V/Vega – “Leaving Lyra” [EP] [Album Review]

One thing we do quite well in the UK is the progressive metal thing, and Hertfordshire boys V/Vega are certainly a testament to that by getting the perfect balance of juddering heaviness and soothing ambience just right on their new release, Leaving Lyra, a four-tracker which owes as much musically to bands like Meshuggah as it does to those like Karnivool.

The opening track, “Lyra,” is a prime example of V/Vega’s quality, as they meld together ambient passages with wall-shaking, tech-brutality with devastating effect. “The Grand Declaration” is another track which sees the Hertfordshire band mixing soaring melodies with pounding tech-tinged metal. The end result is something which, preconceptions of what progressive metal sounds like aside, blends together seamlessly. V/Vega float effortlessly between outright brutality and the more serene sections of their sound with no fuss whatsoever.

In the past I’ve found a lot of progressive metal bands to sit on the pompous side of the fence with efforts that sound too clever for their own good. V/Vega, on the other hand, are one of those rare groups that manage to get this mix just right, putting Leaving Lyra very much under the banner marked “Essential Listening.”

Track Listing:

01. Lyra
02. The Grand Declaration
03. Wanderer
04. Reaching Eden

Run Time: 21:19
Release Date: October 2, 2015

Check out the song “Glass House” here.