OTHERS BY NO ONE

Originally I was gonna make this review on pride month, since many of you may know that Max Mobarry, the lead singer to this band, is a trans woman, and I wanted to show my support and appreciation for her craft here. However, life got in the way, so I am making this review now, a little late.

So, about Others By No One, they are a relatively new prog metal band, featuring Max Mobarry on vocals and guitar, Mike Gregg also on guitar and vocals, Quique Bucio on bass, and Sam Ruff on drums. While their discography so far isn't quite big, in fact if you look at their RYM page they practically have only one album if you count Book I to be an EP, they still have made quite a lot of fantastic music, with Book I being my personal favorite record of theirs.

I find Book I: Dr. Breacher to be one of the most solid releases of 2017, and it showcases the band's intricate strengths of technical proggy avant metal in a very refined way. You get a lot of qualities from stuff like jazz fusion, funk, thrash, post-hardcore, and symphonic prog in a very short and sweet album consisting of three tracks, one of which is a long 19 minute epic.

The one thing that has this album reeling me in is just how joyful it all sounds. I wouldn't say it is happy, especially since a lot of moments are very bleak and dark, but I find moments on Brand-New Remedy, or Dr. Breacher And The Time Travel Anomaly to have this quality that lifts me up in a way that I have not found quite a lot in some other prog metal bands. Max's vocals help a lot too, with her varied ranges of melodic and growling singing, mixed with just her cadence and dramatics, with it all wrapping into this very beautiful soundscape of emotions.

The instrumentals here are also really great in my opinion. Describing the sound Others By No One has is a very hard task, since when you think you can pin them down in one thing, they switch it up to have a completely different sound. Each song has these moments that feel so different from any other, creating this very varied, but not at all misshapen mix of musical ideals. I think the best way to actually picture the sound here is if Between The Buried and Me's Great Misdirect, and The Mars Volta's Amputechture had a baby, and that baby listened to Herbie Hancock, Cardiacs, Peter Gabriel, Converge, and a whole lot of other stuff, creating this very jazzy, punkish, delightful, and incredibly mixed sound. Honestly they create a nightmarish, but also very amazing display of music. Really, the music here is so eclectic and fun that I am always at least down to listen to Dr. Breacher And The Time Travel Anomaly anytime, anywhere.

If there is one thing I will say about this album that is a little harsh, it is that I am not a big fan of Death Of A Clone. It is a good track, don't get me wrong, but it doesn't quite have the same zaniness as the other tracks on here, and feels like a more straight laced song, which is something that I think doesn't quite fit Others By No One. The fun, eclectic, and quirky sound is still there, but it is too a more desaturated point that it makes me not quite like, nor see it as memorable as much as the other two tracks on here, and thus, while I'd say this album is very close to being a five star masterpiece, Death Of A Clone holds it back in that aspect.

I could ramble on and on about how good this album is, but I will keep it brief. This record showcases a sublime aura of zany prog metal, featuring such a wide, nightmarish, but incredibly joyous and lovely list of sounds and styles that makes the band so fun to listen to. If you enjoy bands like Between the Buried and Me, The Mars Volta, Haken?practically any prog band at this point, then check this album out. You'll have a wonderful time, I assure you.

The second studio album by what very well could be a new favorite band [you can see my rating, but I still have hope], Book II was released in 2021, four years following their debut. Certainly better timing than, say, and forgive me for this, Native Construct [If we ever get a second album from them...]. Of course, very exciting when new bands continue in an idiom that you appreciate, and Others by No One so fits the bill. When I first heard Book I, I was blown away... From midway through to the end, I do have this thought, significantly more than with the debut, that I just really want to listen to Native Construct... I guess instead.

Very interesting acoustic, quieted ballad in our introductory "Counting Raindrops". Mobarry has lovely vocals. The latter half has a very folksy feeling, which opens up fuller in the final half minute. I mean, wow? "An Artwork; Clandestine" is a beautiful ensemble of string-plucks and jazzy bassings, followed by flute and simple strumming. I have to wonder, and we're not even two songs in, just how long it took to create the concept and compose this... I'm just preparing myself for a journey. [Admittedly, a journey it was.]

