PROTEAN COLLECTIVE — Divided (review)

PROTEAN COLLECTIVE — Divided album cover Album · 2010 · Progressive Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
3/5 ·
J-Man
Mixing the complexity of progressive rock with the raw power of hard rock and heavy metal is not a new idea by any stretch - bands like Rush, Deep Purple, and Black Sabbath explored this idea upwards of forty years ago - but Boston's Protean Collective aims to put their own twist on this well-established style. Unlike many contemporary progressive metal acts, Protean Collective focuses on mixing the gritty intensity of heavy rock with frequent progressive rock flourishes. Technical acrobatics, crystal-clear productions, and polished melodies are not at all what Protean Collective is about, and the band's raw sound is a refreshing change of pace from the very different intentions of most other acts in this style. Divided, the band's third full-length album, is a solid recommendation to folks who miss the days when rock music was less about genre tags, and more about being adventurous and taking risks.

That's not to say that Divided is an album void of modern influences, however - alternative metal appears to be a big part of Protean Collective's sound, and the riffs can get much heavier than anything we would've heard in the seventies'. The band's raw, stripped-down approach is really where their retro stylings shine through - the progressive tendencies on this album are in the form of jazzy guitar licks and challenging riff structures, and it's a refreshing reminder that there's much more to progressive metal than just Dream Theater and Opeth followers. Although Protean Collective may not sound terribly new to anybody familiar with Rush, Fates Warning, or Black Sabbath, they do come across as one-of-a-kind on today's music scene.

Divided does suffer from a pretty lifeless production, but the album's biggest flaw is the general lack of memorable songwriting. The entire album tends to lean more in the direction of 'average', rather than 'great', and the absence of any truly standout material is what ultimately keeps this observation from getting a higher score from this reviewer. I think the arrangements in particular could've used a bit more attention, as the entire album sounds pretty similar from a stylistic point of view, and the songs often feel a bit empty and lack dynamics. All in all, while Divided may not be an essential addition to your music collection, it is still worth a listen for fans of progressive hard rock. With a bit more refinement, I see a lot of potential from Protean Collective.
Share this review
more

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

Review Index

Member Zone

Username:
Password:
Stay signed in

Metal Subgenres

Artists Alpha-index

MMA TOP 5 Metal ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
Master of Puppets Thrash Metal
METALLICA
Buy this album from our partners
Paranoid Heavy Metal
BLACK SABBATH
Buy this album from our partners
Moving Pictures Hard Rock
RUSH
Buy this album from our partners
Powerslave NWoBHM
IRON MAIDEN
Buy this album from our partners
Rising Heavy Metal
RAINBOW
Buy this album from our partners

New Metal Artists

New Metal Releases

Everything Hurts And I'm Dying Atmospheric Sludge Metal
NEGATIVE BLISS
Buy this album from MMA partners
L'impôt du sang Melodic Black Metal
CONIFÈRE
Buy this album from MMA partners
Pleroma Progressive Metal
ORGONE
Buy this album from MMA partners
n​ê​bam​Ω​ejn Atmospheric Black Metal
TRHÄ
Buy this album from MMA partners
∫um'ad​∂​ejja cavvaj Atmospheric Black Metal
TRHÄ
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Metal Online Videos

Origin Of Infinity - Chronosphere (OFFICIAL LYRIC VIDEO)
ORIGIN OF INFINITY
Bosh66· 1 day ago
Kingdom of Heaven - “Pleasures of Pain”
KINGDOM OF HEAVEN
Bosh66· 1 day ago
DAWN OF REVENGE - Sanctuary [official music video]
DAWN OF REVENGE
Bosh66· 18 days ago
DAWN OF REVENGE - Farewell [official music video]
DAWN OF REVENGE
Bosh66· 18 days ago
DAWN OF REVENGE - Curtain of Death - [official music video]
DAWN OF REVENGE
Bosh66· 18 days ago
More videos

New MMA Metal Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Metal News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us
Follow us on Twitter Become a Facebook fan RSS Feed