TRANSCENDENT: Awaken
Heavy, Progressive Power Groove Gospel Metal
Essentially a two-musician project, Transcendent’s Awaken represents an amalgam of dark heavy prog/power and the groove metal of the 1990’s. This molten mix likely stems from David Ashe’s background playing in ‘90’s bands like Last Parable, as well as his stated interests in prog metal giants Dream Theater. Western North Carolina (Hendersonville/Asheville) certainly isn’t known for heavy metal, but Ashe makes it apparent he’s metal through and through as the music here is heavy, rhythmically driven with a plethora of guitar edge and the words are metal in their boldness of message.
Comparisons
Paul Bowman is the vocalist here, his style and tone not unlike David Taylor, the vocalist of another underground metal band from the ‘90’s Jacobs Dream. He even sounds, at other times, like Chaz Bond, the other singer for that unique power metal band. And speaking of Jacobs Dream, Transcendent sounds like a combination of Jacobs Dream and BioGenesis … and for that matter, Vultures Gathering.
Awaken
Incidentally, finding a quality recording studio and producer/mixer is tough for new bands, but I think Transcendent have done a decent job on their debut in that regard. The sound is mostly balanced with not shrill treble or excessive bass. That kick drum sound may just be a bit too precise for fans of the more organic acoustic sound of drums, but fans of Ulrich’s And Justice for All… kick sound will love the punch.
Nevertheless, the songs on Awaken are guitar-driven, the sound dialed in to perfection, clean (without much distortion) and both the rhythms and the solos are very good to excellent. The lyrics are solidly in the evangelical metal camp and Bowman delivers them with conviction, and while some may not prefer his vocal style (his lower range sounds better than the higher octave) he delivers the words with discernible clarity.
New Talent
Finally, Roxx remains committed to cultivating new talent, and in doing so there will invariably be risks taken. While I am not going to predict Transcendent’s future, Awaken is a promising debut. Time will tell if they can cultivate their sound and style into something uniquely their own – an increasingly difficult task for rock/metal artists – but its apparent that David Ashe is a talented musician with a lot of gas left in his creative tank.
Track Listing
1. Free Your Soul (4:54)
2. Beyond the Veil (6:03)
3. Don’t Lie to Me (5:12)
4. Awaken (5:35)
5. Unseen Battle (5:10)
6. Suffocate (6:07)
7. Here Comes the Reaper (4:46)
8. Crack the Sky (4:14)
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