Progressive metal band Caricature are back with yet another release, this time the surprising Unborn EP. It’s tough to qualify anything surprising from this outfit and its leader Joseph Spiller, since their last release Stampede was a one track EP that was a 27 minute long song about Spiller’s cat, Parmesan. That track is epic in length and also musically, and so it begs the question: where do you go from there? Well obviously if you are Caricature you go right back to work write some of the best songs in your career.Continue reading →
Considering their cathartic ability to bring not only happiness, but comfort and even purpose to people’s lives, it is perhaps surprising that musicians have not really composed songs on the subject of pets. Especially considering musicians’ desire to write about personal subjects, and not to mention how the likes of metal and prog especially like to tackle subjects like mental stability that may prove almost taboo in other genres.
Such is the subject of Stampede(Self Released), the latest stand alone single by New England Progressive metallers Caricature between album releases. Written by mainman Joseph Spiller about his cat Parmesan and the unique and life affirming bond which saw them both fight through severe health issues (Parmesan being abandoned and found with infestations, whilst Spiller fought Crohn’s Disease), and shows a heartfelt nature on a very human subject of which most should relate to.
At nearly 30 minutes duration, Stampede certainly has room to move musically, and shows significant growth throughout, from the serene ambience of its opening to a wider sound with more extreme roots, which is a very familiar formula but one that still works well to build anticipation and emphasize its different sides. The real flaw here is perhaps the vocals which, once again, lack originality, but more importantly concerning the clean vocals, sound limp and fail to stand out, especially compared to much more impactful harsh growls alongside.
The taglines of cat based prog will of course be highlighted with mentions of Stampede, and rightly so as it’s a bold tactic to highlight such a subject which shows humanity and fragility that many will know and empathise with. What this also highlights however is that Caricature are a band that have a bold vision and show signs of real potential. It isn’t perfect, and sonically it’s far from innovative, but there is still plenty to take from. Plus, we all know that cats are really as synonymous with metal as the devil himself.
Ghost Cult brings you the new lyric video from New England’s Caricature today. ‘Stampede’ is a 27 minute long progressive metal epic about Caricature front man Joseph Spiller and his cat, Parmesan. You can watch the video at this link or below:
The Stampede EP is available for purchase from Caricature’s Bandcamp. Front man Joseph Spiller, who also produced the video and graphic design for the project, detailed the origin of the track and his relationship with Parmesan for Heavy Blog Is Heavy:
“Some people might be wondering why I made a song that is almost a half hour long about my cat. Well, he’s awesome. That’s why. Bands go out and write about a lot of stuff like quantum physics that they don’t actually understand, murders they would never commit, women/men they will never get up on, so why not pay tribute to a member of the family that gives everything he can at all times, had a rough start to life, and who’s story intertwines with my own?
I was really sick and in and out of the hospital/seeing doctors weekly/all around having a real dumpster fire of a time back in 2014 and start to finish there was over a year and a half where I was battling some complications from Crohn’s Disease that were further complicated by a not very ideal environment. I don’t remember a lot due to how sick I was and the different types of meds the doctors had me on, but I do remember hearing this tiny kitten in the middle of the road in front of my house crying as if his life depended on it who was blind and couldn’t walk. I was using the walls and my wife to hold myself up and get places, but even though I was home alone, I got myself outside to get him before a car hit him. From there it was the both of us fighting to get better. When I would pass out for 20 hours at a time, he would lay on me and watch over me then lick me to wake me up. I don’t remember a lot for a good 8 months, but I remember him.
I wanted to create an “Experience” track. Something that wasn’t just told by the lyrics but by the tone of the instruments and how they were being used; overall moods in the music. Having a song as epic as my cat, Parmesan was only fitting. The song turned into this 27+ minute jam. Long to the point where it doesn’t fit on our upcoming album The Fiction We’ve Become, so it only made sense to make it a stand alone release. Evan Sammons [Last Chance To Reason] had his hands full with the album plus running his own studio, So I took the reigns and played almost everything on this one and even built a custom 8 string guitar that i call the “Parmcatster” for this one. Gerry came in and played some awesome leads and killed it on the mix. We wanted it to sound clean, but not overly edited. Real people playing real music and to top it off, there are samples from videos that I took of Parmesan while he was growing up that we have sprinkled throughout the song. Ken Sorceron [Abigail Williams, The Accuser, Lord Mantis, Ex Aborted] came in and saved my ass at the end and made sure the master was sounding right too. We hope people enjoy this one and go home and give their furry friends a big hug.”
Featuring EvanSammons (Last Chance To Reason) on drums, ‘Stampede’ was produced and recorded by Spiller, mixed by guitarist Gerrard Vachon, and as has contributions from Ken Sorceron (Abigail Williams). It is the second new track to appear in advance of Caricature’s next full-length album,The Fiction We’ve Become due later in 2016.
Caricature has teased a brand new song, reported to be a 27-minute long epic progressive metal song titled ‘Stampede’, due for release at the end of the month. Moreover, the song is based on frontman Joseph Spiller and his friendship with his cat, Parmesan. You can watch the teaser at this link or below:
Metal Injection reported the story and interviewed Spiller about the track:
“Long-ass song about a cat. Crazy, right? I wanted to do a longer song and have parts that breathed naturally, that get inside you and that build. Too often in heavier music, I find that artists will have these incredible parts that crop up and vanish so fast that they never get a chance to go develop properly. I didn’t set out to make a super long song, but as I wrote, a longer song just felt right. When it came to finding inspiration for lyrics, my cat Parmesan was always sitting next to me or trying to play. He’s my number one guy and after singing songs to him for fun and being tired of heavy bands telling completely fictitious stories of acts of violence that they themselves would never commit, fake ‘scientific’ dissertations, tall tales, and the like, it felt right to tell his story instead. I was very, very sick when I brought this tiny blind, dying kitten into my home. His mother, who was a stray, led him into the middle of the street in front of my house then left him crying and unable to move. I could barely get out of bed, but I heard him and rushed out as fast as I could and that was the beginning of a broship for the ages. This is the tale of both of us fighting to get better, set to music that was fueled by listening to Symphony X, Steven Wilson, ISIS, and Ihsahn.”
In addition to Spiller (Too Late The Hero,The Binary Code), Caricature’s current lineup features Last Chance to Reason drummer Evan Sammons. ‘Stampede’ will be the second new track made available from the forthcoming new full-length Caricature album The Fiction We’ve Become later this year. The first track was the recently released ‘Eat shit And Die’, which you can see the video for at this link below. To celebrate the release of these tracks, you can buy it and the entire Caricature discography (Shadows (maxi single) release, The Sound Of One Man’s World Collapsing and The Birth By Sleep EP) at a 20% discount via Bandcamp.
