Mobius – Kala
In search of new artists with unique sounds, I found another great band with an exceptionally unique sound. That band is Mobius and their new album is Kala.
Kala will be released on January 30, 2020. Mobius is a French band from Lyon. The band is made up of Xavier, on guitars; Alexandre, on bass; Adrien, on drums;
Heli on lead vocals; and Guillaume, on keyboards. Kathir Aryaputra sings guest vocals on the song “M”.
Kala is the second full album released by Mobius. They released Abhinivesha as a single in 2019; and released their debut The Line in 2016.
Kala is the Sanskrit word for time. The album was recorded and mixed by Raphaël James, with assistance of Laurent Cocco. The album was mastered by Convulsound Productions. The artwork was produced by Above Chaos.
“A”, is a slow guitar and keyboard instrumental opening with fire and sound effects that sets the stage for:
“Abhinivesha”, the first song with lyrics and over six minutes of power rock. The opening keys and guitar are unforgettable. The heavy bass and great drum beat provide a new sound and time signature from which to begin. Heli Andrea’s vocals are hard to place. She sounds so unique and blended with an Eastern sound despite her Western roots. The roving guitars and sitar sounds are just hypnotizing. Heli’s vocals sometimes get lost in the wonderful music being played, but that is not a bad thing at all. When she soars high it is graceful. The guitar solos in the middle of the song should last longer. They are wonderful. Just enough to hook you, into wanting more. Power and speed to close the song, climactically. Excellent!
“Sharira”, opens full of overwhelming keyboards before the blitz of guitar and drums launch an attack. Then, the best vocals of Heli yet. Heli sings, “Will you ever dare to except its final!” The gunslinging guitars and brilliant over the soundscape keyboards are exceptional. Wonderful innovative guitar sounds weave in and out of the soundscape creating new sounds unlike what I have heard before with metal progressive rock.
“U”, opens with bold, winter’s day piano and soft percussion. A wonderful instrumental of effects and orchestration.
“Mukti”, is full of pounding drums and Heli’s vocals pounding out lyrics. The wonderful keys in the background are mesmerizing. Then she begins to rap sing and that increases the urgency of her delivery. The drum work and pouncing guitars are memorable on this track. When Heli begins singing in a different language and chanting, the music matches her pace and it is profound. The near closing piano would have been the perfect close. One of the best tracks on the album.
“Akasha”, opens with Heli’s far off mono recorded vocals, she sings “Cosmic thoughts”. “Cosmic thoughts conceal your needs”. Her blending of English and Sanskrit is a wonderful new twist of originality. The rapping like delivery helps make this music even more unique. Heli sings, “Study, conquer, capture, dig it! Find out something you cannot touch. We’re unique but one. I am one in a million!” The pounding heavy metal musicianship from piano, bass, drums and guitar is so surreal and unimagined.
Powerful, drum thunder and sitar sounds open one of the best instrumentals on the album – “M”. Kathir Aryaputra’s guest vocals and chants add to the magical ambiance.
“Bhati”, has an excellent video supporting Kala. It opens with some cool electric guitar picking, before the blasting drums and bass join in and rock the opening loud. Then Heli sings, “Running, is there another way to move? Falling, exceeding fears, collecting wounds. I can drink sea, swallow clouds, but it will never be enough, to feed curiosity for what’s coming now! That is the anthem for Kala! Later she sings, “Give me landmarks. A word to describe. I want to feel everything. Anger, pleasures and pain”. The true essence of living. Full of piano, bass, drums, sitar and electric guitar surrounding. Reminders of the sounds I remember from the full-on rev of Karnivool’s Sound Awake.
“Agni”, is a wonderful closer full of sitar and Heli’s chants and singing. The perfect ending!
This is one of the most powerful progressive metal albums I have heard in a very long while. The way they blend the two global hemispheres, and East with Western worlds to make dynamic progressive metal is worth both gratitude and reverence. We need this in our divided world. Hopefully Kala is the next step in cultural melding the world needs so badly. Bring the cultures together and highlight their strengths instead of separating our world by weaknesses.
Track List
- A – 0:33
- Abhinivesha – 6:52
- Sharira – 7:28
- U – 2:24
- Mukti – 8:21
- Akasha – 7:03
- M – 2:31
- Bhati – 6:57
- Agni – 2:28
http://smarturl.it/mobius-band
https://www.youtube.com/user/TheMobiusTV
https://mobiusofficial.bandcamp.com/album/kala