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Review: Scale the Summit – The Migration

Paige Camisasca — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 13:00:27 +0000

The fourth full-length album from Houston instrumental-metal quartet Scale the Summit, The Migration finds the band continuing to develop a tasteful blend of atmosphere, groovy rhythms, and unabashed shredding. Standout tracks “Atlas Novus”, “Oracle,” and “The Dark Horse” combine the kind of beautiful melodies that evoke the band’s nature-oriented imagery with riffs heavy (and groovy) enough to get even Meshuggah diehards on board. Nevertheless, The Migration seems to wander a bit more than 2011’s focused and phenomenal The Collective, losing some steam by the last few tracks. But the album’s best moments are still very memorable and prog fans should definitely pick it up. DAVID McKENNA

Check out “Odyssey” off The Migration below:

Protest the Hero Announce Tour Dates, New Single and Video

Jason Le Miere — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 16:55:48 +0000

Protest the Hero have announced the second leg of their North American tour in support of the five-piece’s latest album, Scurrilous. The scheduled 20 shows, beginning in late November, will also feature Scale the Summit and Last Chance to Reason.

It has also been announced that a video for the band’s new single, “Hair Trigger,” will be released on November 1.

Protest the Hero tour dates:

11/28 Grand Rapids, MI, The Intersection

11/29 Iowa City, IA, Blue Moose

11/30 Minneapolis, MN, Station 4

12/02 Colorado Springs, CO, Black Sheep

12/03 Ft. Collins, CO, Aggie Theater

12/05 Reno, NV, The Alley

12/06 Chico, CA, Senator Theater

12/07 Anaheim, CA, Chain Reaction

12/08 Tucson, AZ, Skrappy’s

12/09 El Paso, TX, Tricky Falls

12/11 San Antonio, TX, White Rabbit

12/13 Pensacola, FL, Vinyl Music Hall

12/14 Tampa, FL, State Theater

12/15 Jacksonville, FL, Freebird Live

12/16 Greensboro, NC, Greene Street Club

12/17 Charleston, SC, Music Farm

12/18 Charlotte, NC, Amos South End

12/19 Knoxville, TN, Valarium

12/21 West Springfield, VA, Jaxx

12/22 Pittsburgh, PA, Mr. Smalls

Review: Scale the Summit – The Collective

Brandon Geist — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 14:05:47 +0000

Progressive metal was originally an attempt to push metal forward, augmenting the genre’s straightforward aggression with refreshing elements borrowed from classical, jazz, or whatever the hell else. Too many progressive metal bands nowadays, though, have borrowed from nowhere but the same tired grandfathers of the subgenre (Dream Theater, Symphony X, et al). There’s no doubt that the astonishing technical ability on Scale the Summit’s third release, The Collective, make for some show-stopping moments, but as a whole, the instrumental Houston quartet’s latest is a prime example of prog metal gone boring.

In particular, Scale the Summit suffer more from their lack of vocals on this album than earlier material. In instrumental metal, details like guitar tone become that much more essential; seven- and eight-string guitarists Chris Letchford and Travis Levrier dial up a tone a little too reminiscent of Sonic the Hedgehog, making the music sound cheesy.

That said, there are definitely scattered moments that would make any prog dork cream. The rhythmic variations and flowing guitar phrases in “The Levitated” sound somewhere between a more polished Isis and a less technical Protest the Hero. While the guitars might not be as virtuosic as prog contemporaries like Animals as Leaders or Between the Buried and Me, the rhythm section’s performance would bring shivers to any bassist or drummer. “Origin of Species” and “Alpenglow” feature some of the fanciest tapped bass lines and syncopated drum work in recent memory.

In the end, though, most of the songs on The Collective suffer from the same problems as “Black Hills,” a typical eight-minute trip to noodly nowhere—full of all-too-familiar prog flash and flourish with little meaning. CODY THOMAS