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Zero Hour: Dark Deceiver
Zero Hour - Dark Deceiver - [The Laser's Edge]

2008-07-05

This is this American prog-metal band's 6th release, and it's quite clear these guys didn't drop the ball with this one too. It's somewhat of a continuation of 2005's Specs Of Pictures Burnt Beyond.

Zero Hour's music is a technical showpiece for the talented Tipton brothers, Troy on bass and Jasun on guitar respectively, both are extremely dexterous and capable players, and their talents are backed up by the crushing drum-work of Mike Guy. The thing is, from a technical point of view, the band is technical almost to the point of being a Jazz band, but it's the melodic voice and harmonics of vocalist Chris Salinas, whose voice resembles that of Geoff Tate, that ties it all together into a more solidified, and musically digestible unit.

The album starts off with the aggressive and technically staggering Power To Believe, the non-linear and imaginative combination of the dazzling fretless bass, guitar, and relentless drum work is probably much heavier than any other prog bands out there. The band's trademark is their polyrhythmic approach, somewhat of a proggier version of Sweden's Meshuggah.

The title song starts off with Salinas sounding somewhat similar to Nevermore's Warrel Dane, and the music also starts off quite similar. The playing here is truly awe-inspiring, with some fantastic tempo changes and complex guitar riffs/leads. It's at this point that I started thinking about just how god-damned difficult must it be for this band to perform this material live, not just because of it's complexity, but also because of the extreme speed and stamina that is evidently put into it.

The one thing this band has that plenty of other prog-bands don't, is the underlining darkness and tragic feel that elevates their music into some more than just a dazzling technical display, something which most prog-band overlook in their quest for lengthy forays into virtuosic greatness. Zero Hour are masters of their craft, but their also giving it something more – feeling, a sad and introspective one. One just needs to listen to the epic "Inner Spirit" and the following "Resurrection" to grasp the depth in their music.

Not for everyone, this feels heavy and highly demanding, but anyone into intelligent and thoughtful prog should give them a try.

Alon Miasnikov



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