Saturday, December 2, 2017

Preview Review: STARSOUP Your World Is Dead

From their new full length Castles Of Sand
Released digitally November 20, 2017
Released on CD December 1, 2017 (Metalism Records)
In the developing new era of progressive-rock we've come to witness a large variety of successful and talented solo artists. One of these artists is Russian-based Alexey Markov, whose project STARSOUP is a blending of folk, ethereal soundscapes, metal and a dash of medieval spicings for good measure with the frequent interpolation of flute. 'Your World is Dead' has something in common with early "Viking-metal" groups, - although I think whether or not said genre was a conscious influence it is almost virtually impossible to not associate the blending of crushing guitars and flutes in a Viking-esque context. What immediately impressed me was that this is a solo project when the amount of detail invested into the other musicians' contributions could have easily led one to perceive it as a full "band" setting. He certainly doesn't take over though he’s obviously an accomplished guitarist / vocalist and you really get to hear the dexterous diversity in the session musicians. The song begins as a slightly downtrodden dirge with acoustics and flutes before the inevitable ebullition of driving rhythms take centre-stage. The chorus is very triumphant and there are lovely synthesizer lines to be found somewhere in the middle, - courtesy perhaps of Markov wanting to experiment with a wider range of instruments not normally associated with the aesthetics of contemporary metal imagery. While certainly not an overtly catchy single this will provide an excellent introduction into the blossoming work of Starsoup. -Jaime Regadas

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