would never run out of steam on its own. Nevertheless, as a fan for most of my life, I've seen it gain and lose traction. The last big resurgence in prog rock happened around the turn of the decade nearing 2010. Haken, The Tea Club and Leprous were relatively fresh to the scene and taking no time to blow me away. 2011 would see Leprous put out the best prog rock album of the current decade with Bilateral, as well as the last solid album for Dream Theater. Sure, it's always still been easy to look at things cynically in comparison to the 1970s, but there's always been quality material if you know where to look.

By the point of 2016, I'd say that progressive rock has arguably slumped back into its dormant state again, but it's not stopped fresh artists from playing against the times and releasing fresh prog of their own. For all it's worth, I'm pretty blown away that a band like Kyros are so young. Where most of the progressive dialogue is taken up by old giants, Kyros is making waves without leaving their early 20s. Though that detail may not be so impressive in other genres, I can't help but feel some more young blood is stepping up to take the torch for themselves.

Somewhat in the vein of Haken or even The Tea Club, Kyros follows suit with the current frontrunners by combining elements of classic progressive rock with the new. While I've always felt that the more decidedly "modern" bands like Radiohead and The Dear Hunter were more relevant to the contemporary dialogue, as a longtime fan I'm always impressed to hear old tropes (moog solos, multi-part suites etc.) brought to life again with a fresh glean. Closest to Haken than anything else I can think of, Kyros constantly teeter on that verge between rock and metal. These days I'd say that line is more blurred than ever in the context of prog, but I doubt many will notice how casually this band struts across styles. There's a ton of professionalism here and I'm consistently wowed by the level of presentation. On the other hand, I think the only time when I felt I was hearing something "new" was on "Technology Killed the Kids II", where they combine the sacred and profane by drawing it the distinctive womp of brostep into the prog melange. Although it's arguably the freshest thing that Vox Humana has going for it, it was one of the only parts I felt really didn't work in the album.

Barring that, it's pretty clear Kyros have borrowed their identity from a number of bands that imprinted themselves in the progressive dialogue a decade before. Despite the monstrous hour-and-a-half length of Vox Humana, I found it surprisingly easy to get into, and simultaneously came out of it with few distinct impressions other than: a) I enjoy it, and b) it hits every predicted note of what prog rock should be without actually progressing an inch beyond what's been done in the past. I may simply be cynical regarding the present state of prog as a whole, but it does fee l like Kyros represents the most promising good and the restrictive limitations of modern prog simultaneously. Vox Humana expresses a ton of skill and ambition without appearing to take much in the way of risks. Of course, if bombastic, ambitious prog is your thing, that Kyros haven't pushed the envelope much shouldn't matter much. For all it's worth, they've got a grasp of the genre rivaling musicians that could have been twice their age.

I usually don't write reviews, mainly due to lack of time. In this case, it is worth dedicating some time to highlight the extraordinary work of these prog millennials (which I thought was an extinct species :) ). I also learned this morning that writing reviews has an effect on the overall rating, so I am putting my 2 cents to inform this community of an extraordinary event.

This is by far the best prog album I have listened to in 2016, and arguably the best new prog band since IQ. In my opinion, It is the textbook definition of what a prog rock album should sound like. An incredible collection of beautiful melodies, carefully harmonized and constantly progressing to keep the creativity flowing throughout the album, avoiding being repetitive. Lots of keyboards, reinforced by great guitar, voices and excellent instrumentation. CD2 is the closest to Misplaced Childhood Side A that I have heard. One long beautiful song with all kind of musical variations and a spectacular finale.

Kyros (Previously Synaesthesia) is a new breed of prog rock. Hard to place into one category, I tend to associate much more with Neo-Prog bands like Marillion, IQ, Pallas, Pendragon, DeeExpus, Twelfth Night among others, however keeping their own personality and versatility of sounds. Definitely not Crossover as described on the header.

