836

Well, since I discovered this band I've been closely following their steps and supporting them, because they demonstrated to be so ambitious and creative, despite being so young. They had the courage to write and share their music to Billy Sherwood, whose trained ears adopted what ALS sent and decided to produce their amazing debut album released back in 2015, and also their second and newest record entitled "836" (which can be also pronounced as BioElectroGenesis), released this 2017 fall.

What these three geek-friends offer is a sci-fi experience in which the music is the main element, but the lyrics tell a story and our minds create the film. I am really keen on them because to be honest, I had never known a Mexican band this young with such big talent. You'll believe me. The music is a blend of symphonic rock with spacey atmospheres and even some psych and metal moments, so be ready for the next 55 minutes divided in 5 tracks, because you'll have a great journey.

The album kicks off with "Spaceport", the shortest track and the introduction to the spacey journey. Here you can feel like being waking up in an unknown place and realizing that what surrounds you have been part of your dreams. This introductory song is completely instrumental, keyboards, guitar, bass and drums creating a solid whole that opens gates to the space and lead us to create pictures on our minds. The spacey-sounds are here and there but the symphonic prog is also evident, though there is also a jazzy feeling here. This track leads to "Alpha Fornacis" which is the first one to have lyrics. Alam Hernández is the main voice but I love how San Martin and Jácome help with those backing vocals. The lyrics might be easy to catch so I am sure you will learn it soon. The sound is calm but while the seconds pass new elements are added. Before reaching the third minute there is a major change, the music vanishes and spacey atmospheres appear and then a new structure is being built up, with that evident symphonic prog made evident mainly by keyboards.

The title track is also the longest one. The climax of the album comes with "Bioelectrogenesis", a challenging and amazing 15-minute composition that show the creativity these guys have, the concept behind the album and even their musical influences. Here there is a chat between a man and its universe, which could by a simile of the inner struggles one can have. There is a funky feeling made by the guitar here, wonderfully complemented by the strong bass, clean and versatile drums and that symphonic-spacey keyboard playing. The first two minutes are a wonderful instrumental introduction and then the encounter begins. There is something I'd like to say, it is not that easy to realize when the Universe speaks and when the Human does, I mean, you can tell by the backing vocals, but it is not that evident. The music is wonderful, I love its changes and different passages, it is like a mini-novel with brief but juicy chapters. After 9 minutes there is a part I love, the music produces a sense of hurry, it becomes faster and more bombastic. The drums are wonderful; maybe at first I didn't realize, but man, it shares so many figures.

"To Rate is to Create" starts softly with a delicate acoustic guitar and keyboards as background. The voice joins after two minutes, and one minute later a completely new structure appears, led by keyboards that create once again a bombastic symphonic sound, with rock guitars and a great bass-drums work. It is extraordinary how they placed the different passages, I mean, there are long moments without lyrics, then they return and disappear and then comeback, all flows naturally in spite of the different changes, which let us know once again how good they are as composers. Extraordinary track!

There is one more (and long) track here, the final part of the journey. It is "Psychosis" which by the way is divided in four parts. I like this one a lot, it is like a representation of our unconscious minds, how we react before the unknown and all what we hide deep inside our thoughts. Musically this is another art rock journey where all the instruments play an equal role, but at the same time all of them have their shot in brief moments, so if you listen carefully you will find some nice bass slaps, cool drumstick games, guitar adding funky and rocky colors and of course the different textures created by keyboards. There is a nice amount of nuances in this track, nuances that actually produce emotions: chaos, nervousness, hurry, calm, salvation, and satisfaction. To listen to this album and Alpha Lighting System's music is something great, a different experience with every new listen, which is something I praise a lot.

Please listen to them and if you like the music, spread the word, I blindly believe they have all to writhe their name in the progressive rock history around the globe. Enjoy it!