Had it not been for one simple post from a friend of mine, I would have missed this album completely, and that would have been a shame of biblical proportions. It was a simple “Ashe’s new band has an album coming out…..” The Ashe is referring to former TesseracT lead singer Ashe O’hara, who after a brilliant one album stint with the djent pioneers amicably parted ways. Turns out he had another band, Voices from the Fuselage, who had released a stunning debut EP To Hope before TesseracT, and thankfully for all of us, they now have released their debut full length album Odyssey: The Destroyer of Worlds.
In addition to O’hara, the band consist of Mitch Ramsay and Josh Galloway on guitar, Scott Lockhart on drums, and Dale Gorham on bass. They formed in 2010 in the UK and describe themselves as alternative sci-fi post rock. Now admit it, you got hot just reading that little description, and curiosity will surely lead you to giving these guys a moment of your time. Trust me, you won’t regret it….
Their style, and I will go out on a limb here, is unique. Usually a band can have roots traced, or will stand out for one genre or another, but Voices not only use a myriad influences, including a good dose of pop and electronica to flavor their base prog metal, but they manage to bring a real heart and soul to a sci-fi themed album, something most movies and books of the genre seem to miss. The two opening tracks, Ortus and Inner Child (the lone single from the album) flow together to form a stunning opening to the mammoth album. With it’s epic sounding scape, Ortus delivers the message that this will not be an ordinary ride, and Inner Child lets us know that this ride will fucking rock. Fenestra is a grinding soulful piece that leads into one of the best five song runs I’ve ever heard.
Meteorites is brilliant, period. Here they introduce the electronic/pop element, and seamlessly flow it into a thunderous prog metal finish. It’s flawless, and though all sensibility says it shouldn’t work, it does, perfectly. Anew is a heart wrencher, showing off some stunning lyrical abilities along with Ashe’s harrowing vocal work. Coupled with a driving instrumental background, this is a powerful track. Epcinium is the game changer here. Full of a drum machine, autotune, and a catchy, repeating beat, Voices from the Fuselage takes all the things I can’t stand about pop music and puts it together perfectly, to where the song was on repeat for days afterwards. A Principle God redefines epic, taking all the pent up potential of the band and reaching as far as they can for the heartstrings. They really hit on every cylinder here, drawing the listener into their cacophony of sound and coursing them up and down throughout the track. Devil’s Advocate brings this run to a close. If this album were a movie, this track would be the cool, epic scene with all the explosions and shit, the one that really culminates the storyline in the movie. Of course without visuals, a storyline is much harder to follow, and I’ll need a slew of listens to wrap my mind around this one, a chore I’m more than looking forward to.
Astral Existence is a sweet atmospheric number that leads into the final track Departure, which closes the album with us apparently floating in space. The band brings an enormous amount of talent to the table, with stunning guitars, killer bass lines, fiery drums, and of course the stunning vocals, Ashe’s and the backing team who he perfectly harmonizes with. The musical approach is akin to a bunch of ADHD kids in a toy store, playing with whatever they can get their hands on. The remarkable thing though, is where other bands fail with a haphazard approach, these guys make it work. They take so many chances on this album, and through brilliant songwriting and execution, succeed in them all. Looking very forward to more from Voices from the Fuselage for sure.
Check out Odyssey: Destroyer of Worlds on their Bandcamp page….
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