Next is our first mini-epic, the 11-minute "A Reverie to Quell the Giants", with open, soaring strings over an optimistic Rock beat. It takes a minute into this song that we hear our first metallic entry, an intense and dramatic swell... Again, as expected, getting flavors from, I assume mostly, Native Construct and Between The Buried And Me. Before minute 3... you just don't get gang vocals in Prog Metal too frequently, huh? I pray it's understood, in its melodrama, that what this also seems to call to mind is Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance. There are some showtune-type things going on [and it's not the last], the Progressive Deathcore heaviness, that modern Prog Metal brightness, mixed also with, as I'm suggesting, something objectively Post-Hardcore. In addition to Native Construct, some of these sing-songy, Broadway-ready sections feel like they could be rooted in The Dear Hunter. I feel that in the tone of this song, for sure (and I am still talking about "A Reverie" haha). Nearing minute 7, the gang vocals return over a really intense sort of Deathcore breakdown. This may not appeal to every Prog fan, nor every Prog Metal fan, but this stuff is so well constructed, in all of its disparate and (expectedly) sporadic styles.

"Right Side of the Brain" starts off in a very unique tone. This is a solid BTBAM-style song. It's dramatic, intense, not letting up much at all, except for, say, the chorus. Great melodies, awesome musicianship. The middle section shifts to something... bizarre, but not entirely unfamiliar. I likely said this in my review for Book I, but this level of strange drama is rooted in performers like Mike Patton and bands like his Mr. Bungle. The ending of this track is quite lovely. Love the guitar. Up next, we have our second of three mini-epics, "The Impassecopedum". Weird, lower vocals here... This intro features a droning and ethereal synth underneath these vocals. This song's verse has vocals reminiscent of Patton, but also has a sort of Southern almost Gospel feel to it. But the song also has a Bungle-esque circus vibe in some parts. And then... a swelling faux-horn(?!) thing. I don't even know how to keep up with it all. The main lead vocals are really lovely. He's certainly an accomplished vocalist. Technical, but free in his experimentation. The keyboards... the guitars... everything? It's all great. In maximalism, this feels a tad more confident and stronger than "A Reverie". So eclectic and, with that too, excellently produced across the board, regardless of their tonal focus. Around the middle, there's an almost Cabaret/Wurlitzer type section with jazzy affectations by the rhythm section. There's something about it that reminded me of VdGG. All compliments, when it comes to what I feel are potential references. If I can do my best to summarize my thoughts on "The Impassecopedum", it is an impressive feat in holding my attention like this, as consistently as this, while also having many sections featuring greatly memorable material.

Up next, we enter more melodic, clean beauty in the intro on "Foxjune". These guys really have a lot of strengths across many vibes, tones, compositional styles, and genres. Just very impressive in that alone. This song has a sort of Emo/Post-Hardcore feeling to it, as well. The chords used are very familiar and the vocals are a great match. Big stuff goin' on, though it's in a feeling, emotive mode. I can't help but say this: beautiful. Around minute 3, there is a sizeable rhythmic shift. For the sake of repetition, I can't help but smile. Frisson country up in here, friends. Gorgeous. And then we're onto a different kind of beauty in the super modern, bright "Debt for Your Thoughts", which has more electronic and... Pop(?) influences. A lot to say. But I don't know how to state it all haha. This is more progressive than most in this field of the genre; for reasons that Prog fans aren't necessarily going to appreciate. Have an open mind, for sure. Best I can say. There's then a samba(?) rhythm in the latter half. Once again, too much to explain here haha. Impressive, to say the least. Is this like Ben Levin?... Ha! A band that actually understands the term "progressive" [in my humble opinion].

[It was at this point in the album that I took a pretty substantial break... For the best, to clear my head haha.]

Starting off our second half is the spacy "Tomes". Its first half hearkens back to the Ambient music of Eno, but the second half... is an eerie call to... I don't know. Art Zoyd? haha. It's very creepy. So... Well done! It ends fairly abruptly, picks back up briefly and then we're in the next, the similarly named "Tombs". The eeriness continues, despite being assured that "this is your home", as they say. Just as melodramatic as before. Kind of unrelated, but y'all heard that newer album by Spellling? That sh*t's good. Anyways... this track is rather singular, but to a pretty decent effect. Especially the death growls at the end... uhh... Unsettling. Next, we have the surely interluding 1-minute-and-change "The Tales of Nebulous Man". Very interesting... haha. Still unsettled.

