Need – Norchestrion: a song for the end
Release Date: 12th January 2021
Label: Ikaros Records
Bandcamp
Genre: Progressive Rock, Progressive Metal.
FFO: Dream Theater, Rotting Christ, Pain of Salvation, Haken, Ne Obliviscaris, Tool.
Review By: Ryan Shearer
After listening to Norchestrion: a song for the end, I was curious to find out more about Greece’s leading progressive bands, Need. Never before have I ever been so tempted to call the police after opening Spotify. Need are criminally underrated; just over 1.1k monthly listeners as of January 2021 after 15 years on the scene is a travesty. Norchestrion is a polished, consistent and addictive album that deserves justice in the form of more mainstream awareness. Their latest release has shown that Need earned their place amongst top players in progressive metal.
The album opens with Avia. It starts with moody synths and quickly switches moods, blending catchy guitar leads and memorable hooks whilst never feeling jarring. It’s a great start, and a good representation of the album holistically. Beckethead and Circadian both show alternative sides to Need, switching from gentler, rock-oriented sections and heavy, more traditionally metal ideas. The vocals are reminiscent of Dream Theatre but with less… shall we call it, controversy? James LaBrie has not always been well received, but vocalist Jon Voyager feels at home here, with a gritty tone and wide range, creating interesting vocal lines above complex instrumentation & time signatures.
I’m a massive slut for 15+ minute prog epics, and Ananke has permission to fuck me anytime with its near 19 minute runtime. Starting with Tool-esque bongos and ethereal, ambient guitar melodies, it slowly and patiently swells into an intricately played, almost metalcore guitar section before transitioning through a variety of motifs, ebbing and flowing between beauty and aggression. The synth production and keys played by Anthony Hadjee really shine here.
The album is relentlessly dense, with layer upon layer supporting riff upon riff. The fifth track placed happily in the middle, V.a.d.i.s, is one of the weirdest yet best palette cleansers I’ve ever heard. It is a metaphor-laden, dimension-questioning conversation between two women, speaking of the crisis and wonders of humanity. It’s beautifully abstract and I have never felt myself looking forward to a mid-section break before, but it’s so weird I am excited whenever it comes on. Kinwind, the album closer is equally as enthralling. A spoken word (In Greek) chant, reminiscent of monks which is as emotionally impactful as it is haunting. A fire crackles in the background, almost feeling like it is adding the context that Norchestrion is a story told by elders around a campfire.
Whenever metal from Greece is thrown onto my lap, there’s always going to be comparisons made with the country’s metal icons, Rotting Christ. I adore Rotting Christ and honestly was hoping to see some of the trademark Greek metal riffs, and towards the end of Nemmortal and the mid-section of Ananke my cravings were satiated. Instantly recognisable style; such a treat! The end section of the title track Norchestrion is a chaotic and heavy crescendo of the energy built throughout the 9 and a half minute track. Comparisons can be drawn for days with their contemporaries, but Norchestrion can stand proudly on their own feet, ticking all the boxes that make a progressive metal album special. Need have got a sound so delightfully their own, picking the finest seasonings from 40 years of prog history to the Norchestrion recipe.
I came away from the album feeling like a new man. It’s an intelligent, introspective and genuinely moving piece of art that absolutely must be heard. The finest moments are in its most unassuming and nuanced; the quieter and stranger moments highlight the more eclectic and frenetic parts, and vice-versa.
2021 is off to a bright start for Need, and hopefully the wider prog scene as a whole. From the bright, warm synth solo found in Ananke’s second half, the otherworldly V.a.d.i.s and the brutality found in the Bloodlux outro, the ground covered on Norchestrion is immense. It should be illegal for these guys to be as unappreciated as they are; I pray Norchestrion is the catalyst it deserves to be to catapult Need into critical acclaim.
(4.5 / 5)