Vox Humana is an incredible musical achievement. CD1 has excellent songs as Cloudburst and Persistence of Vision. However, CD2 is much stronger and balanced. It is about an artificial human created by a scientific and all the implications of messing with human creation. The experiment goes out of control and the humanoid turns into a monster. The music and voices tell the story magnificently with several peaks and valleys emphasizing different elements of the script. First part of the album starts slow, building momentum from the beginning (Mind Electric) brilliantly transitioned to Speak to Me showing a phenomenal talent in keyboards and paving the path to Persistence of Perfection. After Monster, it transitions into a slower mood only to progressively grow to the last part of the album with Ego and Dilate, fully energized with an epic finale incorporating great keyboards and a superb guitar solo.

If you like IQ, Marillion (OLD) and other Neo-Prog bands in general, Vox Humana is a must in your collection. This is one of few albums that I place in the same league as Selling England, Subterranea, The Wake, Misplaced Childhood, The Wall, and Close to the Edge, just to give you an idea.

Kyros is the emancipation of Synaesthesia, a tour de force debut from prog wunderkind Adam Warne that simply shook the foundations back in 2014 when the album was released, garnering both adulation and high marks for an artist barely 20 years old at the time. Great vocalist, songwriter and keyboardist, Adam provides a modern as well as retro sound to the music he writes and that first album was easily one of the finest in recent memory. While basically mostly Warne on all instruments and a crew of session players to fill in the gaps, the decision was made to incorporate those guests, drummer Robin Johnson, bassist Pete Episcopo and guitarist Sam Higgins into a full-band effort, adding Joey Frevola on guitar as well. Thus, Kyros is a way more guitar-centric vision, though still quite keyboard-led but fully reliant on bombastic melodies, huge arrangements and shimmering appeal. No soft ballads here, my friends. Adam's voice has also grown into an ability to modulate according to the needs of the piece, a most welcome progression. 'Vox Humana' is a splendid 2 CD masterpiece that proves to be a violent upgrade on the previous experience, a bruising ride set off by the turbo-charge ignition of the 30 second title track, leading into the pulsating 'Technology Killed the Kids', an extended reworking of an instrumental track found on Synaesthesia, that now gets the full song treatment, a very cool concept about how modern equipment can actually be detrimental, or just outright mental. The beefy twin guitar attack makes one shrivel in abject fear, swerving from spooky (the menacing bass ramblings) to angrily despondent, garnished with choppy riffs, shaking synths and tectonic drumming from the incredible Robin Johnson. Warne sings with raging abandon, making this quite a revelation, offering dynamics, melodic disposition and immediate charm.

'Cloudburst' is the maxi-single and while much more immediate than previous and upcoming material, it has a huge cinematic quality, a chorus to die for and some earthshaking instrumentation. The style is closer to accessible crossover prog acts like Frost* or It Bites to be sure, certainly appealing but nevertheless intricately made. Things get decidedly proggy on the sensational 'Persistence of Vision' which has a classic soft/hard dynamic made famous by bands such Porcupine Tree, rhythmically calculating and endlessly exciting to say the least. When the mood gets heavy, the sulphurous guitars sizzle like molten lava, the keyboards roam like the wind, as both the bass and drums keep everything firmly encased in rhythmic governance.

With a title like 'The Lamb, the Badger and the Bee', don't expect a pop song about frivolous subjects, quite the contrary. This mellotron/synth heavy affair is volcanic, aggressive and guitar pounded into submission, turning on a dime with dense variations, fixating on obsessive details, flicks of wrists and switches. The immediate drum work is quite impressive as well as the huge central melody sung with apathetic zeal from the intricate Mr Warne. Poly- harmonic singing reminds us that someone must have listened to Gentle Giant and decide to add a little snippet of vocal folly.

