Via the Verge has produced a solid effort with their debut self-titled EP. Discerning listeners and musicians, don’t touch the knob: This six-song effort sounds immaculate and is expertly mixed. With this first release, the future is bright for this Norman, OK-based quintet, tastefully implementing time signatures and key changes while avoiding anything that feels gimmicky or forced. Unlike other bands in their post-hardcore, progressive rock genre, they don’t wear you out with a barrage of speed drumming and staccato guitar riffs. Instead, they leave the listener with enough space to breath and absorb what they just heard, a nod to their ability to write a true song. Each track is its own animal, presented in such an organic way, unforced with respect for the musicianship that drives it. Newly acquired vocalist Joseph Kelm drops deep, guttural vocals as an accent, inserted only on an as-needed basis. Manning a tiny raft in a sea of prog-rock and metal bands, the question for Via the Verge is whether they will survive long enough to rise above the tide, and they are definitely worth following to find out.
Features
Overflowing with Wrath
Dempsey Mills is the brains behind Vials of Wrath, an atmospheric solo project rooted in Nordic inspiration, historic genre, and a dichotomy of peace and tension that underlies the heaviness of the music. Just don't call it unblack.
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Changing Focus
When Weathered wrote their debut album, 'Stranger Here,' it was an introspective take on life as they knew it. The appropriate way to follow it up? Turn the mirror around and tell the stories of those around you.
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Love and Death and Resurrection
After an eight year hiatus, Love and Death return with 'Perfectly Preserved,' an eclectic and personal release for nu-metal icon and frontman Brian 'Head' Welch. Still at the heart of it all, the man with the dreads details his life in the spotlight after returning to Korn, the launch of a holistic recovery center, and his spearheading of an autobiographical documentary. As fresh as he's ever been at 50 years old, he's still got more to give.
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The Industrial Revolution
Italian creative Giovanni Bucci, otherwise known as ODDKO, has spent a professional career pushing the limits of some of the world's largest brands. HM contributor Andrew Voigt talks with the man behind the curtain to find out what it looks like when he pushes the limits of his own creativity.
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