Just before the release of their new album, it’s a good time to remember the latest work of LEVIATHAN from Colorado, the legendary and unique progressive metal band with a 30 -year-old history in the prog field. They started in the 90s as a power/progressive metal band and gradually evolved into one of the best bands of all time. Their Deepest Secrets Beneath LP (1994) is an amazing work of art, but the masterpiece of the band came 3 years later in the form of the Scoring the Chapters LP. The band initiated a deeply emotional and philosophical attitude in their already melodic, human-centric progressive metal, leading the listeners to unbelievable musical climaxes and endless stochastic inner pursuits.
The band was inactive until 2011, when At Long Last, Progress Stopped to Follow was released later that year. Beholden to Nothing, Braver Since Then was released in 2014, and was their last album with the great Jeff Ward on vocals. Rafael Gazal sang in the next album Can’t Be Seen by Looking: Blurring the Lines, Clouding the Truth as well as the Words Waging War album which we discuss here.
The band has developed a specific style all these years and the album follows – more or less – that same direction. So, contrary to Can’t Be Seen by Looking and Beholden to Nothing, the album is more emotional, melodic, and closer to the feeling of the 90s albums and the reunion album At Long Last, Progress Stopped to Follow. This means, low and mid-tempo progressive metal with no exaggerations, full of lyrical melodies and nostalgic feelings.
LEVIATHAN hasn’t released a bad album all this time, and Words Waging War is exactly what a loyal fan of the band would expect. Emotions, positive melancholy, idealism, all under a soft-written and poetic- played progressive metal music. The road of the band is specific, and those who understand the ideas and embrace the philosophical and emotional worries of John Lutzow, will be rewarded with another great album and a kind of music that is hard to find nowadays.
Decency is the best word that describes the route, the history and the sound of this incredible band. A band that always aims at awaking the feelings and the mind of its listeners. Words Waging War continues to do this is a more melancholic way, and thank God that there are bands that still achieve this.
The album closes in a very dramatic way (for those who remember “Legacy Departing” back in 1997) which probably means that John Lutzow is indeed planning to put the band to an end after one more album. But he should know that some people are born to affect the others with their ideas, talent and genius – and this is the purpose of their existence. Those traits are exactly what the fans need and it doesn’t matter if the fans are 10, 20 ore 100. If you have the magic to touch even one person’s life, you have done it.
“As sure my faults will define me, I won’t rely on them… “
You can check the discussion about the album in our forum pages.
