Talisphere

Talisphere are part of a very small circle, and the most obvious name to give this circle (even if it's not technically the most precise) is technical USPM - the holy trinity of this little corner of metal consists of Cauldron Born, Slauter Xstroyes, and Matthias Steele's Haunting Tales of a Warrior's Past. While Talisphere isn't as technical as any of those, the band's sound gels more with this style than anything else, so I've taken it upon myself to pigeonhole them here.

Of course, if you don't obsess over microgenres like I do, what does Talisphere sound like, exactly? This is soaring, layered power/thrash of the highest order, with an A-grade vocalist in Chris Cronk, whose short career was peppered with unfortunately brief stints in several bands, others of which include Jag Panzer and Fates Warning, The only band he's produced more material with than Talisphere is Karion, who released a number of demos throughout the '80s, culminating in a 2012 compilation. There's also a more recent band called Target 7, which I haven't heard yet, so I can't judge it. Karion is good, and anyone who's a fan of this style should check them out, too, but Talisphere is clearly the crowning jewel of his 35+ year musical career. Whirring solos, riffs that grab you by the balls, multi-tracked vocals - this demo is so well-produced I'd call it more of an EP, as I've heard full-lengths from the same era that sound significantly worse.

All three tracks are brilliant, but the one that's always stuck out the most to me is "Search For the Horizon," which is one of my favorite USPM songs of all time, with its relentless, dizzying pace, incredibly catchy main riff, and a chorus shrieked out with such gusto that one can't help but sing along, "SO WE SEARCH FOR THE HORIIIIIZOOOON, WHEREVER IT MAY BEEEEEEEEE!!!" The fact that Cronk manages to hold my attention whenever he's singing is particularly impressive given the virtuosity on display constantly--the greatness of this 3-song demo really highlights the fact that this band could have been in the top 5 USPM bands of all time, and now, 25 years after their sole release, they almost certainly never will be. Still, any fans of the style are absolutely required to find this, as it will melt your balls and blow your mind at the same time!

It's always interesting to note that while metal scenes tend to dwindle after their initial creative explosions, many bands still soldier on despite their style being "dead" to the world at large. There are still bands playing as if they're in England circa 1980 today, and playing well; considering NWOBHM was the first major metal scene, it's not outlandish to presume others have survived after their supposed deaths as well. USPM is no exception, and though the scene itself declined from relative obscurity to relative non-existence in the early '90s, quite a few bands still lingered. So why did USPM die out? Well, that's a tough question, but by '91 Fates Warning, Queensryche, Omen, Crimson Glory, and pretty much every big USPM name you can think of had drifted off into either other genres (the former two) or pale shades of former glory (the latter two). Even stalwarts Manilla Road called it quits after their 1990 album The Courts of Chaos, and wouldn't release another until 2001. Metal appreciation as a whole was also shifting away from the more traditional styles of metal in the early '90s and towards the emerging death and black juggernauts on the one hand, and flowery European-style nonsense on the other. So was that shift because of the dwindling quality of the once-great USPM masters, or was it the other way around? Well, I can't tell you for sure; it's likely some of each, plus of course the collatoral damage from the implosion of the thrash scene. But unlike that over-saturation of thrash, USPM still had plenty more to offer.

In 1996 Talisphere were far from timely, and in fact never released more than this single demo; however, singer Chris Cronk at least was already a seasoned veteran. He probably wins the award for trying to fill the biggest collective shoes ever, as he was a temporary replacement for both John Arch in Fates Warning and Harry Conklin in Jag Panzer after their departures; as far as I know he never recorded with either band, but it's not for lack of quality. His voice is very distinctive, singing in a very high tenor that borders on countertenor range, and only sometimes jumping up into a true falsetto (it really almost sounds as if his voice is pitch-shifted, or something). His tone is very clear, but though he obviously strains on some higher notes it actually adds emotional sincerity to his voice that fits the music. The best comparison I can think of is perhaps a less volatile Jon Cyriis, or maybe a less aggressive and more emotive Ski from Deadly Blessing, but such connections are tenuous at best. Cronk also makes deft use of multi-tracking, and it's clear that he's listened to his share of Arch; especially in "Search for the Horizon" is this clear, with the fantastic middle section featuring a harmonized chant-like substrate punctuated by a gang shout, atop which the main melody wails. Usually though a more subtle technique is utilized, in which occasional unison multi-tracking splits into harmony for the last note or two in a phrase. Overall Cronk displays some of the strongest usage of multi-tracking I've ever heard, all without letting it become a crutch or constant to the point of irritation. Listen to the mezmerising chorus to "Bitter Cold", in which it builds up with close harmony but resolves into but a single voice; rather than resulting in anti-climax, the sudden emphasis on that single voice makes it that much weightier.

The guitars are no slouches either, and while they don't bury you with a riff onslaught there are certainly plenty to be had, often with harmonization between the guitars, again a lot like Fates Warning did. Dual-guitar leads are also plentiful, but not in the NWOBHM way, in which they more or less play a repeated "riff"; the way Talisphere do it the guitars essentially play a slower, emotive "solo", but with two harmonized guitars. Of course, they do still have flashy, almost shimmering solos which display skill but not to the point of wankery. The short acoustic break in "Bitter Cold" for example is excellent without showing off in the least. The bass also plays an important part, popping up in the mix to play interesting fills on quite a few occasions (he even gets a solo at the end of "Bitter Cold"), and the production & mix (amazing for a demo) thankfully allow us to appreciate them. An interesting point are the drums; they sound much more "modern" than the rest of the band, much more double-bass heavy than anything usual for 80s USPM, which becomes immediately obvious in the first 10 seconds of "Prevention". It's not just sheer double-bass abuse as has become cliche in bad power metal these days though, as evidenced on "Bitter Cold" which has only sparing use of double-bass, for example, but more akin to Cauldron Born's or modern Manilla Road's deft melding of newer and older drum styles. The production also thankfully does not bludgeon us over the head with the kit as if we were wearing one of the bass drums over our heads as the band performs, which for whatever reason has become popular. Rest assured that the "heaviness" of the band's sound still rests squarely on the shoulders of the guitarists, though the drummer is inventive and never really boring or repeptitive. Adds to the sound without dominating it, and leads the time-signature and tempo shifts with aplomb.

On that note, I suppose it bears mentioning Talisphere's music does display some progressive elements; this, along with general themes of melancholy and striving with the focus on vocals and leads, places Talisphere in the white-collar USPM camp, if with a little wiggle room (the speedy riffs in "Prevention", for an example, point in another direction). The strutting majesty of "Search for the Horizon" makes it probably my favorite track, with the aforementioned vocal climax accompanied by chanting and gang shouts being possibly the high-point of the whole demo, or perhaps I prefer the final climax of "Bitter Cold" more, with its combination of dual-guitar lead and vocal multi-tracking...anyway, all three songs are very good, and I really wish there were more. A whole album of this stuff would be just amazing.