THE DEADSTATION.

First off, who in their right mind allows you to download their EP for free!?! That's right, The Deadstation. does. So who was I to refuse free music (which I ended up liking it so much I bought a hard copy anyway!)? I downloaded and hit play. Right away you are hit with "Hundred Foot Drop" that sounds like it could come straight off a later day Pink Floyd cd, but don't get too comfortable because it changes up fast and right in your face with "Subsistence Definded." The roller coaster ride continues with "Like Peering Into the Deepest Abyss," "Drugs for the Pain Inside," and the narrated "August 4th." That is something to note since a couple of songs have narration on them but it fits, it works completely! "Anything But This...Anywhere But Here" bay be the most accessible song on the cd which for Prog listeners isn't usually that much of an issue, but for non prog music listeners gives them something to hang their hats on. "I Cannot Explain Myself Anymore" is another more accessible tune while still staying true the progressive metal format. "Slowly, But Surely, I'm Drowing" is another excellently narrative but the music behind it so haunting and fitting to what is being spoken that all it does is expand the atmosphere this EP creates. The cd version has a bonus track, "Limitless, or So it Seams" which helps make the cd purchase feel a little more justified although it is completely justified without it and the track is more in line with more uptempo tracks like Anything But This...Anywhere But Here." I must say, for a debut EP, the songs are excellently produced and mixed! No indie quality here! The other great thing about The Deadstation. is how interactive they are with their fans! These guys get it and seem to genuinely appreciate all the support and interaction they receive from their fans which given the right avenue I believe will lead to much bigger things for these guys. The next step for The Deadstation. is a full length cd and a tour, which will take some doing because these guys are like Rush in more ways than just some influence on their music, they are a three member band. It will be interesting to see what direction these guys take, they have the musicianship to go anywhere and the creative ability too. At the very least, it will be worth your time to download their free mp3 version of the music but I recommend getting the cd, but I may be just bias, my name is listed in the liner notes, lol, they listed all the fans that responded to a FB post in their liner notes, so how cool is that!!!

I cannot even begin to tell you how excited this EP makes me. I first listened to this Massachusetts-based band late in 2012, but this EP immediately knocked other 2012 albums off of my top 10 list for the year!

The Deadstation is a very unique band. This first episode in their pseudo-television series is melodic, heavy at points, well-paced, and very dark overall. It deals with the theme of drowning in society, of become a faceless nobody, and of realizing the need to escape.

The quality of this EP is outstanding! The vocals are slightly high-pitched, and just perfect for the music. The drums are heavy when they need to be, always tight, always just right. The guitarwork is excellent overall, and reminds me of Riverside's high-tuned guitars without the extend pedal. The bass lines are very well done, and last, but not least, the keyboards cut through the darkness to provide some of the most beautiful keys of 2012. They are truly sensational!

"Hundred Foot Drop" leads off this EP with an eerie, dark intro that could almost come right out of a neo-prog album.

"Subsistence Defined" comes right out of the previous track, and blows the listener away with a hefty metal portion. As with the rest of the EP, melody is never lost---the metal portions are always done tastefully and with great ability.

"Drugs For the Pain Inside" begins the four-track song "Like Peering Into the Deepest Ocean Abyss" off with a bang. The drums are particularly amazing on this track, and the raw emotion displayed here really tears at my soul.

"August 4th" is a narrated track that begins to give you a picture of the blackness surrounding the composer. This softer track has wonderful neo-prog moments that look back to the likes of Marillion.

"Anything but this...Anywhere but here" is a track with extremely emotive vocals, a great off-tempo drum beat, and more narration. The narration on this EP, by the way, is always spot-on, and never annoying.

"I Cannot Explain Myself Anymore" has a medium tempo to it, and it finishes off the "Like Peering into the Darkest Ocean Abyss" four-track song. It contains some great guitar solos and a return to the excellent metal section of "Drugs for the Pain Inside".

"Slowly But Surely, I'm Drowning" is a slow, neo-prog track with some of the best keyboards I've heard in 2012---truly amazing work. This track ends the EP with the tail end of the narration and a nice slow beat.

Overall, this EP has me excited for the next offering from this promising band. They nailed the metal parts, they perfected the keyboards, and they crafted an amazing atmosphere. This EP is certainly a masterpiece in composition, lyrics, atmosphere, ambiance, technical ability, restraint, and theme. Heck, I even bought a t-shirt! I really cannot praise it any higher, and it will definitely rank in my favorite albums ever. This deserves a much higher spot in the best of 2012!

