It is something deeply touching to see a band grow and still remain themselves. Firmament: Redux by Apeiron Bound is an interesting piece of insight into the way that the group has evolved since their first album, Multiplicity, and the outcome is nothing less than amazing.
The first thing that catches your ear is the dynamic interchange of rough and clean vocals of John Galloway with strong metal voice of Keith Tank McDowell. This duet singing adds an emotional layer to the song that fits perfectly to the themes of the song of cosmic wonder and human introspection. Their voices are intertwined as the forces that complement each other in the same existential investigation but with a different angle.
The composition of Andrew Stout is also quite brilliant and Cody Letts brings new guitar sounds to the sound that is being developed by the collective. The bass and drums of Kyle Sokol and Kristopher Huffman respectively form a firm backbone that is both heavy and subtle, letting the more ethereal elements fly but ensuring that they are held within the traditions of heavy metal.
The best part about this redux is that it pays tribute to the original and at the same time demonstrates the evolution of the band. Their expansion has not watered down their vision-rather it increased their sonic palette. The soundscape that they have developed as a part of the storytelling is ancient and futuristic at the same time, as they are trying to find the meaning of human existence within the gigantic cosmic context.
Costin Chioreanu provides the visual element, which brings another artistic dimension, making the whole experience sensory, which is as ambitious as the song itself. This is not a re-recording, but a re-conceptualization that shows how teamwork can create something new out of the old ground.
Firmament: Redux is a good start of a new era in the history of the Apeiron Bound Collective, and it is exactly what shows that evolution and respect to the past can go hand in hand perfectly. It is progressive metal that is just as much thinking as it is feeling.
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