Solstice Coil
Israeli Progressive Metal Night at Sublime
Progressive metal bands in Israel are a rare breed. That is why when I heard the Sublime was holding a double feature of female fronted progressive metal bands, I left the Shir-cave and drove to the wasteland which is Southern Tel Aviv.
The evening featured two bands – Key of the Moment and PieQ. The former I’ve known for sometime – it is a project led by Eden Rabin (of Orphaned Land and Right on Time), and the latter is a relatively new band to the scene.
Introducing Key of the Moment
Key of the Moment has been around for a few years but I don’t think I’ve ever had the chance to see them live until last week. This quintet of skilled musicians is as impressive live as it is in the studio; fronted by a powerful female singer (who apparently only joined the band about a month ago – it wasn’t noticeable), the band presents captivating melodies with a tight and cunning performance.
Most notable were bass player Jonathan Maimon (who you might have seen on Project RNL videos) who holds the band together with his amazing precision, and of course, the leader of the bunch, the shirtless yet talented keyboardist Eden Rabin. If you like thick power chords, dramatic chord progressions and a poignant female voice – this is the band for you.
Enter PieQ
Actually PieQ went on stage first, but I wanted to elaborate more on this band’s performance. I have heard PieQ’s music on their Bandcamp page before and I was quite impressed, but unfortunately I missed their previous concerts.
This band is comprised of young people around the age of 20. Now, I’ve seen prog-metal played in the past by youngsters and usually, although their technique is astounding, the actual compositions are redundant and distasteful – not such is the case here. PieQ matches their technical skills with rich melodies, exciting riffs and surprising musical twists.
Another quintet of singular instruments (one drummer, one bass player, one guitarist, one keyboardist and one lead singer), the band managed to deliver their musical vision on stage without compromising on a single thing. The rich distortion sound from Guy Meiri’s Stratocaster, accompanied by Guy Bernfeld’s crunching six-string bass and the explosive drumming style of Shalev Srur created an intense wall of sheer power that allows nothing else to get through.
Nothing, except for Sapir J. Fox’s paramount voice, that is. While some have claimed that Sapir’s voice makes PieQ sound like Lee Triffon from Eatliz, to me Sapir sounds like a young Gwen Stefani. That is, before the embarrassing Sholem Aleichem cover and hip hop career.
Actually, the overall PieQ sound, particularly on their EP, reminds me of a pre-Tragic Kingdom No Doubt. Yuval Brusilovsky’s keyboards, which I’m sorry to say weren’t that audible during the most of the concert, are quite reminiscent of Eric Steafani’s choice of sounds. This resemblance is further emphasized on the song Inverted Smile, where at some point the band actually starts to play a Ska segment, before cutting back to its core musical style.
I have always thought that No Doubt, as great a band as it was (not including anything after Tragic Kingdom, of course), could have taken its music farther. It could have been a progressive rock band, or at least it could have introduced more complexity to its songs instead of, well, less.
So basically, PieQ does answer the question – what would No Doubt sound like if it became a progressive metal band? Of course this is not to say that PieQ is a No Doubt clone or unoriginal in any way; in fact, it is one of the most original bands I’ve seen in Israel.
If you’re in Israel, be sure to check out one of their concerts. And if you’re not – buy their EP!
Wtf is Alternative Progressive Rock?
When talking to people about Solstice Coil, I am often asked three questions: 1) what does Solstice Coil mean? 2) How do you pronounce it? (Mostly Israeli people ask that) and 3) what kind of music do you play / wtf is alternative progressive rock?
So here are some answers for you:
1) It means nothing. Just kidding, it means something, we just don't know what… I elaborated about this in this interview.
2) You pronounce it phonetically, obviously!
3) Well…
I remember writing a forum ad for our first show, which stated that we played alternative rock / grunge / Britpop. Naturally, those were different times, with a completely different material. Our influences at the time were mostly Muse, Radiohead and Nickelback.
Okay, just kidding about Nickelback, but I was a keen fan of Britpop bands, mainly Ocean Color Scene, Dodgy, Blur, Oasis and Mansun.
Obviously, a lot has changed since then. We started diving into the world of progressive rock, which eventually led us to chuck all the songs we had and replace them with what would eventually become A Prescription for Paper Cuts. The thing was, we didn't quite feel like we were making progressive rock per se.
The Search for Definition
My singing style has always been influenced by Thom Yorke and Matthew Bellamy, as well as the mood of our compositions. We also didn't feel like we were measuring up to "real" progressive rock bands like Genesis, King Crimson and Yes – we really didn't feel like our music was that complicated.
On the other hand, we sure as hell weren't going to define ourselves as a Neo-Prog band. We also didn't want to claim to be a prog-metal band because some songs weren't that heavy and the falsetto style of singing found in APPC was very none-metal.
I'll just Create My Own Genre, Then! (With blackjack, and hookers)
We decided a new sub-sub-genre was in order. Since we combined alternative rock and progressive rock, it was only natural to call it Alternative Progressive Rock, or alt-prog-rock for short. Or APR for really short. Though nobody calls it that.
We didn't know of many bands that fused these two styles the same way we did at the time, except maybe for fellow Israeli rock band Eatliz, but they took it to a far more extreme direction, which was often clearly progressive metal (even if they won't admit it).
Surprise, Surprise, Alternative Progressive Rock Exists
When we finally got to record some tracks and upload them to the web, we started receiving all sorts of feedback. One comment on Garageband mentioned The Mars Volta, which we didn't know at the time.
After listening carefully to their music, we felt like we had just found our twin brother – this was a band that made crazy music with odd time signatures, unorthodox song structures, long guitar solos and busy arrangements, while still maintaining a modern sound and not actually sounding like a prog band at all!
