If there’s ever a way to know how to hit the ground running, Insurgent has found it. This CDEP is the Birmingham based band’s debut release and it is a powerful, emotive and intelligent one.
Taking the concept of a god-like entity watching and assessing what it is to be human, the band create an energetic and driving sound that is both crunchingly heavy whilst scorchingly soaring. The band is generally classed as a progressive metal one, with nods to the likes of TesseracT, Alter Bridge, Trivium, and Jinjer and they are perhaps obvious influences. But the band’s sound takes them in a more progressive direction, much as Nightwish do although without the keyboards and much less operatic than that band.
The music itself is full of shifts and changes with Joe, Jake and Mike combining technical prowess with energy and movement. It is often relentless and demanding, but there are breathers when you can hear the interplay of the musicians, how they combine with each other and the often incredible vocals. Kate has a voice that can take off, appearing to shift seamlessly from emotional story-telling to high voltage soaring of almost ethereal vitality. But this is definitely a band that works together and no one dominates. The end result is always highly melodic and accessible, in spite of the liveliness and bombast.
The EP has six songs of similar length at around the four-minute mark, and is well produced. There is a fine balance of light and dark moments which adds to the emotive element of the music but always holds the listeners attention. Where the opener Sero Sum is exciting and climactic the following track Counterpart is more nuanced and moodier. Dogma is more skitter-scatter and nervy until Colours Bleed hits forcefully. Eclipse brings along a more ardent edge. The closer, My Sentence Awaits, releases the tension in a more reflective vein.
Insurgent should already be receiving plaudits for its music. This is an EP that demands your attention but maintains a listenability throughout that gives a rewarding, colourful experience. It is a courageous approach for a somewhat novice band, but one that could, and should, see Insurgent make a name for itself in the diverse world of progressive music.
1: Zero Sum
2: Counterpart
3: Dogma
4: Colours Bleed
5: Eclipse
6: My Sentence Awaits
Kate Teitge – Vocals
Joe Rowley – Guitar
Jake Brette – Bass
Mike Tabone – Drums
Release date: 6th August 2021
Label: self-released
You can listen to Colours Bleed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j75zsKrV6iU
Spirit of Progressive Rock 