Dissident Saint are a six-piece progressive metal band out of Toronto, Canada. Their debut, self-produced CD is titled The Rise, and shows a hell of a lot of promise. Actually, labeling them a progressive metal band is not really quite accurate, at least not all the time. Tunes like "Chow For the Brainwashed", "Choking Hazard", and the excellent "The Architect" have plenty of metal crunch, odd time signatures, symphonic keyboards, and dazzling, technical chops, but on the other end of the spectrum you also have plenty of melodic, neo-prog tunes like "Into the Fold", "Lost Cause", "Tainted Hand", and the dramatic "Sirens of the Night", all of which will appeal to fans of IQ, Arena, Pendragon, and the like. The vocals of Sergey Perunov are quite unique, and it seems obvious that the guy has had some opera training, his style a bit different from many singers in the prog-metal genre and more akin to what you would expect from the prog school. All in all, The Rise is a solid debut that shows a band who seems to still be figuring out their identity, but shows plenty of promise. You can expect plenty of melody here, tight rhythms, as well as tasty guitar & keyboard work. The vocals will take a little getting used to, but reveal their charms over repeated listens. Add in some really cool cover artwork and you have a strong debut from Dissident Saint that hints at even better things to come.
Track Listing
- Into the Fold
- Lost Cause
- Chow For the Brainwashed
- Tainted Hand
- Choking Hazard
- Sirens of the Night
- Re-Creations
- The Architect
Printer Friendly Page
Send to a Friend
