ONES & ZEROS - VOLUME 1

Back in 2012, an election year here in the U.S., 3RDegree released one of the finest albums of that year, "The Long Division", a scathing critique of the political system, and the way the corporate news outlets portray the process. The album blew me away in it's concept and execution. I really had might doubts that any band could improve upon such an effort. But with "Ones & Zeros: Volume 1", they have accomplished that task.

The concept here is a not too distant, nor unthinkable future, where our present obsession with immortalization through our many electronic gadgets has led to the ability to (if you can afford it) digitize your consciousness, ensuring virtual immortality. This process is overseen by a corporate entity called "Valhalla", that controls these "people" with a mechanical logic. I don't want to give much away, but the story is told with a clever and sophisticated humor, reminding me more than a little of the wordplay of 10CC or XTC. Just the images from the song title [i]Circuit Court[/i] in this context should give a taste of this.

The music itself could best be describes as the vocal tonality of 10CC, with the inventive instrumentation of that same band, except with an underlying complexity reminiscent of Echolyn, with the hooks and power of Spock's Beard. But the mix of those styles brought together, makes the sound truly original 3RDegree music.

I received the album some weeks ago, yet still, every time I listen to it, I hear more and more inside each song. I cannot find anything at all to knock this down from a perfect rating.