Reviewing a new Between The Buried And Me album is no small task, I think. If you’re familiar with their music, you know it can be overwhelming in its chaos (and if you’re not – oh boy, do buckle up for a ride). It took me years to properly assimilate some of their classics, and surely the same will happen with this album as time goes on and I peel more layers of its complexity. But as it stands right now, as a longtime fan of the band, I’m happy to report The Blue Nowhere is some of BTBAM‘s strongest, boldest and most captivating output in their recent era.
The Blue Nowhere is the first record the American progressive metal stalwharts have put out since the departure of Dustie Waring. The guitarist was part of the band since Alaska, being a creative force in what many would say is their golden run: Alaska itself, Colors, The Great Misdirect, and The Parallax II: Future Sequence. The first two albums are great too, but Alaska onwards is where the band truly shaped their creative identity and had a lasting impact in progressive metal, metalcore, and beyond. So while not a founding member, Dustie is part of what always will be their classic line-up.
As with any band in which all members contribute to the songwriting, people (including myself) had expectations on how his departure could impact their output and if it would lose them some of their creative sauce. Now, I’m not a guitarist, so maybe the lack of his guitar work can be felt by more trained ears than mine, but I’d honestly say that creatively speaking, the band has still got it. BTBAM‘s particular brand of progressive metal has always been extremely unique, and I’d say only they can pull off what they do properly. It’s a kind of organized chaos that disregards song structures (even for prog metal standards), that is technical without sounding wanky. Sometimes I feel like their music wasn’t supposed to work at all, but it does. And it does so very well.
While I do appreciate Automata and Colors II and think they have some great songs, I do feel like both of those albums lack some of the adventurousness that is pivotal to BTBAM‘s music, and they were at risk of becoming a bit stale, perhaps. Thankfully, The Blue Nowhere does see the band tread somewhat new ground, while of course still sounding like themselves. They’ve always had loads of influences from old school progressive rock, but they’ve never been more apparent and fully realized then they do here. 2015s Coma Ecliptic also heavily leaned on slightly vanilla progressive metal songwriting, but I’d say The Blue Nowhere does a better job of mixing up those influences with the more classic BTBAM elements, or at least in making them more interesting this time around.
The very first track and lead single for the album, “Things We Tell Ourselves In The Dark”, is a perfect exemple of that and sets the tone for the record perfectly. With a light atmosphere, playful instrumentals, and catchy hooks that are as charming as they are refreshing, it won me over after a couple listens and is sure to be a staple for their next live setlists.
While I do think The Blue Nowhere is their best foray into more traditional progressive metal yet, I do feel that the one thing that was really missing from this record was a bit of aggression. The most notable exception is “God Terror”, which became an instant favorite for me with its industrial elements, heavy chorus, and great use of electronica. But other than that, there’s very few heavy and frantic moments on the album, and their absence is honestly a bit of a downer.
It’s far from a sanitized album, but it does feel like BTBAM is trying to reel in more listeners, and some may see their recent signing to InsideOut, famous for hosting loads of run-of-the-mill prog bands, as a shift in sound for the band. I hope that’s not the case, as one of BTBAM‘s most appealing elements is not following formulas. That being said, this is without a doubt their most accessible album yet, which is not a bad thing at all, as it does feel more cohesive, memorable and distinct than Colors II or Automata.
This album also sees the band double down on their famed ‘circus parts’. If you’ve been following their career, you know exactly what I’m talking about here. Now, I don’t think these sections are as good as they are on Colors or The Great Misdirect, but the overall atmosphere and songwriting of The Blue Nowhere makes those sections feel much more natural this time around. In their more aggressive material, these sections came out of the blue (which worked in their favor), while here they come and go naturally. These elements are very prevalent on tracks like “Door #3” (which is their biggest Sleepytime Gorilla Museum worship song yet) “Slow Paranoia”, and most notably on “Absent Thereafter”, which is almost a full on circus track from them. While it didn’t really hit me as a single, it does work pretty well in album context, and it does have some much needed up-tempo moments in what is a very mid-tempo-focused record.
I do feel like the album loses some steam in its halfway point, though. Other than some very interesting guitar work in some sections, “Psychomanteum” didn’t really gel with me, and “Slow Paranoia” feels like it’s missing something to be a proper banger. I do like the ‘musical’ section in the latter, though – it sounds like that split they did with The Dear Hunter finally rubbed off on them. Still, these are dense and long songs, and perhaps I could change my mind on them as time goes on, but for now they do struggle to keep my attention for the full thing.
Also, in a complete curveball, the band crafted what are probably the most ‘normal’ songs of their catalogue with this album’s final two tracks. Sure, there’s some pretty straightforward tracks in their career, like “Millions” and whatnot, but “The Blue Nowhere” is the most vanilla and direct BTBAM ever got with a song’s structure. While some may think that’s bad for a band that’s known for bonkers songs, I actually really appreciate it for what it is and it is undeniably new ground for the band. Does it sound like a melodic Dream Theater song? Sure, but it sounds like a great one, and works particularly well as a warm-up for “Beautifully Human”. While it is also a very straightforward song, its melodically powerful and a fantastic closing track, with what is honestly my favorite ‘epic’ album climax from them since “White Walls”. Sorry, “Swim to the Moon” fans.
It took me a while to digest The Blue Nowhere, as one expects from a release from a band like Between The Buried And Me, and it’ll probably take many more spins to properly explore everything it has to offer. Despite some minor gripes of my own, I’m still baffled at how they remain in a league of their own. I’m not talking about their surgically precise playing or mindbending talent at their instruments – we all know and expect that from them. I’m talking about their ability to remain being the best at what they do.
In a land where progressive metal is barely progressive at all in the literal sense of the word, the North Carolina boys are proving they remain pivotal for the scene, pushing boundaries and expanding their craft even with 25 years under their belts. If you’re a progressive metal fan and you’re yet to delve into the wonderfully frantic world of Between The Buried And Me, there’s no better place to start than the charming halls of The Blue Nowhere.
