Between The Buried And Me return with not only a new release but a new concept as well. “Automata” is the first double album for the progressive metal act and once again challenges the listener and their fans as they delve into yet another epic journey full of new elements as well as maintaining their signature sound. The first part of “Automata” comes out March 9th so we take a look into what’s in store.
Between The Buried And Me have always pushed the envelope from the very beginning, combining their metalcore roots with technical progressive music with a blend of melody and thrashy death metal. In more recent years the melodic aspects have certainly become more prominent, none more so than on their last album “Coma Ecliptic” which went for more of an atmospheric mood with transitions that maybe weren’t as forceful as previous work. On this latest release, the band continue a lot of what went on in “Coma Ecliptic” but maybe a bit more edge to it. Given how brilliant that last album turned out as it was one of those “growers” that hooked you in the more you listened to it, this time around the band have added more elements to it to help keep things moving forward.
The concept of Automata basically tells the story of a character who doesn’t realize they are living in a dream world. The band stated that there are parallels to the story and that of the world we live in today with celebrities being treated as forms of entertainment and not realizing how they are human like the rest of us. The dream world concept seems to also be similar to the concept on “Coma Ecliptic” but whether there is a connection between the two, I’m not sure.
The opening track “Condemned to the Gallows” has smooth and atmospheric transitions kickng things off that bleed into the heavier parts that come crashing through the gates fairly quickly. There’s a lot of that melodic notey type stuff going on with the guitars as you would expect but it’s certainly coming across much heavier here. The shorter “House Of Organ” changes the mood with a more darker and gothic tone, there’s minimal guitar stuff going on here as the band focus on the different layered sounds and atmosphere of the song. While there are vocal lines on here, this definitely feels more like an interlude of some sort.
“Yellow Eyes” is signature BTBAM, the crazy prog structures with a bit of speed added to the tempos makes this one of the more enjoyably ones to check out if you are into the truly frenetic styles. There’s a lot of great moments here too which make this one of the standout tracks so far but it does swing wildly from heavy to mellow seamlessly as heard halfway through where folk meets rock. Throw in some drum solos and some weird eclectic passages and you have yourself a real mixed bag of everything on just this one song.
“Millions” follows right after and to be honest, comes across as one of the weaker tracks on offer. It’s not a bad song by any means but it doesn’t quite grab you the way the rest of the album does. But breathing spaces are required on the kind of albums BTBAM put out and not every crazy antic is going to be a winner. The epic closer “Blot” rounds things off after a quick synth-interlude spot and is definitely yet another highlight of the album. It’s a real prog delight as it ebbs and flows like mountaineous waterways that’s driven largely by a middle eastern inspired groove, the contrast between the heavy and melodic not so far apart that it feels like different songs jumbled together but really going for a more concise structure. Simplistic it is not but fun it surely is and that is pretty much the epitome of any great Between The Buried And Me album. I still say “Coma Ecliptic” scores a little higher than “Automata I” but it’s way too early to judge yet as this album, given more time could be yet another classic in the making. But for now, it’s another solid effort from BTBAM.
TRACKLIST
Condemned to the Gallows
House Organ
Yellow Eyes
Millions
Gold Distance
Blot
