Altered State

For some 40 years now, I have awaited and dreamed of the arrival a new musical evolutionary leap. All things move in cycles and it was with a patient knowing that the day would come wherein my most cherished musical modes would at last be consolidated, refined, updated, made manifest in new and possibly unexpected form. In a typical generational skip with the aid of technology, the generation has arrived that is spring boarding off the long percolation of the wondrous age of prog rock and its greatest progenitors. Seeds planted long ago are now germinating in explosive form and fashion. Two weeks ago I made 2 discoveries. They both have new albums. One group is from UK (Tesseract) and the other from the US (Animals as Leaders). The UK chaps have recently acquired a new singer who is astonishing. The band has 2 guitars, bass, drums and the vocalist. All the power, complexity and beauty of Yes, the atmospheres and daring inventiveness of King Crimson, the rhythmic sophistication of GG, the wondrous spirit of early Genesis, the vigorous compositions of the Dreggs, and everyone else, it seems, whose music I cherish. It's like the incorporation of all the elements in my favorite musical entities fused out of my own fantasies of what the future of electric music might be like.This holds true of the other band as well. This is a 3 piece instrumental group with 2 8-string guitarists and drummer. These guys have short hair and stand a play in slacks and shirt. The founder, composer and lead guitarist is Tosin Abasi who started out in college as a jazz major and then went off the deep end. The music for me is akin to what you might have gotten in another space time continuum if Kerry Minnear and Steve Reich formed an instrumental band with Steve Howe,and Chris Squire in 1972 - sort of.Here's the clincher....... these two groups just announced that they would be going on tour together in Europe this summer. Small venues in Prague and the like. Well, these days it's all about open source, de-centralized idea sharing and friendly competition. What the result of these guys spending time on the road together, learning and co-inspiring, one can only imagine. I expect this low profile tour will go down as the stuff of legends in coming generations, for it will surely result in a creative super charge for both engines. My prediction is that the follow up albums from both groups will usher in a musical renaissance. The only way to do justice to this new form is to return to the days of yore with all due reverence by altering one's state and laying back under headphones. The shear complexity, intensity, and sublime elements in the recordings demands an attentive mind. Not for the easy listener or faint of heart. This burgeoning genre of music is certainly for the lover of creative enterprise.

This album is not geared towards your typical retard/pseudo-metal head that is just obsessed with heavy. That kind of attitude metal is very disgraceful and ignorant. This album is true music, true metal, metal with a progressive twist that is NOT afraid to go back to the roots of metal when there was actually just 1 incredible frontman and singer, no screaming. People have lost appreciation for this and they all tend to treat screaming as a MUST for any metal band. This band shoves that mentality totally to the side with this album and beats it to a pulp.If you are looking for:-Metal with taste for sound-Fabulous vocal performance-A KILLER RECORDED BASS TONE-Syncopation, relaxing grooves, intense grooves-Ethereal layering to the ears, creating soundscapes for one's mind to absorb and think deep things as a result-Relaxing vibes-Another band to add to your arsenal of ACTUAL outstanding progressive metal bands-Drummer's music/Guitar nerds alike-Something other than screaming for a change-A band that is from the UK by chance? Kidding, location doesn't matter.You should find yourself thoroughly enjoying this album.Even if this album peaks your interest, but your ears do NOT really enjoy it, you should either KEEP ON listening or STOP.This music is not easy to get into. I can see where some people lack motivation to listen to this type of music, and I will be honest, the first time I heard most of the music that I enjoy today: I hated it, too.A good example was Periphery's first album, I just had a hard time, but then I learned to appreciate their approach and all that they were doing. (Shameless plug for Periphery and their SECOND album which was easily the best album of past few years in metal)Keep your eye on this band, they are heading for some awesome sounds.If you like this band, you may also enjoy the music of bands like Karnivool, Twelve Foot Ninja, and Periphery. Not always relative per se, but relative in the fact that they are all doing something unique with their music.If it's not unique, then tell me what does music bring to the table then? If is nothing to be interesting to the ears, than shouldn't we simply dismiss all of the filler music from our lives?Think different, listen different.This album is 5/5 for what it is.I'm not a fan boy of Tesseract by any means, and I have no extensive history of listening to the band, I am simply giving you my 2 cents on THIS release as it stands, and my review about is all I wanted to let people in on.Hope this helps.Happy hunting (for the music that your heart, mind, and soul yearns to hear).

Maybe I don't get out enough but Altered State strikes me as major turning point in the rock/metal scene. It's grandiose but taut; complex yet melodic; ground-breaking and yet familiar. It is, quite simply, a sensation and should be heard to be believed because it's a real treat. I'll refrain from analogising, and just hope you listen to Altered State without any preconceptions; it's one of the most rewarding listens from one of the freshest bands to emerge in decades.

this is the bands magnum opus so far, it is perfect from start to finish, i can honestly say that this is probably the best album to come out of this and possibly the next decade...however the new album polaris is out on (18/09/15) i hope they can live up to the pure pleasure they made when they released altered state.tesseract are one of the only bands i believe in and hope for, they have made a massive impact on me and i have never been so exited to listen to new music by them...long live tesseract, in tesseract i trust.

Tesseract occupy a unique space in the world of contemporary progressive metal, being much more melodic than most of their djenty peers. While much new prog tends now to sound a heck of a lot like all the other prog metal, Tesseract have carved out their own more approachable sound - with simpler and more accessible compositions, and vocals and instrumental lines that your granny might like. It's not everyone's cup of tea, and if you like your prog metal complicated and growly-screamy than tracks with soulful saxophone solos are probably not going to be for you. But I don't know many people - metal fans or just music lovers - who don't like this album when I've put it on in the background.

I am an avid music fan having 300gig of music on my computer and 100's of cds in collection. however this is my first amazon review and with this band i feel the need to give them a shout, to sell, to share the talent that is Tesseract.I haven't been so bowled over with an amazing album for a long time, but this has got me in a repetitive mood with the mp3 player.of matter: incredible instrumental playingof mind: intelligent, unique lyrical mindsetof reality: should be bigger than what they areof energy: just buy it

At first I wasn't a fan, I missed the harsh vocals and heaviness, but after a few play throughs, it really started to grow on me, and I started to listen to this more than the album before it.