ALYEUS-Forty Days At Sea

I have always been a fan of progressive rock. Most of my 20s were spent listening to Yes, King Crimson, Pink Floyd, and Flash. My interest in the resurgence of progressive rock bands currently releasing material in Canada, is piqued every time I discover a new one. Alyeus (pronounced Ah-lie-us), another London, On band, released their 12 track debut album, Forty Days At Sea, in September, 2013. As part of a 3 album project, the first release is actually the middle piece of the opus. Only a prog-rock band could make sense in that. Citing Pink Floyd, Dream Theatre, and Black Sabbath among their influences, these guys have a unique take on the genre.

The ambient, atmospheric rock that filled arenas in the 1970s, wafts through this album on waves of hard rock. Forty Days At Sea is filled with wonderful changes and transitions. There are beautiful harmonies, particularly the operatic sounds on “VII“. The guitars are amazing, playing hard rock riffs over progressive instrumentation. The riff in “Triton’s Horn” is reminiscent of Steve Howe, while the power chords convey the energy of this band. There are cool effects, and some amazing bass on “The Chambers” and “The Keeper“. The vocals are cool, laying somewhere between Geddy Lee and Jon Anderson, and the drumming is spectacular throughout. The music is incredibly melodic, with wonderful themes woven in. There are way cool tempo and time signature changes.The use of instrumentals throughout the album, serves to set the mood for the next theme. Pay particular attention to “Dreaming In Waves“, and “Elysium“, which evokes shades of Yes’ Tales From Topographic Oceans. The coolest song on the album, “Forty Days At Sea“, is a great song in any genre.

Alyeus delivers an exceptional concept album with themes that are dark and disturbing, and music that is hauntingly melodic. This is an album that should be listened to in its entirety, from beginning to end at one sitting. If you like progressive rock, and musical themes, you owe it to yourself to check these guys out. Finally, a band that brings back the way cool concept album. You can listen to and purchase Forty Days At Sea here.

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This entry was posted on February 16, 2014 at 5:15 am and is filed under Uncategorized with tags 1970s, 2013, Alyeus, black sabbath, canada, concept album, dream theatre, dreaming in waves, elysium, Flash, forty days at sea, geddy lee, hard rock, harmonies, indie, indie music, instrumentation, jon anderson, King Crimson, london, melodic, melodic rock, music, ontario, operatic, Pink Floyd, progressive rock, september, steve howe, tales from topographic oceans, the chambers, the keeper, themes, triton's horn, VII, Yes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

One Response to “ALYEUS-Forty Days At Sea”

ALYEUS-And From The Sky We Fall | I CAN'T BELIEVE MY EARZ Says:
November 13, 2015 at 5:30 am

[…] 2013 Alyeus set out on a bold journey by releasing the Forty Days At Sea, the 1st in the trilogy of concept albums chronicling a story of war, and a struggle for existence. […]

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