Last Album Before the End of Time (ScienceNV, 2013)
Progressive rock band ScienceNV takes the listener on a wondrous trip crossing musical borders on its 2013 album titled Last Album Before the End of Time. The album opens with the band’s version of Gustav Holst’s well known classical piece ‘Mars,’ where ScienceNV combines dramatic symphonic rock with bluesy guitars.
‘Chinatown’ tones down the intensity. It’s a laid back piece where blues, jazz and space music find a common ground with tasteful synthesizer, mesmerizing electric guitar, electric organ and swinging drums.
‘Molecular Super-Modeling’ has a jam feel. It consists of dueling electric guitars that draw from muscular southern rock a la Dixie Dregs and synth improvisations. Meanwhile ‘Curved Space’ ventures into jazz-rock fusion with electronic music elements.
On ‘Cold Sleep’ the band takes into deep space, with hypnotic loops, space guitar, and ambient atmospheres. Truly delightful; one of the best cuts on the album.
One of the longest pieces comes next. It’s ‘The Ring Cycle,’ a composition that begins with hard rock riffs and morphs into a more relaxed section with a great blend of acoustic and electric guitars, synths, dreamy keyboards and percussion.
Classical music returns in ‘Atmosphere of the Mind’ with a charming mix of acoustic guitar, harpsichord and bowed strings.
The rest of the album contains different versions of the five parts on ‘The Ring Cycle.’ The most interesting is the spacy ‘Iapetus.’
Last Album Before the End of Time is ScienceNV’s third album. The San Francisco-based band was created in 2005 by Larry Davis (guitar and bass guitar), David Graves (keyboards), Jim Henriques (guitar and keyboards) and Rich Kallet (drums). The group released its first album, Really Loud Noises in 2008. The second recording was Pacific Circumstances in 2010.
On Last Album Before the End of Time, progressive rock band ScienceNV delivers forward-looking music, bringing together elements of symphonic rock, blues, jazz and ambient electronics.