Aha, a re-acquaintance...because I (as well as then colleague Trik) reviewed this band's debut album Angular Perceptions (Trik's review and my own were posted 03/03 and 20/03 of that year, respectively, and can be found for your scrutiny and fact-finding needs in this website's “Archive” section), and as it turns out...I won't have to tell you too much about the band's adventures in between that debut and this, the sophomore album, because Thought Chamber was never meant to be more than a studio project, apparently (correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think they even performed once!).
Originally the brainchild of guitarist/ keyboardist/ harmony vocalist Michael Harris, the band which recorded the 2007 album consisted also of Enchant singer Ted Leonard (whom became a partner to the project with his lyrics; see also Spock's Beard and Affector), bassist Derek Blakey (of Haji's Kichen), and drummer Rob Stankiewicz, with Bobby Williamson contributing some lead keyboard parts to boot. Since then, a lot has happened to the individual members, with Harris himself occupying himself with several solo outings, and his band Darkology...but all along the way, he was also writing new material with Thought Chamber in mind. Having stayed in contact with Leonard over time, made the beginning of 2013 perfect to bring all elements together again for the recording of a new album, the original duo this time aided by bassist Jeff Plant, keyboardist Bill Jenkins (also of Enchant) and drummer Mike Head (of David T. Chastain and Joe Stump repute, among other).
As on the debut, everyone in the band gets his moment to shine...even quite frequently...but the underneath complexity of the music is never at the cost of the overall melodic feel of the material. Also, as before, the music goes through different influences and stylistic intrusions (as should be standard in Progressive Music, by the way) which seem out-of-sinc at first, but work very well in the end! From acoustic passages and even an acoustic ballad (“Isle Of Bizen”), to modern Prog Metal with angular touches, to including more “classic” Prog Rock tracks (“Light Year Time” reminiscent of early Journey, and “Breath Of Life”), to even incorporating something more Jazz-geared (in a lounge way, check the instrumental “The Black Hole Lounge”). Moments of Ambient too (keyboard opening of some of the tracks), and of course, plenty of great guitar work by Harris himself! In essence, this is s wet dream come-true for musicians and music fans alike, because whereas the musicians can show off their technical prowess and diversity, the listener can get off on the sheer melodic side of the whole, while indeed enjoying the underneath complexities in a same way as the musicians do (without having to master the actual instruments, of course), if they are so inclined! The band has a MySpace page (which I am currently unable to check due to the network PC I use for my research not having been upgraded yet) where you just might find audio posted off the new album. Might, I say, because at (www.) facebok.com/ThoughtChamber only songs off the debut album (àll of 'em, actually) were posted. Still, I'm certain the album is sold through your trusted online sales websites (Amazon, iTunes, Napster, etc...), and they usually provide 30-second samples of all songs. Not a lot, but as an introduction to the material, it will do very nicely indeed. On the other hand, any Prog Metal fan worthy of that “title” has no right to even doubt whether he's gonna like this album, or not...let those who had understanding reckon the fact, that they need to either order the album to be delivered at their place through the internet now, or otherwize get off their lazy butts to go into town and buy the album from their favourite record store!
Ways in which the sophomore album differs from the debut? Well, perhaps there's less Classical influences here, and the album is also longer : 64 minutes with 16 tracks (of which 5 instrumentals, the album opening with two of 'em) compared to 54 minutes for only 10 tracks (of which 3 instrumental)...but otherwize? Nah, this is simply great music to get off on, and an album again worthy of being featured in the top of one's year-lists!