While I found myself enjoying the album in bits and pieces and especially digging the intentionally off-kilter “Algorithm” and the In Absentia/The Incident -era Porcupine Tree stylings of the plaintive “Day 15,” listening to it in one setting proves trying, primarily because it’s such an uneven experience. Luckily, Without Waves are talented musicians and songwriters, able to reign in some of their more Malmsteenian tendencies to deliver pleasant surprises rather than discordant duds.Īll that said, if you’re looking for a balanced record, Comedian isn’t it. In less capable hands, these transitions could induce a nasty case of whiplash. And with most songs clocking in between 5 and 7 minutes, all of these ingredients are often present in a single track, bouncing from one to another like a line cook with ADHD. You also wouldn’t be out of line for noting the grunge-tinged choruses (another astute Kronos observation), the metalcore breakdowns or the hardcore vocals. When Without Waves let their prog flag fly, it’s often in djenty, more Meshuggah -adjacent moments. The Porcupine Tree is strong with this one, especially in the slower, more sparse arrangements, complete with mournful atmospherics and sadboi cleans. Having read that review and listened to Comedian, a lot of those five-year-old plaudits and criticisms still apply, as do a lot of the influences Kronos first mentioned. Way back in the halcyon days of 2017, the mighty Kronos reviewed Without Waves’ first album Lunar. But does the cover, with its in-your-face depiction of avian violence, evince an equally effective set o’ songs? Let’s see if their sophomore effort does these pink beasts justice. Their fortuitous choice to immortalize a moment in the life of one very unlucky flamingo has earned them one whole review.

Such was the case with Comedian, the latest from Chicago-based progressive metalers Without Waves. I tend to avoid the intentionally bad (looking at you, Voivod’s Target Earth ) and the unabashedly anatomical (I’ve already seen The Reek of Putrefaction, thank you very much.) However, there’s plenty of room between the two extremes to play, and you can always count on a few quality covers lurking around the primeval AMG promo sump the kind that just begs for a spin or three.

Despite that old axiom, I do indeed judge a book by its often horrific cover.

Waves complete review