The bass-propelled 'New Paradigm' instils more bombast, as if that was possible, with towering synth/mellotron expanses, carved by heavy guitar riffs and an avalanche beat. The vocal is pained and sorrowful, desperation in the air, rage barely scratching the surface and assured delirium ahead. The choir work is stunning in intensity and placement, making Adam shed a tear or two, lips trembling and heart bleeding. A bold mid-section that has a vocal and an electronic beat , more like Depeche gone Mode, completely surprising and unexpected. A nearly 9 minute epic, this is another highlight among many highlights on the first CD.

Maintaining the manic pace on disc 2 , the 'Mind Electric' rekindles frozen images of mechanical spirits, dangling soundtrack-ish images that shake the foundations, as Warne feels suddenly 'confined and confused', looking to 'unlock your mind' with a uber-high pitched vocal snippet before the monstrous onslaught slams through the speakers. Hydra-drumming and gangland guitar slashes combine to influence the hysterical vocal, frenzy and panic clasping hands in sheer fear. Nasty and futuristic. Sign of the times?

As if a brief antidote of sorts, a slick and highly melodic guitar solo comes to reassure and relax, before evolving into a playfully complex entourage of sound and purpose, 'Speak to Me' has pizzicato strings, soaring bass lines (Pete is quite talented) and shearing drum blasts. The almost classic synth chorale is pure symphonic prog and adds a lot to the creative vision of the band.

Adam seems to like the word 'persistence' (see above) as he now offers up 'Persistence of Perfection', a phenomenal track with a melody that will drop you to your knees in abject submission. Big, bad and beautiful in every single way, the arrangement offers a colossal beat, immediate beauty, winks of insanity, slippery synth warbles and a sense of incredible resolve. Wow! This feeling is maintained on the ensuing powerhouse 'Monster' , which simply shuttles the musical earthquake further, displaying some intricate guitar shavings that explode all over the room. The voice is synthesized to add cruelty and gore, hushed voices kneeling in full distress, as Adam states 'you are a monster'. Gulp!

Finally, some respite after an hour of explosive tunes that seemed at one point relentless and eternal, the lovely 'Hounds' certainly starts out all pastoral and serene, yet with a sense of foreboding and imminent danger, as if Adam is playing with your senses (his art and passion, seemingly). He hits a high note and then everything goes tornado, swizzle stick guitars and lemon synthesizer zests fool around with odd-ball electro drums. Macabre and gloomy as if some na've nightmare set to carnival music, 'The Darkness Grove' acknowledges a sense of guilt and menace that permeates the entire disc. Cemetery pealing of bells, echoing synthesized specters, radio hisses and a voice from beyond the pale.

A kaleidoscope of chaos, 'Boiling Point' is aptly titled, as its sheer sonic mayhem. Hysterical, oblique, slightly deranged, barely disguising a rant from a person who has crossed the Rubicon and entered the human asylum unwittingly. 'Deadly poison I can feel' he intones. Twilight zone and outer limits all rolled in one, the middle section unfazed and serene but only briefly before machine gunning drums salvo skywards like an ack ack gun gone haywire. More punishment comes with 'Ego', a 'me/myself and I, rant that streaks like a grating muffler on a freshly paved autobahn. Strong Steve Wilson feel here, a deeply psychotic, internalized and spooky mirror that is cracking or perhaps even already fissured.

No brakes on this baby, 'Dilate' keeps the foot on the metal pedal, adding huge swirls of bombast that would make Ayreon proud, an 8 minute epic ride that slips into more symphonic territory, armed with a glorious chorus and offers up a supreme guitar slice that is truly majestic and heartfelt. Adam once again shows off a voice that has matured immensely since the debut and is first class here and elsewhere on the disc.

This album is a heavy, unrelenting, manic and desperate bulldozer that smashes boldly forward, listeners beware! Very little respite and certainly no surrender, I was truly tired after listening to the whole thing, as there are very few down-tempo moments here to be found. Straight ahead heavy prog all the way through with occasional curtsies. I am still enamored with the debut but soon I might just be equally impressed with this. It needs a few more spins, in my view, to really sink in.

4.5 choir beings