CLOUDKICKER's “BEACONS” Push It Way Up!

Perhaps you are familiar with the term “black box”? If not, it's slang for a flight recorder; they are built to survive an aircraft crash so that the recordings can provide clues to how the crash occurred. Ben Sharpe AKA Cloudkicker has quoted such black box recordings in the song titles in his instrumental album “Beacons” -- almost all of them are someone's last words. This lends a humanity and pathos to songs that might otherwise have been lost in the mathematical abstraction of prog metal.
Which is not to say that the album lacks heart. Cloudkicker is excellent at combining complex and often quite heavy riffing with melody, and his usage of various sound layers creates a sonic landscape that is rich and personal. The softer sections in the album wouldn't have been out of place in a “God is an Astronaut” record, and that is high praise. The synthesis of djent and post-rock creates the illusion of flight -- of complex machines, piloted by flesh-and-blood humans, making their way through the heavens. Guitar-tones meant to mimic sirens remind us that ultimately the album is about these machines crashing, and these people dying. It is very effectively done. The album flows well; almost too well as individual tracks are not noticeable for the most part. There is also a problem of length; some songs are just a shade too long, and a little brevity may have been wise. (Interestingly, his more post-rock sections are unusually condensed, for the genre.)
Cloudkicker, the djentleman on the album cover, plays and produces the music personally. The guitar-and-bass work is all his, with the drums being provided by a computer. It's a remarkable achievement given the quality of the music, and the story is made more impressive by the knowledge that he doesn't want money for it. You can name your own price at his website, and in this one case illegally downloading the album wouldn't rub the artist the wrong way. A nice man. We like him.

Verdict: Cloudkicker's fascination with aviation is evident throughout his discography, and “Beacons” is very much a prog-metal and djent album. The result is a work that sometimes flies too long but is shot through with pounding energy, soaring highs and the blaring of sirens as the ground gets closer and closer.

Listen if you like: “Meshuggah”, “Periphery”, “Chimp Spanner”, “God is an Astronaut”.