I Built The Sky caught my attention in a VSauce video showcasing the arts and music, this young guitarist was riffing out harmonious melodic Djent and shredding into vibrant sweep picking solos with a comforting fluency. I've since picked up the record for free on Bandcamp and enjoyed these records which I would describe as "instant gratification". It may have just suited my taste, but these tuneful numbers sound the same as the first time I heard it, the charm of this music is out in the open and easy to access.
Being a one man band from Australia this instrumental Djent music servers as a showcase for the guitar to worm its way through bright imaginative passages that range from acoustic rockers to full on metalic grooves. In the rhythm end theirs plenty of almost "polyrythmic" grooves and hard hitting crunchy Djents, but it never strays to far into the heavy, always retaining melodic sensibility and creating a very accessible entry to this style of music. The grooves are accompanied with dazzling harmonious chords strum out in a Post-Metal style creating an epic air underneath the riff fest. In its most acoustic moments the strength of the melodics shine as the captivating sound transcends between a chasm of difference from the crunchy Djents to the almost Post-Rock harmonious epics.
Alongside the massive guitars is a clear, punchy drum kit that sounds adequate with its hammering pedals, sharp snare and slick symbols. It sounds very much like a drum machine, the toms being a dead giveaway. Either way the drumming itself was thoughtful, lots of care put into the grooves and fills, but despite being positive in general, I feel it lacked a spark or flair to do something interesting, maybe its purpose was met as this album really does focus on the guitar. The bass seemed non existent, either mirroring the guitar or being the low end of Djent, there were only a couple of moments where underneath layers of building guitars did it sound like a bass line might be at work. The instrumental aspect of this record was a success, the guitars felt like a voice of their own and their artistic vision would be dampened by such a bold element as vocals, clean or screamed. There were a few inconsistencies in the production formula from track to track, but nothing major, in general this was a fantastic sounding record expressing some brilliant musical ideas. With a new album due in 2015 I will be keeping a close eye on this musician.
Favorite Tracks: Nebulosus, Opacus, Cumulonimbus, Stratus, Spissatus
Rating: 6/10