Although not my preferred genre admittedly from time to time I do check some stuff which is arising out ot the prog metal scene nevertheless. Well, this EP immediately hit me, I can tell you. What a dynamic workout. Four chaps are responsible for this fireworks, drummer Greg Murphy attracts my attention first and foremost - woaaaaah ... inclusive of bass drum staccato he's partially acting like a killer machine (show me your muscles!!!) ... and additionally cares for the lead vocals.

As for a rough orientation I would say this comes close to 'Dream Theater goes wild' somehow. Not meant as anything chaotic, boundless though,.to make it clear. This evolves like an epic so much the more. You can hear complex, well thought out song structures, featuring a great amount of melody. And their music sounds far away from stagnant overall, expressive and very virtuoso to my ears. Not being a regular band member - during the recording time at least - Nathaniel Rendon cares for the keyboards, often provided with symphonic touch, which shows him contrasting for sure.

This appears very agressive to my ears in total. I'm surprisingly able to enjoy their stuff though. 25 entertaining minutes circa, divided in seven parts which surely are bringing some wind of change to the table. Besides the extraordinarily lively drums tons of shredding guitar riffs are remarkable, however - you will detect some charming restful moments too. That means at least prog metal fans will love this EP, I'm sure. Well, you've got it, chaps. Hope to hear more - highly recommended!

Confused: "Limitless, Or So it Seems", is a single, non-album release by The Deadstation, given out for free on their website, only a few months before their very interesting EP ''Episode 01: Like Peering Into The Deepest Ocean Abyss''. The single-track download features a bit less than 5 minutes of relentless high-speed power/heavy metal. With just a few drops of tempo, the track uses the typical power metal rhythm guitar, drum blast-beat and high-pitched vocals combination to come to an indifferent result. The use of major chords does not marry well with the "djenty" style of the band and so the outcome confuses the listener who is balancing between melodic "happy-tunes" and aggressive approach. There is very little about progressive metal here; on the contrary a very typical teutonic power metal track with "djent" character (and glimpses of progression).

It is recommended that those seeking to get to know the band try their EP, as this single is non-representative of their sound.

"Limitless, Or So it Seems" is a single by The Deadstation and almost five minutes of progressive metal aggression. The drumming is some of the most uncompromising I've heard; this drummer plows through the shrill verses with the double bass pedal in overdrive. I find that element distracting, robbing what could have been a dynamic piece of the vibrancy it freely boasts in the beginning. The tapped guitar solo initially follows the rapid bass drumming, then sounds exactly like a piece from Koei's video game series Dynasty Warriors. I must say the cover art amused me (it is a play on TBS, a television station with the slogan "very funny"). All in all, this is a decent metal song that could have done with a measure of percussive restraint.

This decade, there seems to have been an explosion of Progressive Metal. While this is exciting for fans of the genre like myself, it can often be difficult for a new Progressive Metal band to distinguish themselves - to bring something new to the table. This album was a very pleasant surprise for me: I almost immediately knew that this band was unique and special, and each track I heard only reinforced this ultimate conclusion. According to the press release for this album, the band's name, "The Deadstation", is meant to represent a fictional dystopian TV channel, and the albums are meant to be episodes from this station with each song being a new scene. The music represents this idea very well, with changes of moods between the tracks that do flow like scenes in a show. This particular "episode" is meant to represent putting everything on the line and failing, but being completely aware of that failure as it progresses and being unable to stop it. And the music accomplishes the feelings of this concept quite well, going through feelings of anguish, frustration, fear, and ending with an ultimate feeling of surrender in the last track. One thing I found very unique about the music was during some of the earlier tracks, I thought I heard definite influences from Meshuggah in the drumming and guitar work, with thick, heavy, lightning fast poly-rhythms coming from the drums. But the most interesting thing was that during these aggressive, crushingly heavy arrangements from the guitars and drums, the keyboardist seemed almost like he was in another world - he would be playing these atmospheric keyboard textures on top of these sounds, almost like he had brought the wrong sheet music to the studio. And I do not say this to criticize either - it was incredibly fascinating to me, like a spicy ethnic food dish that contained bits of sweet juicy fruit, creating an interesting juxtaposition between the elements that seemed to be in opposition but ultimately created quite a pleasing texture. And these aggressive textures were not the only trick up this band's sleeve either, but there were sections of tranquility, giving the album a very dynamic feel. This album kept me engaged and interested all the way through, and I wanted to listen again and again even though I had a list of other favorites waiting for me in my queue. I sincerely hope to hear from this band again in the very near future.

My rating: 4.5 stars

Originally written for www.seaoftranquility.org