So naturally, after we were told we sound like them, we started doing everything we could to sound like them, but on purpose.
Then another comment spoke of Dredg. Though not quite a progressive alternative band, they do present some unconventional songwriting and a unique drumming style, especially on El Cielo.
The most notable band we found was Oceansize. Now this was a band that had the guitars and vocals of Radiohead and Muse, only all of their songs are played on a 7/8 time signature. Efflorescence paved the way, but Everyone into Position really established their reign as alternative progressive rock kings (though their MySpace paged defined them as a Progressive Death Indie band).
I would also like to note two albums from the late 1990s that I feel are model examples of alt-prog-rock:
Mansun - Six
This brilliant concept album is the apex of what I think alternative progressive rock should be: ambiguous yet meaningful lyrics and unexpected compositions that never cease to surprise you. I recently read on Paul Draper's blog about the making of Six, and it really inspired me. I wrote a review about the album a few years ago, you can read it here (for Israelis and Hebrew majors only)
Pulp – This is Hardcore
Yes, Pulp. If you don't know this album and you think Pulp was nothing but an upbeat Britpop band with some silly hit songs, think again. This concept album is very well crafted, musically, lyrically and visually. It's not as off-the-hook as Six, but it has some very interesting compositions, particularly the title theme, which is both moving and intellectually stimulating – and that's what alternative progressive rock is all about!
If you can think of any more examples for alternative progressive rock, let me know!
First time 1/3 Icecream
Eatliz - Violently Delicate
It basically amounts to this.
Black Light Burns - Cruel Melody
which confused the heck out of me. This band is the brainchild of Wes Borland, whom appearntly had no brains, seeing as how he was formerly a part of Limp Bizkit. They're one of those new bands that can't seem pick a genre. Are they trying to be Stabbing Westwards? Are they imitating Tool? Are they doing weird electornica shit? God knows. The album starts with Mesopotamia, a word I'd never thought I'll hear sung and a generally annoying track. From there it gets better though, with tracks like Lie and Coward which have this Nine-Inch-Nails-esque industrial metal vibe to it, only without the added Reznorness. Then at some point the album takes a steep turn and enters Depeche Mode, with some nice soft moody pieces. Finally it ends with Iodine Sky, an electronic instrumental piece that could have been just as easily placed on an Air album. Weird.
And the review for non-musicians
Don't get me wrong, it's not the "head nodding parent" kind of disappointed, but more the "being 6 years old, going to the ice cream parlor and getting only one scoop instead of three" kind of disappointed. You see, Violently Delicate is a great album and that's the problem: It's not magnificent, it's not mind blowing, it's not amazing, it's just great. Were we talking about a different band, I could settle for great, but we're talking about Eatliz - I was expecting a masterpiece. But it's hardly that. It's "just great", and I don't want "just great".
Eatliz seem to have decided to put all their "weird" songs right at the beginning of the album, so the average listener could have a chance to get used to what he's hearing and earn the right to hear the good stuff. Sort of an Eatliz boot camp, one might say.
The album starts of with Bolsheviks, a heavy guitar driven track reminiscent of Kate Bush, were she ever into metal. Eatliz's way of saying "this is who were are and here's the lovely and crazy shit we make";
Then comes along Violently Delicate (previously "Ugly Her"). A Beach Boys-esque surf metal extravaganza with a fun twist.
Attractive is a radio single that compacts the essence of the band into a four-minute sugarcoated bliss.
Sunshine is a good song with a weird ass sax solo. It definitely wins in the category of "Most bars someone ever bothered to give a sax solo"
Say Where is an Arabic-ryhtmed ballad with a riff that just gets stuck in your head until you go insane. In a good way.
Big Fish – I don't know, but something about Sheflan's vocals fits perfectly the nonsensical lyrics. The song practically talks about nothing, and yet you can actually "feel" its fun atmosphere. I wouldn't be surprised if you find yourself grinning like a moron while listening to this track. All is nice and well until you reach this unflattering noise solo, a serious distraction from the song. It's also probably one of the most unfitting solos I've ever heard in a song. It even carries on to the last chorus, adding ugly dissonants to an otherwise euphonic section To tell you the truth, it's surprising to hear such a solo coming from Or Bahir as this is truly uncharacteristic for a guitarist of his stature.
I Don't Care is a brilliant example of how to blend riffs and noises that just fit perfectly without crowding the song. The rhythm section of this song just rocks. Asides from a weird scream at the end, the production works just fine on this track.
Mix Me has one of the coolest intros, with beautiful melodies and also features a cool shredding solo presented in a non shredding way.
Be Invisible continues with another cool intro (how does Guy Bin Shitrit think of those?). There's this Arabian-disco part at the end with so much raw power - it's one of those songs that you just have to hear live to fully grasp.
Whore – This is probably my favorite song. Asides from the fucking cool riff of the verses, the chorus is what makes it so good. With amazing guitarwork by all 3 guitarists that sits tight and gives it a punch, this song kicks, and pulls and it also manages to touch. Not to mention the solo, which is impressive both technically and in terms of creativity and arrangement. It also comes to show you that a song can be excellent even when it has practically two words for lyrics.
Mountain Top, the closing track, is also one of my favorites. It's a moody and emotional piece with a pretty chord progression that builds up nicely into the chorus. But right at the end in case you've forgot which band you're listening to, Lee Triphon decides to remind you with a soul piercing-being-raped kind of screech, and after a few bars the whole experience ends
My main gripe is that if Eatliz didn't deliberately overproduce themselves to death, Violently Delicate would have been much much better album. The songs are good enough on their own to render it a great album to have, but just as a taste and not a true representation of the band's capabilities. You need to see Eatliz live to understand.
