The Progress Report: September 2024

Welcome to the September Progress Report. We have a very diverse selection for you this month, and more quality albums as we edge towards the end of the year. I don’t know if I’m simply in a good mood this month, but every one of these picks is deserving of repeated listens and each shine in their own way. Half of these albums are self-released, and kudos to these bands for all the work that goes into a release cycle beyond the music. It’s not easy! As always, check these bands out and support the music you enjoy.

Ratings are on a five star scale.

Avneya – Road To I (Self)

Modern progressive metal trio Obsidian Tide have released two albums so far, and both have landed in our annual Best Of lists. So it was with no lack of excitement that we jumped on Road To I, the debut solo album of Obsidian Tide’s guitarist and vocalist Oz Avneya. Road To I took Avneya eight years to fully realize this project, but it was worth the sweat and tears.

Road To I features a lot of guest musicians and, despite being a mere 32 minutes long, plenty of variety in arrangements, music, dynamics, and feel. There are plenty of similarities to Avneya’s Obsidian Tide output, but Road To I stretches his musical styles in directions both heavy and orchestral, and expands his already formidable guitar prowess. Road To I is a super debut, a great addition to the Avneya/Obsidian Tide family tree, and a close second for our pick of the month.

Rating: 4.5

Black Sites – The Promised Land? (Self)

Chicago’s Black Sites have been a favorite here since their 2017 debut, In Monochrome. The Promised Land? is their fourth release, and it is no exaggeration to say this band gets better with every release. The lineup may fluctuate over the years, but mastermind Mark Sugar has a vision for this band, and this may be the closest they’ve come to fully realizing that yet.

Black Sites’ influences have remained consistent over the years – Voivod, King’s X, Queensryche – but here on The Promised Land? the band stretches out, diversifies their sound, and hits a songwriting peak. Top it all off with excellent performances (and guest performances) and top-notch production and we have one of the best albums of the year, and our pick of the month.

Rating: 4.5

Bragging Rights – Small Gods (Self)

Meet Bragging Rights, a UK project that has been plying their progressive death-sludge trade for a few years now, toiling away in the underground. Small Gods is the one-man act’s seventh album (he’s quite prolific) and brings together influences from Gojira to Tool and more.

Not often do we review a prog album like this: fourteen songs crammed into a svelte 48-minute runtime. Only one song cracks the five-minute mark, and the first half of Small Gods is blistering prog-death in the vein of Gojira, with pummeling staccato drums and riffs and unearthly screams. The second half sludges things up and slows things down a bit, but is no less eviscerating. Production might be slightly on the heavy-handed side (I would be afraid for my speakers if I played this too loud) but Small Gods is a lot of fun to listen to and has me checking out Bragging Rights’ back catalog.

Rating: 3.5

LizZard – Mesh (Pelagic)

We last looked at LizZard three years ago in our site’s regular weekly column and came away impressed with their catchy take on progressive alt-metal. Not much has changed in three years, and on Mesh, the band’s fifth album, they continue to churn out memorable material.

The trio, hailing from the UK and France, have been together since the beginning in 2006, and it really shows in the cohesiveness of their playing. Every instrument fills the precise space that it should, leaving room for the others to shine. Mat Ricou’s vocals project plenty of emotion. In short, once again LizZard have graced us with a strong set of songs and an album that is thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish.

Rating: 4

Pure Reason Revolution – Coming Up To Consciousness (InsideOut)

Another perennial favorite, Pure Reason Revolution ply their trade in the same waters as Steven Wilson, the Pineapple Thief, and others. Each album, while consistently strong, also has a few absolute gems, making PRR release day an exciting day. Coming Up To Consciousness is the band’s sixth album overall and third since returning from hiatus in 2020.

One change this time out is the appearance of Annicke Shireen on vocals, replacing Chloe Alper whose schedule made working on this album impossible. Shireen fills in admirably, and while I don’t want to do Alper a disservice by saying the band doesn’t miss a step, we do get exactly what we expect from a PRR album: plenty of dynamics and emotion in a lavishly produced package, once again with plenty of “oh wow” moments. This is a band that deserves more attention!

Rating: 4

The Wring – Nemesis (Wormholedeath)

This is the first time we’ve featured Canadian prog rock/metal power trio The Wring, but Nemesis is their fourth album. Originally a solo project of guitarist Don Dewulf that was started nine years ago, The Wring are a full band now and they’ve really come together with this current lineup (Reggie Hache on bass and vocals, Kyle Brian Abbott on drums).
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There is a distinct, and quite energetic, 90s prog feel to Nemesis, reminiscent of bands such as Watchtower and Galactic Cowboys. The songs are loaded with intricate drumming, rock-solid bass playing, and great riffs and solos. Hache’s vocals may not work for everyone but they do for me, making this a super addition to any prog fan’s catalog.

Rating: 4