With an expansive sound and members whose past jobs include Devin Townsend, Haken, Mike Portnoy’s Shattered Fortress and The Neal Morse Band amongst others is Temic. The idea for this project was first suggested back in 2017, but various touring commitments and a pesky pandemic meant it came to naught until now.
They are a four piece Prog Metal outfit whose debut album Terror Management Theory (Season of Mist) is an energetic mix of melodic, progressive and electronic elements that hits all the right notes.
There are no instant hooks or radio friendly ditties so it takes a few goes to gel, but it does and your perseverance is rewarded. After the brief, mood setting introduction “TMT” the pulsating “Through The Sands of Time” – with its chunky bass, fat riffs, in your face breakdown and glossy, eighties rock solo – gets the blood pumping. It showcases Temic’s atmospheric and multi-faceted prog, whose refreshing blend of electronic, prog and metal brings to mind VOLA and Haken.
The heavy stomp, attention grabbing drumming and passionate vocals of “Count Your Losses” is one such track, and is one of many highlights here. The drum and bass style drum beat and the undulating keys add an infectious, restless energy to “Once More”.
Like VOLA, Temic they mix soft and heavy well – this is especially the case in “Acts of Violence” whose dark lyricism and ethereal keys soon morph into metal with enough bombast to make Muse blush. Temic aren’t afraid of a bit of melodrama here and there, the spooky, Nightmare on Elms Street synths, thundering guitars, and deliciously funky breakdown of “Skeletons” is intricate prog writ large.
In “Mothallah” they save the biggest moment till last, its marching beat builds to a crescendo of multi layered instrumentation and sky high, choral style vocals.
Terror Management Theory takes disparate elements and moulds them into a cohesive and intense style of Prog Metal, bristling with energy and never boring.
Buy the album here:
https://shopusa.season-of-mist.com/band/temic
8 / 10
THOMAS THROWER