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Between the Buried and Me: The Parallax-Hypersleep Dialogues
 North Carolina's Between the Buried and Me have done it again. After a string of highly successful releases on Victory Records, the band jumped ship to planet Metal Blade and their debut for their new label, The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues, is a 30 minute EP that is Part 1 of a two part saga. Despite the brevity of this one, the band pack quite a bit into the 3 song, half hour format, which will only leave fans wanting more and counting the days till the longer, second part is released. A little info on the story:
"The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues will introduce two human characters who live in different planes of existence, separated by millions of light years," comments guitarist Paul Waggoner. "We find that each is confronted with similar personal issues that they need to reckon with. Both characters make decisions that will change their lives, and perhaps the course of the universe, forever. Musically, it sounds like BETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME. The record has elements of aggression, beauty, quirkiness, and pure cacophony. For 'Part 1', we establish several themes which I'm sure will be revisited in the lengthier 'Part 2', which is something we really look forward to. We love to expand on simple ideas and see where they take us."
Produced by David Bottrill (Tool, Muse), The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues is a fantastic sounding, hard hitting release. Opener " Specular Reflection" is 11 minutes of astounding progressive extreme metal, as Tommy Rogers' vocal attack (brutal growls, screams, and soaring clean passages) fly over a mix of massive guitar crunch, complex lead lines & fills, acrobatic bass, intricate drum work, and a sprinkling of keyboards. The battle of crushing death metal & hardcore with atmospheric progressive rock continues on the epic "Augment of Rebirth", where the band get as complex as Dream Theater or Symphony X in spots, but balance that complexity around brutal as well as calming arrangements. Closer " Lunar Wilderness" starts off as wonderful melodic prog, led by Rogers' gorgeous clean vocals and some splendid guitar leads from Paul Waggoner, before morphing into an insanely technical death metal monstrosity featuring churning riffs and some sick drumming from Blake Richardson.
Other than the fact that this is just 30 minutes long, it's safe to say that Between the Buried and Me have come up with another killer record here that will have fans craving for the sequel. In the meantime, this is 30 minutes of brutal, technical, and quite melodic progressive extreme metal from a band that is still peaking and shows no signs of slowing down.
Track Listing
1. Specular Reflection 11:21
2. Augment of Rebirth 10:19
3. Lunar Wilderness 8:22
Added: July 21st 2011
Reviewer: Pete Pardo
Score:  
Related Link: Band Website
Hits: 2767
Language: english
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Between the Buried and Me: The Parallax-Hypersleep Dialogues
Posted by Jeff B, SoT Staff Writer on 2011-07-21 20:52:50
My Score:
North Carolina's Between the Buried and Me have been on quite a bit of a hot streak lately, releasing a long line of successful albums over the last few years. 2007's Colors and 2009's The Great Misdirect are particularly well regarded in the prog and metal communities - and with good reason. Both albums are shining examples that progressive metal and metalcore can work together productively, and have frequently been regarded as masterpieces by fans of either genre. With The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues, the band's latest EP and first outing on Metal Blade Records, they've begun an ambitious concept, to which this EP serves as part one. The concept here deals with two humans that are separated by several million light years, and how they both face similar issues in their life that they must resolve. It'll be interesting to hear how the band continues this intriguing concept with the next installment. As this 30-minute, three-song EP currently stands, it's yet another fantastic release in Between the Buried and Me's already excellent discography, and an essential purchase to all fans of the band. Although not quite as great as their previous full-lengths (in my opinion, at least), The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues is a more-than-worthy EP to add to your collection. These guys simply show no sign of slowing down, and it'll definitely be interesting to hear how they follow this one up!
The music on The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues is unquestionably Between the Buried and Me's distinct blend of metalcore and progressive metal, but possibly a bit more brutal and eclectic than their previous album. There seems to be a large focus on dissonance on this EP - something present on the band's previous efforts, but not quite as prominent as it is here. Melodic sections and quirky instrumentals do creep up quite a bit, though, and keep the music from ever growing stale. Compositionally, the album is extremely strong, and features some of the band's finest material to date. The first track, "Specular Reflection", opens up The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues in full form. This epic, 11 and a half minute opus highlights Between the Buried and Me's more dissonant side, while also showcasing melodic sections with clean vocals as well as a very progressive song structure. "Augment of Rebirth" is a bit more of a heavy track, sporting plenty of brutal technicalities and harsh vocals. A few weird, almost circus-sounding sections also present here - "eclectic" is a fair word to describe this track, I guess. "Lunar Wilderness", while still quite heavy in parts, is the softest song on the EP. Plenty of beautiful melodies and warm arrangements make this an excellent closing track.
Of course, as we're used to from Between the Buried and Me, the musicianship is professional and spectacular across the board. These guys are technical behemoths, so certainly no complaints are warranted in that department. I do have an issue with how The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues is produced, however. It's mixed way too loudly and sounds quite sterile and lifeless, especially during the heavier sections. It really lacks warmth and depth, if you ask me.
Despite my complaint regarding the production, The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues is overall a very successful effort from Between the Buried and Me. This isn't the best entry point into their discography, but it's an exceptional EP that serves as an essential purchase to all established fans of the band. 4 stars are very well deserved here. If super-technical, super-brutal, super-complex, and super-original progressive extreme metal is what you're looking for, then I can't recommend this one highly enough. Between the Buried and Me are considered one of the forerunners of modern metal, and this EP is even more proof that they've wholeheartedly earned that title!
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