The Atomized Dream

I started listening to Canvas Solaris three years ago, when a friend of mine recommended the Spatial/Design EP when i was first getting into Instrumental-Prog bands. So I went to the record shop and picked it up. From the very start of that album I was greeted with technical heavy guitar riffs with jazz interludes. I was instantly turned on by their sound, it was unlike anything I ever heard before at the time. Since then I've gone out and bought all of their albums, and they're on the top of the list of bands that I want to see live in the future.

Last year CS made a tremendous line-up change, going from a trio to a quintet. After Ben Simpkins' departure, founding members Nathan Sapp and Hunter Ginn brought in Gael Pirlot on bass, Chris Rushing on guitar, and Donnie Smith on analog synthesizers. This is the new members first album with Canvas Solaris.

The Atomized Dream is very different from anything Canvas Solaris has released. The founding members made a great move recruiting the new members. They can really fucking play! Especially Chris Rushing, I've never heard anything from this guy before he started playing in Canvas Solaris, but he's awesome alongside Nathan Sapp. The twin guitar interplay is amazing! Hunter Ginn never disappoints with some excellent work on the skins.

What makes this album completely different from the others is the use of keyboards. The keyboards are used more on this album than any other album by CS, and it's not a bad thing. They add more depth and put a different twist to the songs. The core sound is still there, the same CS formula that I've grown to love. The production of this album is pretty good. I'd say Penumbra Diffuse was the best CS album production-wise, but this really isn't bad at all.

Highlights: Reflections Carried to Mirror, Patterns Spiral Into Swarm, Heat Distortion Manifest, Solar Droid, The Unknowable and Defeating Glow

I'd recommend this album to anyone who is open-minded and looking for something "different" to listen to. Lovers of old school metal and old school metal only are not going to like this music.