Well, it’s been a week, and I’m still here, which means the ninja assassins Mr. Wumpus sent to my house must be lost or something. Rejoice! Normally I’d be posting this later in the day, but due to the fact that not ONE copy of Borderlands could be found in any EB Games/Walmart/Superstore/The Source/HMV/Chinese Food Vendor/Dismembered Corpse in all of Calgary, I had far more free time this weekend than expected, so here you go.

This week, I thought we’d move into something a bit less accessible. That’s right, we are easing slowly into the canon of “heavy music”, which will turn off some of you immediately, and get the rest of you all hot and bothered. Whatever your position on heavy music, Cynic, the band I’m about to discuss, conforms to none of the expectations about metal in general. Even calling Cynic “heavy” is perhaps a misguided statement. Essentially, they’re a progressive metal band, and their latest, Traced in Air, puts the emphasis on the “progressive” side of the equation.

But a bit of backstory is worth discussing. Cynic released their first album, Focus, was released in 1993, and is often considered one of the highwater marks of the progressive metal genre, often described as “jazz metal”. They then disbanded in 1994, and only just reunited in 2007. Traced in Air, their second album, was released last year. Yeah, that’s right. A band that is considered one of the pinnacles of progressive metal has only released two albums, separated by fifteen years.

You’d expect fifteen years of absence to really weaken a band’s songwriting ability. And really, when was the last time a band reunion produced anything worthwhile? The fact that Cynic managed to crank out an even decent album is astounding in it’s own right, and even crazier that it’s probably the best album that came out last year, point blank. “The Space For This” exemplifies everything that’s incredible about Traced in Air. The first ninety seconds are quiet, atmospheric, and almost touching in their beauty. Then the lead riff kicks in, and suddenly all the hype built up around the record makes sense. Throw in an incredible guitar solo, and some of the best progressive songwriting this decade, and you’ve already got a great start to an album. And it only gets better from here.

Cynic are the rare breed of metal band that rarely rely on any of the stereotypes regarding metal. There are no breakdowns, no grunts and very few growls, and the lyrics aren’t about war, sex, alcohol, demons, or any pseudo-macho bullshit that most metal bands resort to. Cynic write songs about the perception of earth, eastern spirituality, and the nature of self. It’s all strangely positive for a band often lumped into the death metal genre.

However, Cynic are a slow burn. Despite how catchy and accessible they may seem for a metal band, there is a surprising amount of subtlety and nuance to their songwriting that is not always immediately apparent after a couple listens. Tracks like “Evolutionary Sleeper” and Integral Birth” are the most immediate and accessible from a casual perspective, so I’d suggest starting there if you want to get into Cynic. Elsewhere, tracks like “The Unknown Guest” and “King Of Those Who Know” continue to push the boundaries of progressive music, and evolve Cynic’s songwriting abilities.

I’ve gone on way too long by now, and most of you are just skimming through this anyways, so I’ll just leave on this note: Cynic are one of the most advanced, beautiful, and highly skilled progressive bands out there, and Traced In Air is likely to go down in history as one of the defining albums of the progressive rock genre. And that’s only 5% hyperbole.