We could say that Teramaze are back with another great album in an ever-growing musical catalog, but that wouldn’t be entirely accurate, because they never left in the first place! This band is the gift that keeps on giving when it comes to writing, recording and releasing new music every single year without missing a beat.
Following the departure of longtime guitarist Chris Zoupa, this Australian progressive metal band, for now acting as a quartet, decided to embark on what they do best: create new songs to further represent their artistic vision and expression. Led by guitarist and sometimes lead vocalist Dean Wells and complemented by singer Nathan Peachey, bassist Andrew Cameron and drummer Nick Ross; the band presents us with The Silent Architect, their newest musical offering, coming just a little after a year since their previous album, The Harmony Machine.
While its predecessor experimented with heavier and more concise songs, The Silent Architect sees Wells, Peachey and co. return to longer and more diverse tracks reminiscent of celebrated previous albums Her Halo and Eli: A Wonderful Fall From Grace, to name just a couple.
The title track, presented as the album opener, sets the tone of the record, with a powerful and complex riff hitting the listener’s ears. Going through softer and heavier moments, this song showcases the band’s drawn out writing style, with some very tasty lead guitar work, yet without leaving behind their great vocal melody sensibilities and hooks.
“Doors of Yesterday” follows, with a haunting piano intro and a very emotional vocal delivery. This short song could be described as a power ballad, dominated by soaring vocals and a feeling of yearning and melancholy.
A timer meant to alert the listener introduces “The Invisible Countdown”, the album’s first single. As mentioned before, Teramaze are experts at crafting beautiful melodic melodies surrounded by great guitar work and tight rhythmic efficiency. The band is firing on all cylinders with this one.
One of their craziest, pun intended, songs follows, the fast paced “Mr. Crazy”. Serving as second single, the band finds themselves just letting go, with upbeat riffing and solo sections raising the energy level and excitement.
Their last and latest single, “Arrow”, follows a much more straightforward arrangement than the previous album ballad, “Doors of Yesterday”. The way the album is sequenced, songs like the two just mentioned serve as small breathers and pallet cleansers before continuing with the complexity of the other tracks.
“Dust & Bone” appears as another high energy song, with the most direct lyrical content of the bunch. This one could be described as a thrash metal attempt mixed with a signature Teramaze chorus.
Background synths and staccato riffs kickstart “Enemy In The Garden”, a song that keeps an eerie atmosphere throughout. Here, a slow and moody section is the highlight, with very well performed guitar solo sections that come and go, playing on and off with the vocal lines.
Approaching the end of the album, “Ghost Hands” starts with an acoustic, but it slowly grows and grows, building layers until it becomes a full band piece. This is the most open sounding out of the three album ballads, even though it’s the longest of them.
Finally, “Left In The Fire” brings us a glorious conclusion filled with Teramaze’s signature sonic traits. While every song is very strong, in a classic progressive metal fashion, it’s the two longest songs, coincidentally the album bookends, which stand out as the best pieces of the album. Here, each section and musical idea gets enough time to be developed for maximum impact, from the opening marching sounds, to the solos, the instrumental sections and melodic lines, with a powerful climax towards the end.
This album is a testament of Teramaze’s creativity, striving to create their best to date, without slowing down or resting upon their previous achievements. There’s no bad or skippable song here, as all of them work perfectly well together to create something unique. Special kudos to Dean Wells, whose songwriting and guitar playing are top notch across this whole album, showcasing a musical maturity and playing proficiency many can only dream of possessing.
Rating: 9
Pre-order ‘The Silent Architect’ here: https://teramaze.com.au/shop/ or on Bandcamp: https://teramaze.bandcamp.com/album/the-silent-architect
Tracklisting:
1. The Silent Architect 10:13
2. Doors of Yesterday 4:24
3. The Invisible Countdown 8:37
4. Mr Crazy 3:37
5. Arrow 4:50
6. Dust & Bone 4:24
7. Enemy In The Garden 8:30
8. Ghost Hands 5:25
9. Left In The Fire 11:56
TERAMAZE is:
Dean Wells – Guitars / Vocals
Nathan Peachey – Vocals
Andrew Cameron – Bass Guitar
Nick Ross – Drums
TERAMAZE online:
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