[A]SYNCHRONOUS

A remarkable debut record from son of Fusion legend Dean Watson, this music has a fusion going on of its own: There are many times that I feel that I'm hearing the walls of sound of DEVIN TOWNSEND's guitar-heavy work or TOOL. But I also hear many melodic moments, variations, and I can access much more of the individual instruments' work here. All-instrumental, Taylor weaves some very interesting themes and riffs together in a singular and fresh way--which is why I can tolerate this type of metal/extreme metal better than I can Devin's. The music is complex and the musicianship virtuosic (with some great engineering tricks) but not over-the-top nor sacrificing quirk or engaging melodies. I also find myself reminded of one of my all-time favorite albums, PROGHMA-C's Bar-do Travel while listening to manny parts of this album. If this is where young Mr. Watson is starting then, watch out world! We're going to see (and hear) great things in the future from this musical wiz-kid.

5 star songs: "(A)Synchronous" (6:00) (9/10), "Moments" (6:36) (10/10), and "Tarnished Rendition" (7:05) (9/10).

The rest are all solid four star compositions. A very solid four star album. Kudos, Taylor!