As 2016 comes to a close, one of the final releases of the year comes from German heavy Prog/Psych Rock band Buddha Sentenza with a ambitious follow up to their 2013 debut album South Western Lower Valley Rock. Semaphora is a mix of Progressive, Psychedelic, Stoner and even Metal elements that cover the spectrum from Sludge to Space Rock where Sabbath meet Floyd in some 70s twilight zone. With searing guitars, spaced-out, rocking riffs, swirling Hammond organ and pounding drums, Buddha Sentenza condense these genres into a sound that is both retro and modern; ambient and rock solid; tightly orchestrated and loosely jammed through six instrumental tracks.
Semaphora is a journey of over 45 minutes of musical meditations, that leans more towards hard Rock and classic Prog elements more than the full blown Psychedelia of the band’s vast sonic heritage, as the band merge genres from the Prog/Metal opening track ‘Jet’ through to the multi-layered epic closing track ‘The End Is Coming, We'll Take It From Here’. Although lacking real focus and a true direction, Buddha Sentenza explore some really interesting ideas……… soaring violin leads ‘Greek Ancestry’ giving the track the feel of the Jazz/Prog vibes of early 70s band Darryl Way’s Wolf and ‘Laika’ is a full on modern Prog Rock wig out with crunching riffs, screaming Hammond organ and tricksy tempo changes. The most intriguing track on the album is ‘Blood Rust’……………..clocking in at around the nine minute mark it has a very modern Post Rock/Psych Rock structure very much like Causa Sui and Explosions In The Sky gently ambling instrumentals with shifting tonal dynamics and subtle sonic structures. This is certainly a record for the ProgHeads and worth a listen……………….you can check the album out now as Semaphora has been made available as a “name your price” download on the Buddha Sentenza Bandcamp page here https://buddhasentenza.bandcamp.com/.
Released by World In Sound Records, Semaphora will be available on vinyl and on CD towards the end of January 2017 (although you can get the CD directly from the band now). The vinyl comes in standard black or as a limited edition (100 copies) multicoloured version available to pre-order now from World In Sound or the Buddha Sentenza Bandcamp page.
No comments:
Post a Comment