As part of their “War of Being World Tour,” TesseracT came to The Depot in Salt Lake City on Oct. 24. Opening was progressive death metal band, Alluvial from Atlanta, Georgia.
Alluvial, a younger band that started its journey in 2017, has undergone quite a few musical shifts. Their first album, “The Deep Longing for Annihilation,” is firmly rooted in the instrumental deathcore subgenre with heavy dissonant riffs creating a melancholic, sludgy sound, featuring Keith Merrow and Wes Haul on guitars. Their second album, “Sarcoma,” takes a more technical, progressive death metal approach with rhythmic complexity and a djent sound. The album also adds in vocalist Kevin Muller while seeing the departure of Merrow. The vocals are very harsh and heavy.
Alluvial played a mix of songs from both their albums, as well as new material that is in the works. During their show, a mosh pit started in the center of the crowd, with audience members running in circles and a healthy amount of pushing.
An audience member, when asked about the performance of Alluvial, stated, “They [Alluvial] had a lot of technical talent, but it’s always interesting to see who will open for prog bands like TesseracT. It always seems to be a mixed bag. I don’t think the [death metal] style was what the primary audience came to see.”
The intermediate act was Intervals, a Canadian instrumental progressive metal band, with djent influences. While on stage, lead guitarist Aaron Marshall proclaimed, “It’s great to be touring with a band [TesseracT] that we’ve been stealing inspiration from for the past 10 years.”
Currently touring with Marshall are Nathan Bulla on drums, Jacob Umansky on bass and Travis LeVrier on guitars. Intervals is well known for their technical prowess and has had many well-known members in their past lineup as well.
Headliner, TesseracT, took the stage with an incredible light show. The mosh pit was in a frenzy as they played one hit after another. TesseracT is a British progressive metal band that is well known for advancing the djent sound that many other prog bands (including the tour lineup) frequently use. The setlist covered tracks from their most recent album “War of Being” as well as classics from their earlier albums, which were all well received by the crowd.
“If you’re looking for a very technical, modern progressive metal experience, this is it!” one member of the audience had to say. “The energy tonight was incredible, more than I’ve seen before.”
Some audience members who were new to the modern progressive metal scene remarked that while this style wasn’t their favorite, they still had a good time and enjoyed running around the mosh pit. Whether you are new to metal or have been part of the scene from the beginning, this concert was fantastic. It was a great way to see the technical prowess of several innovative bands.