Up next is a song of completely differing tone, "Well-Read". This is a melodic, piano-led song with a straighter rhythm. Very odd backing vocals call back, to my ears, to Kate Bush's "The Ninth Wave", the epic second half of her beloved album Hounds of Love. This track is lovely though overall. Still unusual haha. We get a big shift toward heavy darkness around minute 2. It changes again and again, first through an electronic chip-tuney section, and an industrial section which turns into a Deathcore(?) breakdown. This is followed by bellowing lead vocals. Back to showtunes? Regardless, great melodies. The snarling and growling remind me of a section of Utopia's ridiculous (and ridiculously good) fantasy epic, "Singring and the Glass Guitar", following Roger Powell's vocal verse. I guess overall, this song isn't exactly for me. We already know they have it all in them to do whatever they want, but... there are better songs here. Coming out of this wild adventure is the lovely piano balladry of "The Plight of Proxy". Around minute 1, it shifts to the focus of strummed acoustic guitar. Trying to decide how I feel about this one. There's some pretty nice electric lead guitar in the second half. Nothing saved it. It's a "meh" for me, dawg.

Finally, we have our third longest track, "Where Stories Come From". This is introduced right out of the final notes of "The Plight" and features some lovely, spacy synth padding. We're riding high in the clouds. Keys drop away and guitar takes over. It's all very pretty. But when the second section enters around minute 2, I'm getting familiar feelings: I don't know how I feel. And then... beautiful lead bass riffing rides over tasteful piano. And then it just opens up further. Great beat. And great melodies in this third part. This song is... too all over the place in a way totally other from the rest. Approaching minute 6 is a pretty great, swelling section. It's pretty epic. I just feel like... I'm not rewarded by it? haha. It feels undue. I'm not saying the song isn't "good", and certainly not saying the song wasn't for the most part very pretty, but... I got nothin'.

I really do feel like I have to listen to a lot of this again, but... as of now... True Rate: 3.5/5.0

A one off single by the progressive metal band, Others by No One. I have just recently heard about this band, and I gotta say I am very much loving their very eccentric music. They go extremely hard with their music, and they remind me a lot with bands like Haken, The Mars Volta, and even a little bit of Opeth and Genesis. I can definitely tell they'll be pretty big someday, but for now they are a bit unknown and underground. With that, I feel like I can say that this single maybe their best song to date.

Oni-Chan is such a cool song. I feel like it never wastes it's time and gets right into that glorious and punchy progressive metal sound, and that beginning bass riff is so damn good. That middle, more fun filled part of the song is also really good, but in a different way. Where the beginning felt heavy and intense, this feels light hearted and goofy, but in a good way, and even if it's stylized differently compared to the rest of the song, it just fits for some reason. And let's just talk about that ending. It's extremely beautiful and just has some amazing singing. Max Mobarry is such a good vocalist, I would totally love to hear a solo album of her's one day due to this part alone.

This entire single is so, so good. I never felt like my time was wasted or inconvenienced. Is it perfect? Well no, I can say sometimes parts are a little forgettable and the lyrics can be a bit hard to follow, and the plot of the song is kinda mixed in my opinion, but in terms of musicianship and quality, this is amazing. If this is what Prog Metal will be in the soon future with Others by No One and Haken side by side, than good lord I am gonna enjoy this decade of amazing progressive metal.

Out of a new wave of super-eclectic Progheads inspired by the likes of BTBAM and Native Construct, Others By No One comes onto the scene. Hearing it now, I can't believe this passed me by (what, going on 5 years ago?!). Their 2017 debut album, Book I: Dr. Breacher, indeed has all the marks of those who came before. I think this is a legacy of eclecticism and fearless experimentation that first sprouted from the likes of John Zorn and Bill Laswell, eventually culminating earliest on in the eventually-90s Crossover-Thrash-meets-Demon-Circus-Lounge act Mr. Bungle. They were the ones, I'm sure with the great production assistance of Zorn, who really broke open the door to this level of wild, at times schizophrenic, experimentation (these Others seem a tad more safe in this camp than, say, BTBAM).

