ANTA is a band originally from Bristol, UK that offers an instrumental Progressive Rock sound with forays into Experimentation and Psychedelia. The new album “Organesson” was released on June 05, 2024 via Stolen Body Records and contains four long tracks. The opener “QTFK” is an epic track of over 14 minutes, which after a short introductory part unleashes a sound steeped in Prog and with dark, experimental traits. Keyboards and guitar intertwine and layer each other in alternating melodies and solos accompanied by a solid and elaborate rhythm section characterised by continuous tempo changes. The retro traits are brought into a modern and personal context, where the excellent keyboard work will surely please even the most purist Prog fans. The entire duration of the track is used to explore the different musical facets that characterise the band, evolving the central theme with instrumental phrasing of the highest order. Tracks like this alone are worth the price of the album. The sound is granitic, the bass lines deep and load-bearing and the drumming technical and incisive, while the keyboards and guitar are free to express the band’s full potential between Heavy Prog and beyond. “Artus Telem” is the shortest on the album, still clocking in at over four minutes. A prolonged interweaving of organ and choral vocals create a dark and restless atmosphere, acting as a transition track to the following one. Another track with a granitic and markedly progressive sound, “Voxel,” continues to explore the good things heard in the opener. The rhythm is punchy, with a killer bassline and solid drumming, the guitar riffs well constructed and the keyboards offer solutions in both melodies and solos of a high standard. The more modern imprint shows all the compositional and performing technique of the band, through the long instrumental passages enhancing every single element and sound. The title track “Organesson” closes the album at over 11 minutes long, offering a more experimental sound and returning to darker atmospheres than its predecessor. The rhythm moves slowly, and the track increases in intensity as the minutes go by, also elaborating more intricate passages before exploding into sophisticated Heavy Prog. The long duration allows the band to insert the right amount of effects and modulations into the track, allowing them to experiment and develop another masterpiece of pure Progressive Rock. It is not often that we hear albums of this level, but when it happens we lovers of progressive sounds are very happy. An elaborate work, full of ideas and high-level passages, developed through long instrumental textures that enhance the technique of all the band’s elements. A heavy dose of keyboards, fine guitar work, solid drumming with plenty of tempo changes and load-bearing basslines that give the songs body. A masterpiece of modern Progressive Rock with forays into Heavy sounds and Experimentation, offering 4 tracks of absolute level.
Tracklist
01. QTFK (14:28)
02. Artus Telem (04:14)
03. Voxel (06:20)
04. Organesson (11:13)
Lineup
Ben Harris / Guitar
Joe Garcia / Bass
James King / Drums
Alex Bertram-Powell / Keyboards, Synth, Electric Piano, Organ
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