Between The Buried And Me – The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues

The Sounds Of Interstellar Exploration

Many bands begin to experiment later in their careers. It’s a natural part of the creative process, and it often goes awry. Thankfully, Between The Buried And Me know how to get out of their comfort zone in the best way possible. Their newest 3-song EP, The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues, is a gorgeously intense entry into their already diverse catalog, and one of their best.

The Parallax serves as a primer, if you will, to an upcoming full-length album about two humans who live on different planes of existence. The opening track, “Specular Reflection” begins with a cacophonous classical motif worthy of Stravinsky before launching into BTBAM’s signature brutality. Singer Tommy Rogers is in fine form here, effortlessly switching between childlike choral tones and his inimitable roar. Perfectly supported by guitarists Paul Waggoner and Dustie Waring, bassist Dan Briggs, and drummer Blake Richardson, it’s easy to forget that the song is over 11 minutes. “Augment Of Rebirth” delves into more progressive tech-death territory, showcasing Briggs’ melodic bass lines and Richardson’s pummeling percussion, surrounding a breakdown that can only be described as “gypsy polka”.  The closing track, “Lunar Wilderness”, gets very post-metal, leading to an unexpected Zappa-style bass and xylophone break, before easing into soft harmonized vocals.

The production style is pure American metal, having a sound not unlike Mastodon’s Crack The Skye or Intronaut’s Valley Of Smoke, two beautifully recorded albums. Layers upon layers of guitars and vocals, ever-present bass, rivers of synth patches, and a solid foundation of drums simultaneously cradle you in lush harmonies and bash you over the head with a rock.

BTBAM fans will be very pleased with the direction the band is heading, and very excited for the full-length follow-up. Fans of post-metal and just damn good production values will want to give this a go as well. Honestly, unless you outright despise harsh vocals, this is not to be missed.