A beautiful and heartfelt (and highly melodic) opener, "Brand-New Remedy" reminds in quite a few ways of the exemplary love song mini-epic of the same shift in pace and feeling from 'the norm' as "Your Familiar Face" by Native Construct; in the latter's case, a wild, melodic and lovey-dovey Prog-metal devotion to Queen to many a listener's ears.

"Death of a Clone", featuring at times neo-classical trills more-so for their camp in Queen-esque style. Another track of beauty but also surprise and alarm. A lot of epic, sprawling instrumentation and group vocals/harmonies. First alarm sounds off nearing minute 4, only to ease immediately into soft, clean playing. These guys really know how to play the field and play it masterfully regardless. The way everything is mixed too gives the music an even greater intensity.

"Dr. Breacher and the Time Travel Anomaly", its first half released as a 10-minute single, is in total a 20- minute epic of feeling and beauty, darkness and brutality. This is, in fact, the heaviest thing we've heard from Others By No One so far! Virtuoso guitarings atop heavy and relentless accompaniment from all camps. Spectacular and grandiose, shifting and sliding from one moment to the next; from dark Progressive/Technical Deathcore to sweeping, emotive and soft soundscapes with the most beautiful of vocal harmonies. This indeed, especially starting around minute 4, strikes as Native Construct devotion; how could I blame them? See the very epic mini-epic "Chromatic Aberration" from their debut. From belligerence and brutality to something sweeter, the greatest shift occurs around minute 5 and will tickle the fancy of many a Prog fan's ears. Strange, hypnotic and yet simultaneously melodic and beautiful. Compositional excellence, for sure! Thinking you'll end on a sweet note here, the single version would effectively leave the listener on a dark, eerie cliffhanger... I think a nice touch. And thereafter, back off to the races they go, with familiarly Fusion-inspired modern Progressive guitar melodies. Things swell to a fantastic, triumphant point until dropping off entirely to creeping solo piano met then by the whole ensemble chanting together--these aren't 'gang' vocals as you know them... Spectacular. I love the sound of static that closes the whole affair out...

If I can be as clear as possible, a song-by-song average results in a True(st) Rate of 4.83/5.00.

The (10-minute?!) single version (Part 1) of the LP Book I: Dr. Breacher's very-near-20-minute closing epic.

As you can hear it, as the final track, on that LP, it is the heaviest thing you will have heard from Others By No One! Virtuoso guitarings atop heavy and relentless accompaniment from all camps start this song out. Spectacular and grandiose, then shifting and sliding from one moment to the next; from dark Progressive/Technical Deathcore to sweeping, emotive and soft soundscapes with the most beautiful of vocal harmonies. This indeed, especially starting around minute 4, strikes as Native Construct devotion; how could I blame them? See the very epic mini-epic "Chromatic Aberration". From belligerence and brutality, the greatest shift occurs around minute 5 and will tickle the fancy of many a Prog fan's ears. Strange, hypnotic and yet simultaneously melodic and beautiful. Compositional excellence, for sure. Thinking you'll end on a sweet note here, the single effectively leaves the listener on a dark, eerie cliffhanger...

Check out the album, seriously.

Even after 45 years, I still get very excited on those rare occasions when prog brings up something completely different. This second album from Others by No One is indeed one of those occasions. I can't really describe this album, as that would be impossible. And it would spoil the surprise. It's definitely progressive rock, but it's also a lot of other things. If you've ever wondered how other music genres would sound with constantly shifting time signatures, then this will provide some answers. It might also be a musical. The listening experience is exactly the same as riding a faulty rollercoaster. It's exhilarating, unpredictable, and you can't get off. Where Stories Come From is a long album (75 minutes), but there are no dull moments, not even on the first listen. If you want me to recommend a track to start you off, then you could try Well-Read (just because it's the first one I heard). You are in for a treat.