CORTICAL TECTONICS

The bold combo from Georgia Canvas Solaris returns to the fold with yet another example of inventive bizarre instrumental metal rock: Snapp, Simpkins and Ginn follow in the multivaried musical trend of their previous gem "Penumbra Diffuse" and manage to create another one titled "Cortical Tectonics". The minor yet noticeable difference is that this new offering works more thoroughly on tension and puntuation among the sonic magma of prog-metal, math-rock, jazz-rock, thrash, Crimsonian vibes, spacey psychedelia and, in a lesser degree, fusion. The strategy to face this task is pretty much based on pyrotechnics regarding the use of contrasts and shifts in tempo and riffing. but that's not all that there is: there are also those more subtle moments in which the ensemble is resolved to deliver well-measured expansions of recurrent recogniseable motifs. The incendiary opener 'Berserker Hypothesis' is a powerfully demanding exercise on neurotic metallic complexity, full of riffs relentlessly syncopated beyond the humanly possible: very much like the "Penumbra Diffuse" opener. After this magnificent entry come two pieces in which the band explore somewaht calmer moods (without letting go of their essential energy). 'Sinusoid Mirage' ges started in an ethereal ambience dominated by fluidly delicate drumming and jazzy soft keyboard in an effective 2-minute prelude: once the main motif kicks in, comes a mixture of metallic rock and jazz-rock, something like Fates Warning meets Attention Deficit. 'Interface' is even more relaxing, headlong for the realms of modern fusion in a well-ordained mixture of exotic nuances and Crimsonian counterpints, not unlike Gordian Knot or Trey Gunn's solo albums. This passage of contemplation shows the band's ability to navigate comfortably in evocative moods. After this effective parenthesis of introspection we see the band return to the metal thing with a vengeance in the highly pyrotechnical 'Gamma Knife', one definitie highlight of the album. 'Gamma Knife' is an 8-minute musical ride across the waters of complex metal-prog between the somber and the electrifying (in some ways bearing influences from Fates Warning). The occasional use of majestic harmonics and the emergence of some notably constructed solos bring some refreshing nuances to the sonic exposure that is mostly dominated by demanding chord progressions and accelerated syncopations. Is this technical prowess abandoned to the rule of self-exposure? Well, indeed it is, but the result is neither boring nor shallow, but an intelligent exercise on exciting musicality arranged with a clever vision about what metal rock cn do to renew itself. Every riff, every lead, every double bass drum attack, every tempo shift is posed in its right place among the development of the track's overall architecture. 'Rhizome' has an opening sequence in which the band briefly fuses the jazz-rock elements of track 2 and the hypnotic cadences of track 3; then comes the fiery main motif, essential Cancas Solaris. The album's final 17 minutes are occupied by the monumental 'Reticular Consciousness', which kind of summarizes the best of the most exciting facets of canvas Solaris' ideology. The initial motif is based on an appealing prog-math-rock structure, with a Ginn that shows (more than ever before in the album) his absolute skill at mixing the emergency of thrash and the swing of jazz in his complex drumming style. Right before hitting the 3'30" mark the track dramatically shifts toward a slow paced spacey segment, with the band setting a compromise between regular Ozric Tentacles and Djam Karet at their most Floydian. While this segment progresses the cosmic textures become increasingly predominant (especially due to the featured use of eerie synth and guitar-synth lines) until a new shift occurs in order to introduce a new KC-meets-PF motif. A few seconds after the arrival of the 9th minute comes a heavy riffing bridge that announces the reprise of the initial motif, but not in an intact fashion. In fact, this reprise has the novelty of featuring the guitar-synth for the leads, almost stealing the limelight rom the dual electric guitars; in this way, the band successfully drags the spacey vibe along across the recovered prog-metal mood. The last minutes are occupied by a solid reprise of the second motif, retaking once again this alternation between the plethoric and the mysterious that has signalled this whole epic. Canvas Solaris have another masterwork in their résumé: "Cortical Tectonics" has to be one of the best prog efforts of the year 2007, and definitely, it stands out as a signpost of one of many possible directions that the metal rock scene needs to take in order to refurbish itself in an adventurous manner.