Perimeter Gods is the second album from St. Louis instrumental rock/metal trio Sons of Vulcan, released in mid 2017, which basically consists of one 52-minute long song, "Daedalus", broken down into nine segments. Why they didn't just call the album "Daedalus" is a mystery, but hey, that's a question for another day. As was the case on their hefty debut, Perimeter Gods relies heavily on the barnstorming riffs & solos from guitarist John Hardin, who obviously has studied his classic Rush, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Iron Maiden, Thin Lizzy, Wishbone Ash, and Judas Priest records quite well, the music of the band blending bits of stoner, hard rock, prog, metal, jam, post rock, and psychedelia quite nicely. "Birth of Athena" contains some sensational jamming, the guitar solos lengthy but tasty & melodic, drummer Gunnar Swenson rumbling underneath and Scott McBride throwing in some mighty leathery bass grooves. Ferocious riffs and blazing solos permeate the heavy "Labyrinth", while "Minoan (Bull of the Sun)" clearly hints at some of the great bands of the NWOBHM. Hardin's deft touch on the acoustic guitar really shines on the proggy "Ariadne's Thread", which leads into the epic progressive metal of "Juktas", the never ending riff-o-rama onslaught just keeps coming at you. The atmospheric, slightly ominous sounding "Icarus" again brings you back to Caress of Steel era Rush, as metal, hard rock, and prog collide for perhaps the most dramatic track on the album, Hardin's guitar work muscular and memorable.
It's certainly not going to be for everyone, but Perimeter Gods is worth the time you'll need to digest all this majestic and quite heavy instrumental music. One has to wonder what Sons of Vulcan, and some of these songs in particular, would sound like with vocals...it's an interesting thought, as the band can obviously write well constructed, bombastic riffs, arrangements, and melodies, so vocals popping up in a few of these songs certainly could have worked. Either way, great stuff here from a very talented band.
Track Listing
Daedalus
I - Chimes Of Daedalus
II - Perimeter Gods
III - Birth Of Athena
IV - Labyrinth
V - Minoan (Bull of the Sun)
VI - Ariadne's Thread
VII - Juktas
VIII - Icarus
IX - Hourglass Of Chronos
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