PARAGON CIRCUS

Altesia is a fairly newer band within the prog mythos, forming in 2017 in Bordeaux, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France. Now the reason I am reviewing an album from this fairly obscure prog metal act is simple?I just felt like it. Also because their next album, The Somnambulist, is coming out next month, and I kinda wanna review their first two albums before then.

Altesia's debut album sets the status quo for what the band's sound is gonna be. In a way, they're as if you took some of the more rocking songs from Dream Theater or Haken, and put that as a focus, creating a prog metal sound that's easier to get into on the spectrum. I don't have a problem with this, especially since I like the sound they got going on. It may not be mind blowing, super intense, or any of the in-between, but it's still fun to listen to in my personal opinion.

The band also shows a good willingness to be eclectic, trying some new things with each song to see what sticks. After all, a debut doesn't always have the right sound right away, and a band should always experiment to see what sticks. Some of the best bands out there, especially in prog rock, don't always have the right sound off the bat. Look at Renaissance, or Genesis, or Pink Floyd, or hell even Dream Theater. This band draws quite a bit from Dream Theater (a bit heavily I might add but I'll get into that later), and that band didn't have their sound down pact, having their first album be more in-line with symphonic metal and AOR than what they're known for now.

I also really like the keyboard work on here. They work very nicely in tandem to the guitars, and give the album a more unique style. I especially like the organs at the beginning of Amidst the Smoke, which give the song a pretty haunting intro.

The longer tracks are also really nice, especially Reminiscence and the epic of Cassandra's Prophecy. Cassandra's Prophecy is a 17 minute epic, so it was bound to be a favorite of mine, but Reminiscence is also a highlight here. It changes quite a lot, and over the course of its runtime, you can go from fairly great prog metal jams to jazzy synth works, to even a moment that feels like it came out of a funk metal song. It's symphonic, eclectic, and pretty fun. Easily the best track on the album for me.

Though, while listening to this album, I start to realize how much it kinda just sounds like Dream Theater, or any of those other fairly standard prog metal bands out there. Obviously I am fine with some derivatives, I mean, I like retro prog a lot, and that sound draws heavily from symphonic prog bands of old. But also MAN does this debut make Altesia kinda sound like Haken copycats, which they aren't, but still there is definitely some overlap in sound, which I think kinda harms the album.

Also, while I do like that they're more softer in their metal approach, I kinda wish they got a bit heavier. They kinda do it on Hex Reverse, with some harsh backing vocals, which are pretty awesome all things considered, but I kinda wish they really delve into some heavier sounds here and there for some surprise factor. At least it seems like, with their single of Her Ghost In Limbo, their up and coming album will go full throttle into the heavy metal aspects of the band, so that'll be exciting to see.

Despite being derivative and not all that intense, Altesia does prove on their debut they're a capable band creating great progressive metal. Not an amazing record, but I'd be damned if I said I didn't like what I heard from it.

Best tracks: Reminiscence, Amidst the Smoke, Hex Reverse, Cassandra's Prophecy

Worst track: Pandora