People, particularly writers of press releases, like to say an act "defies categorization" when its sound is eclectic. Others like to say that it hasn't actually found a unified sound, and is just dabbling in genres. However one chooses to look at such acts, Between the Buried and Me is one of them.
"Alaska" is the follow-up to their breakout album, "The Silent Circus," both released on Victory Records. It's been dubbed by the press authors as a masterpiece. That's going a bit far.
"Alaska" is a technically proficient album made by metal musicians with obvious interests in jazz and concept-driven tracks. As a result, they simultaneously resemble The Dillinger Escape Plan and Dream Theatre. The math-metal time signature manipulations are interwoven with mode exercise and low-distortion guitar solos.
Each track has some brief consideration of another style which sets it apart. "All Bodies" features a two-second a cappella bit, immediately followed by simulated crowd chant in the vein of Metallica's "Creeping Death."
The most ambitious and best track, "Selkies: The Endless Obsession" opens with a synthesized melody, perhaps a leftover from lead singer Tommy Rogers' sub-par electronica side-project, Giles.
The rest of the track is strikingly similar in structure to "Mordecai" from "The Silent Circus." The metallic extravaganza gives way to an elegant, acoustic interlude that showcases Rogers' unparalleled ability to shift from his harsh screams to a voice fit for a chamber choir, a feat he pulls off in concert as well.
As if to hammer home the point that they are musicians capable of diverse styles, the group closes "Alaska" with a lounge-jazz instrumental. It can be assumed this is to be taken ironically, given the title: "Laser Speed." Even so, the "Hey-check-this-out" effect of the track is a bit obnoxious.
Alaska as a state is familiar with night-and-day contrasts and isolation. Even within the company of their label mates, BTBAM is an odd duck. Victory Records is home to an assortment of emo acts like Hawthorne Heights and bro-core gangs like Hoods, while BTBAM is decidedly metal. It seems the group has found its figurative home in "Alaska."
Fans of "The Silent Circus" will find an equally developed album in "Alaska" that leans more towards progressive rock and focuses less on the stop-start mechanics of math metal.
Photo: Courtesy of Matthew Messina, from the RMBERS' Instagram page
