Scale The Summit – ‘V’ [Review]
On V, their fifth album (and third long-player since 2009’s career-skyrocketing Carving Desert Canyons), Scale The Summit have sought to further expand their already considerable repertoire of instru-mental pieces. Heavy on the heaviness, equally shred-happy and melodically restrained, and fond of harmonic complexity, Scale The Summit remain in a class of their own here.
After ticking off almost every item an instrumental progressive metal act could stick on their wish list (tours with everyone from Dream Theater and Devin Townsend to Yes, Periphery, and Between The Buried And Me; ecstatic levels of praise from all corners; even a Billboard-charting album in 2013’s The Migration), Scale The Summit could be forgiven for resting on their laurels – but V sees them in shape and on form. The Winged Bull‘s overwhelmingly complex series of multifaceted vignettes and sense of storytelling set the stage for a further nine pieces of mostly equally epic effectiveness.
Soria Moria‘s fragmented melodies poking through thick rhythmic fog before a sick 7/8 section; Pontus Euxinus‘s machine-gun runs and sharp-edged superdissonant moments mixed in with beautifully vibrant harmonic structures; Stolas catching Trapped In Ice‘s dropped ball and taking off into grooves that feel on the edge of falling apart; The Isle Of Mull‘s alternations between exospheric expansiveness and black-hole hyperdensity; Kestrel taking its time easing into a confidently paced series of twists, turns, and tangents; Oort Cloud, where shiny tapping and carefully crafted basslines stretch over no-beats-wasted drum parts; and The Golden Bird bringing proceedings to an appropriately epic close with grace, poise, finesse, soul and soul-crushing riffs…all add up to an experience prog-metal fans will find endlessly rewarding.
As far as weak spots go, Trapped In Ice and Blue Sun appeal more to the intellect than the emotions – which die-hard shredheads won’t care about, but which left me cold despite my status as a fan of instrumental prog. The remaining eight tracks, though, are absolutely prime.
Overall, bar a couple of petty niggly bits, V drips with emotion, evoking inspiring visuals and representing, as Scale The Summit consistently do, prog-metal done right.
TMMP RATING: 86%
Links / Listen
Scale The Summit official website.
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