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Released on November 10, 2014 via Basick Records
Although the new album Guiding Lights from multi-national prog rock act Skyharbor is technically their second release, one could argue it’s actually their first. Shortly after the release of Blinding White Noise: Illusion and Chaos, a two disc set with different vocalists on each disc, Skyharbor announced that Daniel Tompkins (TesseracT) would be assuming vocal duties. The band also brought on Krishna Jhaveri (Goddess Gagged) after an amicable split with bass player Nikhik Rufus Raj. With the lineup finally set, Daniel, Krishna, Keshav Dhar (guitar), Devesh Dayal (guitar), and Anup Sastry (drums) were able to start work on what is a very ethereal and cohesive sonic journey.
The overall feel of this album is one of suspension. Right from the opening track ‘Allure’ through other standout tracks like ‘Patience’ and the title track ‘Guiding Lights’, the deftly layered guitar work and atmospheric vocals pick the listener up and pass the listener along from song to song. There aren’t a whole lot of heavy parts throughout the span of the 10 tracks which helps the quintet take care of the listener and show the different shapes, colors, and spaces that they create. Think Portishead meets Deftones.
The production by Forrester Savell (Karnivool, Animals As Leaders, Dead Letter Circus) is very clean and crisp, reminiscent of Periphery’s new album Clear or anything out of the Mastodon catalog. During the few heavier parts, the bass tends to get buried ever so slightly, which prevents the sections from carrying the full weight they are capable of.
Overall, this album must be taken as one piece, not just a collection of individual songs. Listen to it uninterrupted in order to get the full scope and feel and you won’t be disappointed. Guiding Lights was released on November 10th. Skyharbor has four performances currently lined up in India from November 22nd through November 29th with more dates to be added soon and you can find them here.
