Review by Richard Henry for MPM
Well, here we have a new band hailing from Dublin, Nebularis, led by Guitarist and Multi-instrumentalist Mo Sheerin, Hytham Martin on Vocals, Damian Dziennik on Drums and Terry McHugh on bass, now they have been teasing songs now for a while releasing a few tracks unto the unsuspecting public already, but me being me I have waited till the album came out to get from start to finish and hear it in the order it was intended, so let’s get stuck in and see what this is all about:
Tellurian
Swirling echoey I think guitar with a floating ethereal synth pad backing is what greet you from the off on this one, it’s really dense soundscape sort of feel but you can hear like an ominous sort of banging drum in the background before the piano note stabs come in and the feel changes and you can hear the build as well as if something is coming, then it fades…
Cataclysm
Guitar kicks off this one again a bendy riff to start with and then dense chords as the drums kick in, before it slaps in, love the shifting tempo under that first verse riff, and the one thing you really hear is the arrangement, especially in the vocals under the chorus part where there is some great layering from Hytham, that chorus will surely stick in your head and would be a great crowd singalong live as well, hitting into the middle section and a bit of time shift on the drums, low vocal comes in and a very ominous sounding middle part before it yet again shifts feel again, i like that more heavy thrash feel after this part with the guitars and drums driving before Mo throws a little additional part over it before we get a solo section, very expressive and very melodic, nice note choice in there as well, before it drops into the original opening riff, hell of an opener!
Aurelia
Dense sort of waves coming over you, as this is a soundtrack sort of bridge from the last song to the next, sort of reminds me of what Pestilence would do between songs on Testimony with the instrumental breaks.
Subnautica
Now that’s a guitar sound there, big meaty slab of a riff to start this one off, nearly reminds me of Stef’s sound from Deftones, which funny that verse really reminds me of said band, something that’s easy to miss is the backing vocal part around 45 seconds, reminds me of something Devin would do, that little additional guitar part that comes in over the top just after the last part really adds texture and a change of feel, you hit that chorus and the whole song just gets uplifting and again I can’t help but think of the comparison of Devin Townsend on this one as well, now that solo has a bit of Mr. Vai about it for sure, lovely bit of playing there, and then into a section that has a syncopated guitar and drum part and its building up again, before it launches into a really nice bass groove that’s really laid back and then a tapped guitar part with the piano following it as well, and into another section with the vocals and the tapping guitar part, and before you know it your back to the verse part with the background vocals, clever songwriting and it takes you on a journey, even the way the drums now start to drive the riff near the end of the song, great track!
Voyager
Clean guitar with a synth part bobbing about behind it, when the drums kick in, I had the thought of, Haken, this just reminds me of something those guys would do, when it gets a bit heavier you get the layer of vocals and then drums start to shift about, I am loving this one, it’s really well produced as well, everything has a spot, the guitar part that comes in at around 2:20 the first thing I thought of was “The Police”, like an Andy Summers guitar part, and for me that’s a good thing, I loved that part coming in, it’s easy to not pay attention to the drum part as well, really cool groove, again there is so much to catch your ear that it’s easy to miss parts, love the change of tempo next, tapped guitar part and a more aggressive vocal, that next part with the guitar riff and the synth in the background is cleaver with the synth adding to it, then before you know it we have ended where we started with that intro guitar riff, such a well put together song!
Exodus
Again, you get the break from the heaviness with a synth-wave swirling part with what sounds like radio interference coming through it, short break from the tracks but it connects the album together and I love the soundscapes between the songs!
Holocene
Oh yes, I like that, angular riff and then slabs of heaviness when the drums crash in, when you get into the song that riff is properly spacey, appropriately heavy vocals that come in with the drum stabs, before we change into the clean vocals and it’s a great contrast, then a huge sounding vocal section comes at you next, again it keeps changing, pay attention to the drums and the different accents, that vocal on the heavy part there at 1:40 really reminds me of Burton from Fear Factory for some reason, just the delivery of it, and then when Hytham switches to the cleans, yeah big time that’s who I am thinking of, again there are so many sections that switch effortlessly, then you’re into a cleaner section with a spoken voice over it, as in the background the band is yet again building up, into a huge vocal section, that’s really uplifting sounding as it shifts and adds double bass as the song comes to a close, now that’s an epic ride, right there!
Critias
Mellow synth to open this one with lie shimmer coming off it, then comes in the clean guitars and an open snare drum marching pattern, warm vocal in that verse, now just listen to that little part in the background at the one minute mark, subtle but really adds to that section, then we hit the verse and Mo joins in on the backing vocals and it really brings a very cool feel to this one, then bang, what a chorus, that’s epic, I absolutely love that, then back into the verse but listen to the warm vocals now starting to surround you and all the additional parts in there, that little heavier part at the three min mark as well, really cool riff, before you hit that huge slab of a chorus again, then Mo gets another solo, again really tasteful, nice little harmony in there, just melody, and then just like that we are done!
10 out of 10
For a debut album, this is parts Haken/Devin Townsend and that’s not bad company to be mentioned in, well thought out songs and everything fits so well together, solid writing and playing, and just great hooks and choruses that will have you coming back to them, don’t know what it is with Progressive Metal in Dublin at the min but that’s two years in a row that a Dublin band has brought out a absolutely mint album, this time last year was The Enigma Division, this year is definitely Nebularis time to shine, go grab a cuppa and sit down and take the time to listen to it from start to finish, very highly recommended!!
Exodus: Shattered Earth Saga Part I | Nebularis (bandcamp.com)
‘Exodus – Shattered Earth Saga – Part 1‘ will be released on February. 23rd. Pre-save links can be found here.
Nebularis is;
Hytham – Vocals and Lyrics
Damian – Drums/Percussion
Mo Sheerin – Synths/Pianos/Orchestral arrangements and compositions/Guitars
Terry McHugh – Bass
Alexandria Lawless – Recorded cello
Oleksandr Minaiev- Recorded violin
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