By DJ Monk
I must admit, it’s been a weird week here at ÜRHQ. First of all, DQ decides to fuck off to the south of Spain at barely a few hours’ notice, just because she can do such things, you understand. Then, one of my favourite bands releases possibly the worst, if not definitely the most disappointing, album of their career. And then this highly unusual and definitely “out there” album lands in my inbox…. Yes, it’s been a weird week, and if this had arrived a few days earlier it most definitely would have served as its soundtrack rather than that of its reflection…
To say that this album presents us with an eclectic listening experience would be something of an understatement. It runs a complete gamut of elements, from prog metal through to extreme death, neo-folk noir through alt-metal, retro-prog through power pop – and that’s just in the first two songs!
‘Veil Of Imagination’ is an absolutely huge motherfucker of an album. It’s like a 100,000-tonne ocean liner trying to squeeze into a local marina. It’s that massive. It is majestic, regal, but also brutal, by turns caressing you like a long-lost lover and then stabbing you with the ferocity of the same remembering why you walked out on them in the first place. It is a work of art worthy of DaVinci, but in places re-imagined by Banksy. It towers over the musical landscape like The Shard, yet all the while threatening to topple and impale you with its underlying fragility, its sense of impending doom washing over you like that of watching a car crash that is about to happen but being unable to do anything about it – and not wanting to for fear of interrupting the beauty of the souls involved transcending to their final destiny.
‘Veil Of Imagination’ doesn’t hide behind the first word of its title, but demonstrates and exemplifies plenty of the third: it is a gloriously imaginative album that enervates and excites on every level. It is one which will appeal to fans of “traditional” prog and its more modern, metallic successor with equal degrees of enjoyment and satisfaction. In fact, it could very well prove to be a defining moment in the history of the prog genre, given its combination of the old and new school interpretations…
- ‘Veil Of Imagination’ is out now. You can get your copy, and other Wilderun goodies, HERE.
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