CHAOS OVER COSMOS - The Silver Lining Between the Stars

CHAOS OVER COSMOS

Album: The Silver Lining Between the Stars

Genre: Technical prog / melodeath metal

Release Date: August 1st, 2021

Country: Poland / USA

Label: Self-released

Having been unfamiliar with CHAOS OVER COSMOS so far, they surprised me with their third album, which was self-released on August 1st, 2021: the cover artwork of “The Silver Lining Between the Stars”, which is based on a photo of The Lagoon Nebula, looked like a lovely progrock album for me, but turned out to offer full-power shredding from the first second and woke my interest at once. A bit of research later I had learned that CHAOS OVER COSMOS is an international project of two guys who never have met each other - guitarist Rafal Bowman is from Poland and (new for this release) vocalist KC Lyon from the US - so everything was done completely online. The description announces “science fiction progmetal", coming up with "stories of interstellar serial killers, introspective wendigos, and nihilistic criticisms of religious institutions".

Opening the album with “Violent Equilibrium”, they don’t hold back with their strength and deliver highly technical shredding over five minutes, before the rough, powerful vocals join for the first time to give the music even more energy. The drum sounds come along with insanely fast rhythms (which couldn’t be played in a “real” set-up I guess), pushing the song forward with lots of pressure. “The Last Man in Orbit” gives more space for the complex guitar virtuosity as well as the beautiful synth background harmonies, but the tempo is still incredibly fast. Nevertheless, there is enough variation in the song-writing to keep the music interesting. Next up is “Eternal Return”, an instrumental track with focus on the great guitar playing, followed by “Control ZED”, which is another high-tempo piece, and probably the most accessible. “The Sins Between the Stars” is the first one to slow things down, and offering more melody in the vocals.

All-together, “The Silver Lining Between the Stars” is a short but intense listening experience with five mind-blowing tracks over 35 minutes. Fans of highly technical, razor-sharp guitar work will find more than enough for their listening pleasure, the vocal style fits very well here too. The rhythmic is insane in its pace, and too dominant at some points, but most of the time delivers the needed pressure to the songs. Beautiful synth sounds bring in some space vibes and build an interesting contrast to the hard-hitting rhythms. CHAOS OVER COSMOS invite you on a wild sci-fi trip, welcome to join the ride.

Written by Katha