16th
Perceval Gage - “Perceval Gage / Eye of the Horus EP”
Perceval Gage, a post-metal quartet founded in 2004 in London, England, is one of the acts that I’ve been enjoying the most recently. The group is more driving and up-tempo than your trypical post-metal band, infusing elements of death metal, progressive rock, and even a touch of the melodic sensibilities of viking metal, into a thoroughly enjoyable product. The band has two EPs currently available, the self-titled Perceval Gage EP, as well as Eye of the Horus, however, the tracks Fall Back Down and Rhino appear on both recordings.
The self-titled EP starts out with Poseidon, a driving and agressive song that is reminiscent of melodic death and viking metal, while at the same time remining decidedly within the realm of post-metal. The main attraction here is track two, Fall Back Down, which begins with a very dreamy and lengthy intro which is actually more post-rock than post-metal. It’s not until the 5-minute mark that the vocals finally enter, with the lead-singer’s voice much softer than on the EP’s opening track, almost to the point of timidity. A bit after the 7-minute mark, the feedback-laden guitars finally enter, but recede soon after the chorus into a psychedelic tapestry of feedback and soundclips, before beginning to slowly build once again for the end of the piece. Despite the fact that the song is over 14 minutes long, it doesn’t drag or get boring for a single moment, which is an accomplishment than many similar acts fail to attain. The EP’s last two tracks, The Gage and Rhino are very similar to the opener, stirring and well-worth the listen, but do not quite capture the power of Fall Back Down. Despite the album’s sceond track stealing the spotlight, the entire EP is overall quite excellent. Both EPs can be downloaded (with the exception of the track Rhino) from the group’s last.fm page.
4.3 out of 5
- Post-Industrial Waste
