The Parallax II: Future Sequence
| Untitled | |
|---|---|
The Parallax II: Future Sequence is the seventh studio album by American progressive metal band Between the Buried and Me, released on October 9, 2012.[1][2] The album's concept is the continuation of the band's 2011 EP The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues. Paul Waggoner and Dustie Waring (guitars) described it as being their favorite release up to now, being mature, dynamic, and with various metal influences from 1970's progressive rock, to jazz and fusion. It is their longest running studio album to date.[3]
Track listing
All lyrics are written by Tommy Giles Rogers; all music is composed by Between the Buried and Me
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Goodbye to Everything" | 1:39 |
| 2. | "Astral Body" | 5:01 |
| 3. | "Lay Your Ghosts to Rest" | 10:02 |
| 4. | "Autumn" | 1:17 |
| 5. | "Extremophile Elite" | 9:58 |
| 6. | "Parallax" | 1:15 |
| 7. | "The Black Box" | 2:10 |
| 8. | "Telos" | 9:45 |
| 9. | "Bloom" | 3:29 |
| 10. | "Melting City" | 10:19 |
| 11. | "Silent Flight Parliament" | 15:09 |
| 12. | "Goodbye to Everything Reprise" | 2:29 |
| Total length: | 72:33 | |
Reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 74/100[4] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| About.com |   [5] |
| AbsolutePunk | 92%[6] |
| Allmusic | [7] |
| Blabbermouth.net | 10/10[8] |
| Blistering | 9.5/10[9] |
| Decibel Magazine |   [10] |
| Loudwire | [11] |
| Popmatters | 5/10[12] |
| Revolver Magazine | [13] |
The album has received generally favourable reviews, with a Metacritic score of 74.[4] About.com praised the band for balancing the immediacy of "Astral Body" with the longer songs described as "mini-symphonies".[5] Several critics credited the band's songwriting for incorporating Between the Buried and Me's stylistic diversity into a cohesive form more attentive to developing core themes.[7][9][11] However, the album was criticized by Brice Ezell of Popmatters as "the work of a band comfortable in its own ambition. It's all too easy to be impressed, and that's the exact kind of complacency one wouldn't expect from these guys".[12] Writing for Revolver Magazine, Paige Camisasca similarly criticized the band's heavier material for sounding like "a less-than-inspired rehash of the group's previous work".[13]
Personnel
Between the Buried and Me
- Dan Briggs – bass guitar
- Blake Richardson – drums, percussion
- Tommy Giles Rogers – vocals, keyboards
- Paul Waggoner – guitars
- Dustie Waring – guitars
Guest Musicians
- Amos Williams (of Tesseract) - spoken word on 'Parallax'
- Walter Fancourt (of Trioscapes) - bass clarinet, flute, tenor saxophone
- Ricky Alexander - Violin
- Julian Hinshaw - Tuba
- Maddox Giles (Vocalist Tommy Giles Rogers' infant son) - alien noises
Production
- Produced by Between the Buried and Me and Jamie King
- Engineered mixed and mastered by Jamie King
- Additional production editing by Kevin King
- Art and Design by Chandler Owen
References
- ^ Colwell, Matthew (July 23, 2012). "Between The Buried And Me stream new song 'Telos,' pre-orders for 'Parallax II' available now". Alternative Press. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
- ^ "Between the Buried and Me: New Song Available For Streaming". Blabbermouth.net. Roadrunner Records. July 23, 2012. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
- ^ "Between the Buried and Me Interview". Metalship. 2012-11-11.
- ^ a b "The Parallax II: Future Sequence - Between the Buried and Me". Metacritic. Retrieved 22 November 2013.
- ^ a b "Between The Buried And Me - The Parallax II: Future Sequence Review". NME. Retrieved 2012-09-11.
- ^ "Between the Buried and Me - The Parallax II: Future Sequence Review". AbsolutePunk. Retrieved 2012-10-06.
- ^ a b "Between The Buried And Me - The Parallax II: Future Sequence". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-14.
- ^ "BETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME - The Parallax II (Metal Blade)". Blabbermouth.net. Retrieved 2012-10-23.
- ^ a b "Between the Buried And Me - The Parallax II: Future Sequence (Metal Blade Records) Review". Blistering. Retrieved 2012-10-06.
- ^ Stewart-Panko, Kevin (November 2012). "Between the Buried and Me, The Parallax II: Future Sequence". Decibel Magazine (97): 86.
{{cite journal}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - ^ a b "Between the Buried and Me - The Parallax II: Future Sequence Review". Loudwire. Retrieved 2012-10-08.
- ^ a b Ezell, Brice (16 October 2012). "Between the Buried and Me: The Parallax II: Future Sequence". Popmatters. Retrieved 22 November 2013.
- ^ a b Camisasca, Paige (1 October 2012). "Review: Between the Buried and Me – The Parallax ll: Future Sequence". Revolver Magazine. Retrieved 22 November 2013.