review: Surface of the Sun

Surface of the Sun

Panacea

6 September 2019

Surface of the Sun is a project that is apparently all played by one person, but with the exception of the hired musician handling the drumming. The recording is only four songs, which is not a lot for people to judge. The recording lasts about 25 minutes. The music is melodic progressive with singing. Overall, the music falls in the category of midtempo and groovy prog, and the songs stay at a comfortable head bobbing pace. It’s easy-listening prog, without extreme traits (no growling, no screaming, no blasting nor fast drumming). Fans of the heavier side of prog might not like the lightness nor the accessibility of this recording, but fans of the melodic side might enjoy the emphasis on grooves. The bass guitar is very audible and the guitar is not a predominant presence at all. It’s a roomy type of prog. The main thing about the music is the grooving aspects of it, and the slightly spacey/trippy feel in the background of the songs. The prog elements have more to do with groovy songs, and not necessarily complexity in the music. In this project the use of background sounds/samples/instrumentation is important for creating that second layer of the music.

The singing is the one major sticking point. The vocals are meant to be in the style of melodic singing characterized by the feel of a somewhat tortured-soul expression. It is soft singing that seeks to evoke vulnerability. At times it seems like the singing is borderline crying. This type of singing perhaps is more common in alternative rock than metal music, but there are successful bands with this type of singing, especially in the field of traditional/melodic progressive rock and metal. Ultimately, the listener decides whether this singing is friendly to the ear or not, or whether it is just too irritating to bear. facebook.com/surfaceofthesun/