Review: Cities of the Plain – …the Most Exciting Contest You can Imagine
Review: Cities of the Plain – …the Most Exciting Contest You can Imagine
Nov 18
Cities of the Plain – …the Most Exciting Contest You can Imagine
Review Score: 7/10
…the Most Exciting Contest You can Imagine is the newest release from the one-man instrumental progressive metal outfit Cities of the Plain, helmed by Eugene Oregon’s Samuel Blum. The album is a six track affair, and takes the listener along a somewhat languid journey across a soundscape that is alternatively harsh and delicate, through peaks and valleys of swelling mixes and sparse melodies. While it is not a far reaching journey, or one that offers a great many musical vistas to explore, the trek is still one worth taking for the thoughtfully travelled territory that it does delve into.
The opening track, “I Have Wrestled with Death” begins the effort on a strong and heavy-handed note, displaying the full aggressiveness the album is capable of with the ever present attention to musicality that accommodates itself to the listener throughout the record. Think of the mathematical assault of Meshuggah with the consideration towards melody of Devin Townsend. Following nicely from there is the title track which somewhat more accurately represents the structural tendencies of the album’s offerings; the melody is simple and sombre, with the mix building gradually around it, culminating in a near-crushing orchestration of plucked guitar accents and thundering drums. Though this is not a strict template, most of the record’s tracks follow this general principle; a drifting, often doleful melody is introduced and allowed to set the mood for the listener while an expanding soundscape is built up around it, climaxing into a grand mountain of textured and complementary instrumentation. Many times these crescendos are built up multiple times after gently drifting back down the sonic slope they previously crested, resulting in a well crafted and dynamic tidal surging of emotional songwriting.
While this is a strictly instrumental release, there are sampled quotes in a few of the tracks from the likes of No Country for Old Men and The Devil’s Advocate, which certainly are not integral or even incidental to the music, but they do offer interesting accents to select lulls in the music. Unfortunately, these audio flavors end up being one of the only sparks of deviation that break up the generally cyclical nature of the record. The formula of instrumentation, tonal consideration, and structure implemented on the album works well at face value, but aside from marginally different avenues explored from track to track, the effort as a whole bleeds into itself resulting in a sense of overall sameness and uniformity. The sonic and songwriting palettes are certainly present for Mr. Blum to paint a more colorful and varied canvas, which would well suit an instrumental endeavor such as this, however the record regrettably falls into a comfort zone of minimal brush strokes.
That said, for what it is …the Most Exciting Contest You can Imagine is still an entirely worthwhile album for fans of progressive instrumental metal and the lush soundscapes of post-metal ambiance. The mood and feel aimed for by Cities of the Plain here are near-perfectly achieved, and while the experience does not venture much further than that, it remains one to be enjoyed. The songs are all aurally and emotionally impactful, each offering a completely satisfying listen, from their subdued and listful valleys, to their crushing and climactic peaks.
7/10
