It’s time to take a look at Spheres.
After a debut album released in 2019, the French Progressive Metal band consisting of Jonathan Lino (vocals/guitar/keyboards), Olivier Moreau (guitar/vocals), Clémence Santé (bass), and Jesse Haddad (drums) announces the release of Helios, their second album, in 2022.
Algorithmic Sentience greets us with a mysterious but powerful atmosphere, followed by a tortured voice, quickly joined by a clean twangy voice. The contrast between the keyboards’ quietness, the jerky rhythmic and the different vocal parts is interesting, as well as the soaring atmosphere of Spiritual Journey, a long but complex composition which will be punctuated by some screams. The riffs know how to be aggressive or more airy to drive us to this crazy final explosion, then Pandemia reveals a visceral rage developed on eleven minutes of burning sound interspersed with quieter heavy parts. Dedicated to the recent events, the track sounds like an outlet for the band, which places piercing leads and soothing parts in its lively rhythmic, which will calm down again with Helios, the eponymous interlude, and its modern airy tones. The band follows with SCS, a catchy and energetic track which relies on dissonant leads to bring a touch of darkness, but also on a jerky basis, sometimes accompanied by choruses to make us nod. Running Man begins with ominous vocals, followed by those epic tones before the voice comes back to feed the contrast between the different elements. Heady keyboards will accompany us on the whole track, leaving the more solid parts to the rhythmic and madness to the vocal, as on this last surprising break, then Take me Higher, Ailleurs allows itself a pun (“ailleurs” means “elsewhere” in French, but has the same pronounciation than “higher”) by presenting its softness. It will be contrasted by the most rough and researched riffs, then Do You Agree will come to close the album with this strange and worrying mixture followed by an impressive heaviness.
Although focused on a Progressive Metal basis, Spheres is an uncommon project which allows itself all madness. Once accustomed to this unusual and surprising voice, Helios’ complex riffs will finally be able to be aggressive and bewitching.
70/100