Traced in Air

Cynic Drops “The Lion’s Roar” Lyric Vid

By Angry Metal Guy on December 10, 2013 in Blog Posts, 14 comments

I don’t know about you, but Cynic’s 2008 record Traced in Air is one of my favorite records of the decade. I love Focus and think it’s one of the best records in the history of technical and progressive metal. However, I have previously expressed some skepticism as to the motives of this band. While the Re-Traced EP was an experimental take on the Traced in Air tracks and worked really, really well, I was less enthused with the band’s Carbon Based Lifeforms EP. During that one, I expressed some sentiments that have been floating around the underground in terms of quoting an acquaintance of mine:

Cynic – Carbon-Based Anatomy Review

By Angry Metal Guy on November 7, 2011 in 2011, 3.5, American Metal, Not Metal, Reviews, Season of Mist, 21 comments

Well, since the release of Traced in Air, I can’t think of a band that has higher expectations for their next full length than Cynic. Really, I don’t know a single non-Cynic fanboy among the reviewers that I frequently read, and this is because their two records are fantastic. The EP they released last year (Re-Traced) was a neat little foray into other styles and I really loved it. But I don’t think that anyone is quite ready for the band to stay in those other styles. Carbon-Based Anatomy is raising questions as to whether or not they will come back to the techy metal for which they’re supposed to be known.

Angry Metal Guy’s Top 15(ish) of the 2000s

By Angry Metal Guy on December 22, 2010 in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, Blog Posts, 55 comments

It’s hard to make this kind of broad list, I just want to say that from the get-go. How do you do this? Do you choose your favorites, or do you choose the genre defining records? Because saying, for example, that some of the following records are really genre defining wouldn’t be true. On the […]

Cynic – Re-Traced Review

By Angry Metal Guy on May 4, 2010 in 2010, 4.5, American Metal, Avante Garde, Progressive Death, Progressive Metal, Reviews, Season of Mist, Progressive Metal, 4 comments

I make no bones about it, I have a total love affair with Cynic. Long have I been a sucker for good progressive metal and Cynic is about as good as progressive metal gets. While I was a bit young to really have appreciated Focus when it came out, I re-discovered it later and fell in love with it. When Traced in Air came out in 2008 I pretty much fell over myself with joy. That record has maintained a constant place on my playlists since it was released and ranks among my top 10 albums of the last decade. So when I heard that they were going to re-do some of the tracks in different styles as an EP I was justifiably excited, but skeptical at the same time. I grew up in the age of the Nine Inch Nails re-mix album: I know what happens when jackasses mess around with an already winning formula. Nothing good.