Psychonaut ‘Unfold the God Man’
Album Review By Adam McCann
Pelagic Records/Post-Metal/Progressive Metal
There is nothing like putting the word ‘post’ in front of a genre to make purists recoil in fear. But Belgian post-metal band Psychonaut have no qualms about upsetting the natural order of things. On the back of two very well received EP’s released in 2014 and 2016 respectively, Psychonaut are ready to release their first full-length studio album ‘Unfold the God Man’ to the world.
‘Unfold…’ is not an easy album to initially enjoy, as with most albums of this genre, it is not full of predictable 4/4 melodies that are instantly likeable; instead, this album requires a few listens to full appreciate the flow and even then, there are hidden melodies, rhythms and passages that make themselves aware. This makes ‘Unfold…’ an enigma, something that needs unravelling and inspecting further appealing to fans of Tool, Between the Buried and Me as well as Amenra. However, there is more to Psychonaut than just blatant musical elitism, alongside post-metal, there are elements of sludge metal and psychedelia, the latter of which manages to give the band a real 70’s progressive vibe all delivered through a contemporary sound which can be seen during ‘Kabuddah’, ‘The Fall of Consciousness’ and the closing sixteen minute epic track ‘Nothing is Consciousless’ complete with Mongolian throat singing.
This is a great album to consolidate the bands earlier EP releases; ‘Unfold…’ may not appeal to the masses, but there will be a loyal portion of metal fans who will rabidly inhale and digest every bit.
Rating : 70/100
MHF Magazine/Adam McCann
