Instrumental bands sometimes have the hardest job. Audiences are often looking for a vocalist, a human element to connect to whilst they’re otherwise engrossed in the sounds coming from wood and steel. Vocals will often supply the most obvious melodies, the sort that keep people going back for more.
Sons of Alpha Centauri should have no problem getting listeners returning. On Continuum, they have welded energetic prog riffs, sci-fi sound effects, reverb-laden keys, pounding rhythms, and they use this to great effect. There is something deeply melodious about Sons of Alpha Centauri’s songs. Even amongst the riffs as massive as Jupiter itself, there is an insidious melody that imprints itself in the listener’s brain from the first listen.
Continuum is an album designed to be listened to as a whole. It is a journey. But each track stands on its own merits. The heavy, reminiscent of Tool, riffs of ‘Return Voyage’ is one that I found myself playing on repeat.
Despite the myriad of obvious prog influences, Sons of Alpha Centauri are an instrumental band with a voice all of their own.
