SOUND GOAT PROJECT

Of course, the downside of an album having musical surprises as its strong point is that repeat listens can be substantially less rewarding as the novelty almost immediately wears off. But regardless, there's plenty of good material here that bodes well for Sound Goat Project's future. If only they could do something about that stupid name ...

The band's debut album 'Deep Inside' boasts the help of a lot of guests, many of them guesting on vocals, but also bringing in some variety through the tracks in the form of a flute, harmonica and sax along with electronic effects and looping and rap vocals on one of the tracks. Right away, you'll be mesmerized by the first track 'hOT pLAY' which begins more like a fusion album would, lots of bright jazz sound enhanced by the flute and sax, and this continues longer than your typical introduction before the heavy aspect kicks in suddenly, yet it doesn't sound contrived. The transition is one that will impress and hook you immediately. Just so you don't get the idea that the track is going to rest on the cool surprises of the combined heavy and brightness, some vocals provided by Eliza Ratusznik and Gabriela Palider will further cement your interest in the entire album.

The rest of the 9 tracks on this album will continue to surprise and amaze the listener. Most of the tracks, which run mostly between 3 ' 6 minutes, are instrumental, but 'tRANQUILITY' features the vocals of Joseph De Natale and 'aLTER eGO' takes you into a completely unexpected trip-hop style rap provided by Fee-Z. Don't let this frighten you off though because even this track feels right at home on this album. Even with the changing styles and forms on this album, the sub-genre Heavy Prog is perfect for the overall feel of the album, as the heavy aspect is the foremost style with plenty of fusion mixed in. The album constantly teeters on the border of metal, but never quite tips over into that genre, yet the power of the music, brought to the fore by Styma's guitar work, is convincing enough that you don't need the extra noise of metal to bring the music to its pinnacle. It manages to impress exactly where it is and at the same time, is never tied down by any single genre. Even when you think the album is almost over as you approach the finale 'cOSMOSQUID', more surprises still await in this last track.

This is one of the best new albums I have heard this year, and it makes you wonder where this band has been hiding. Let's hope we don't have to wait so long for a follow up album, but at the same time, the band doesn't take any shortcuts just to have a sophomore album. The time they took to work together is what makes this album so impressive especially as a debut album. I know one thing, I'm hooked and excited to see what comes next for this band. 5 stars!