TURBULENCE - B1nary Dream

TURBULENCE

Album: B1nary Dream

Genre: Progressive Metal

Release Date: March 8th, 2024

Country: Lebanon

Label: Frontiers Records

Band-Links: WEBSITE / BANDCAMP / TWITTER / INSTAGRAM / FACEBOOK

It’s been almost three years now that Lebanese Progmetal masters TURBULENCE caught my proggy heart with their 2nd album “Frontal”, which was released on March 12th, 2021 via Frontiers Records, and easily ended up in a top spot within my favorite records back then (find the list here), so the recent news about album No3 left me excited to hear more music from their feather, and curious if they could hold the high level they set before.

Like its predecessor, that was based on the true story of construction worker Phineas Gage, “B1nary Dream” is a concept album dealing with psychological themes, but on a completely different approach. This time, TURBULENCE invite their listeners to dream along binary with a robot called 8b+1, who is part of an experiment during which we can follow his transformation from inanimate to sentient, delving into questions of identity, existence, and the human condition.

Musically speaking, “Static Mind” opens the story with some electronic sounds joined by a vocal melody as well as soaring guitars towards the powerful “Theta”, during which the quintet effortlessly switch between heavy riffs with djenty rhythm patterns, and beautiful, lighter passages. There's an incredible energy from the beginning that will carry us through the whole record, and so does singer Omar El Hage, who even evolved his already expressive, versatile style over the past years.

The following, marvelous instrumentals “Time Bridge” and “Manifestations” impressively show more of the band’s amazing song-writing and playing skills, making their complex, diverse compositions accessible thanks to the easiness and feeling in their performance. Alain Ibrahim's guitar virtuosity and Mood Yassin's keyboard wizardry are absolutely mesmerizing, and don't need to shy away from a comparision with the genre's well-known names.

Just when you think the album couldn’t become better anymore, we’ve reached the 14minutes title track, delivering the full palette from headbanging to goosebump moments, closing as a hot "Prog anthem of the year" contender. Along this epic, the robot's identity unfolds, questioning the lines between man and machine.

Next up is the mighty "Hybrid", together with "Theta" the heaviest tracks here, and a good moment for a shout-out to the vigorous rhythm section who push the songs forward when needed, but also know when to calm down and light-footed play along. The highly emotional "Corrosion" brings us to the end of 8b+1's experiences, before our journey fades out with the instrumental "Deerosion".

Even more like on their previous masterpiece, TURBULENCE manage to build up their musical story-telling with an incredible tension that doesn’t ease from the first to the last second. The songs flow so smoothly into each other that I often forget at which track I am right now, just enjoying the moment. The lyrics of "B1nary Dream" can be seen within the narrative, but also in a thought-provoking, metaphorical way to reflect on ourselves and the society we live in, and are absolutely worth a closer listen. The excellent mixing by Lucas de la Rosa deserves an extra mention, supporting the music the best way with an overall full, yet dynamic sound. With one foot in classical inspired Prog, with the other in modern times, TURBULENCE offer Progmetal perfection in all terms, whether seen from the technical, compositional, or emotional perspective. Highly recommended to dive in!

Written by Katha