DEEP LIMBIC SYSTEM

"Katharsi" is a really good album - a quarter of a century ago I would say it's a great album. The album's music, based on heavy keys, has all the good heavy prog album needs - guitar soloing, strong vocals, quite complex songs' rhythmic structures, changing tempos and tuneful songs. Myriads of influences, from Uriah Heep organ passages to Pink Floyd "space" sound, from King Diamond romanticized demonic atmosphere to Dream Theater classics - all are presented here, with taste and respect, without direct citation or plagiarizing. All album's songs are different, there is a musical development during the album's run. The music is well arranged and the recording sound is of good quality. And - what is more important - the whole album builds that specific "rock album's" atmosphere, which was quite usual for great albums from the past, but are very much missed nowadays.

I would be really glad to hear some innovations of a great old genre, or more original ideas in the album's music, but hey - I know pretty well that evolution has its lovers and haters. "Katharsi" is a great work for conservative listeners, and fans of classic heavy prog sound, and I am not sure how many such new quality albums are around nowadays.

An excellent EP from this Mexican band! To me, as a Mexican, it is always a pleasure to find new (or old) bands from my country whose talent make me feel proud and eager to share their music to anyone, because we need to do that, we have so many great bands and musicians who need our support, who deserve our support and to spread the word first in our own country, and then all around the world. As you know, one of my favorite ways of supporting them is writing reviews, because I know some people read me and some trust in my tastes and album's descriptions.

Deep Limbic System is a band I discovered a few weeks ago, thanks to a friend's radio show who invited another friend that has a prog label and who told us about this young band, whose next record will be released under Azafran Media. When he spoke about them I immediately looked for their information in Social Media, so what I found in Facebook and then when I knew their EP could be listened on music platforms, I did not hesitate and ran to listen to 'The Embryo', which was released in 2014 and that has surprised me so positively.

In this release you will hear five compositions and a total time of 28 minutes of modern progressive rock, with a hard, jazzy and experimental sound. The first track 'Amniotic' is a two-minute introductory song that starts with saxophone, some seconds later acoustic guitar joins as well as piano, the sound is pretty nice, delicate and well elaborated. It leads to 'Dysania' which opens with piano and then explodes with the addition of keyboards, strings and drums. Just before reaching the first minute, vocals enter in English, reminding me a bit of Riverside and Leprous' singers. The instrumental passages are a great blend of prog metal with spacey atmospheres. The composition is very well built, so the great quality of these musicians is simply evident.

'Orison' is the longest composition, reaching almost the 10-minute mark. It is another great composition, one can easily dig and enjoy it; I love the guitar work here (main and back guitars), they produce wonderful nuances that allow us to enter to a hypnotic trip to Deep Limbic System's realm. After a couple of minutes saxophone enters and a new structure seems to being built up; nice piano and drums decorate the music, while the vocals enter singing softly repetitive lines. Though the atmosphere is kind of soft and calm, some kind of tension is perceived somewhere. It is a great track that surely would be loved by the Riverside-Opeth-Haken fans, but that any prog rock fan could appreciate.

The last ten minutes of this EP run with 'Owls' and 'Farewell'. The earlier is a shorter track that offers a delicious blend of latin jazz and atmospheric rock, it contrasts with the previous song, it is different but also great. And the latter is a great progressive rock track which also has a soft sound, slow tempo that progresses little by little. It is not easy to classify their music, because you might be listening to post rock moments while in some seconds they give us some kind of alternative rock, and in others psychedelic tunes. This particular song is pretty dreamy, peaceful and hypnotic in the first half; later it changes a little bit with a disarming guitar solo and a heavier sound. I like it a lot and I think it is a great way to finish this solid EP.

I am eager and curious to know what this Mexican band has to offer, because this release is just an example of their inherent greatness. I think they will give us so many positive reactions soon!

Enjoy it

This EP, "The Embryo", really is an album all to itself. Far from a collection of songs, this album explores the idea of growing, maturing, and realizing your potential. It's about understanding yourself, learning to better yourself and get over your fears, and it hits on the idea of that inner hope for something beyond this life. This aptly named EP is truly something deep, as is hinted in the fantastic artwork.

But, to the music now. The EP starts off with a dirty, dynamic saxophone lead in "Amniotic", and it never pulls back from greatness. Beto Valtierra on saxophone is truly gifted, and his sound is incredibly signature from the first listen. The rest of the band---Sergio Sunga on vocals and guitars, Efraín Fraire on guitars, Carlos Barcenas on keys, Angel Daniel on bass, and Pepe Armengol on drums---have crafted something beautiful that Beto then accents expertly with his peeling sax. The music is hard to nail down in one genre, as on this short EP, the band visits everything from jazz fusion to progressive metal to the classic prog rock sound. Gorgeous walls of piano and keys mix expertly with emotive guitar solos in the vein of Floyd and Riverside to evoke a fullness, a gentleness, and a melodious wonder to my ears. The excellent rhythm section is full of surprises and very organic grooves, too. Lastly, Sergio's voice is rather free of accent, and wonderfully balanced, although this EP is primarily instrumental.

It was hard to wrap my head around this EP at first. Even though I can count the various genres that are visited, Deep Limbic System has a wonderful way of mixing them so well that they almost disappear into each other. Bluesy metal? Psychedelic jazz? It's all here, and it should be on everyone's list. My favorite tracks are the addictive intro "Amniotic" and the incredibly well-structured track "Orison". All of the other tracks are very worthy, as well.

So, in approaching this EP, I think it's safe to say that it is one of the best things I've heard in 2014 thus far, and I'm seriously impressed. In fact, after sharing them around a bit, people seemed to take to them immediately, especially other reviewers. So, do yourself a favor and pick this album up at the band's Bandcamp page. Support this band, as I predict amazing things to come.

4.5 stars