Passing Into Time

Now I don’t normally review the more heavy rock/metallic music on this blog, as my main focus is punk and indie music but this does not mean I don’t throw up the devil horns from time to time. In fact I’m a huge fan of Trivium and I always end up jamming their stuff with one of my best mates when I see him, it’s sort of a ritual of ours. So do not think me a stranger to the genre. Anyway, I had a brief chat with Rajeev of prog rockers The Multitude and after checking out their stuff I told him I’d be happy to do a review of their debut album Passing Into Time. And what music it is.

Soaring vocals, chugging guitar, heavy bass and pounding drums along with some more delicate moments make this album an emotional listen. You cheer, shout and headbang at the thrash riffs and pummelling drums on tracks such as A Clarion Call To Retribution and yet some of the occasional beautiful orchestral violin work (or is it viola? I can never tell) on Friends of Mine bring a tear to the eye. I’m now going to talk about my 3 favourite tracks on Passing Into Time.

Passing Into Time starts powerfully with the short introductory track Kyrie Eleison leading into the first full song and title track Passing Into Time. I’m going to talk about both here as one track as they are connected. The slow lead guitar in Kyrie Eleison almost has a stoner vibe before the follow up title track kicks it up a notch with blasting chugs and pulverising drums and bass, not to mention the expert vocal performance.

As I mentioned this album has its tender moments, especially with the collaboration between Multitude and Naviin Ghandharv On High Seas. The bass, while subtle and arguably drowned out on the rest of the album particularly stands out on this track and plays a wonderful counter melody to the beautiful guitar and orchestral arrangement while still laying down the rhythm which is exactly what a bass player should be doing on an album such as this. Loads of bands simply have the bassist follow the guitars but the bass player here has really shown his chops. Well done indeed.

Now my favourite track on this stellar album is the final track Friends of Mine. It seems to perfectly balance the slower moments to the smashing riffs we know that The Multitude are capable of by now. It sums up the album perfectly and is absolutely the right choice for the final track. Too many albums have the wrong choice for the finale, but this band have nailed it.

In summary this is an excellent example of progressive rock/metal and I urge any of my readers, especially those into the heavier side of rock to check this band out. Passing Into Time is available on the majority of music platforms including Spotify and iTunes.

Peace, Love and Cowbells,

Oscar.