Tonnen von Hall - 2025 - Ein Abdruck vom Messer im Herzen

(61:45; Iapetus [Unsung Records] )






















What we have here is a new band formed by ¾ of Anchor and Burden, namely Markus Reuter (Touch Guitars S8 and AU8, Loops and Soundscapes), Alexander Paul Dowerk (Touch Guitars U8 Deluxe and S8) with Asaf Sirkis (drums and percussion, vocals). Bernhard Wöstheinrich is the person missing, but I have no idea where he would have been able to fit in his keyboards and electronics as this music is intense and comes at the listener like a solid slab of thought with no room at all for anything additional. The instruments and musicians are clearly defined, yet at the same time it feels as if they been synchronised and arranged in such a manner that all oxygen has been take out of the room. That is not to say there is no room for dynamics or the use of space, but it is all carefully controlled and massively intense.

All involved are known for their improvisational abilities, but this feels as if the guys started with ideas and have then finessed and rehearsed them to take it to a new level. It is quite heavy, without being metallic, and the shifts in tempos and polyrhythms take the listener’s breath away, and if there was ever a bastard child of King Crimson and Robert Fripp then surely this is that band. This is British extreme progressive music being given a huge Berlin twist and turned into something which is futuristic and creative, somehow bringing together the mechanical and the emotion to create something which has the drama of Rammstein but the inventiveness and play of live free composition. It is an album I get more from each time I play it, and while this will not be for everyone, those who want their music to be more challenging and outside the mainstream prog will find much here to enjoy. 

Kev Rowland, June 2025

Links:
https://www.tonnenvonhall.com/
https://www.facebook.com/iapetusstore

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Tonnen von Hall - 2025 - Ein Abdruck vom Messer im Herzen

Image
(61:45; Iapetus [Unsung Records] ) Track list: 1. Erdmantel 4:05 2. Vorhalle 0:40 3. Antlitz 4:12 4. Stahlhalle 1:01 5. Kraken 5:02 6. Mitralsaal 0:55 7. Kanister 5:56 8. Sockelwald 0:49 9. Kaiserlicht 5:46 10. Schacht 0:43 11. Zivilisationsfolie 4:27 12. Nebelgarten 0:58 13. Donnermesser 6:41 14. Blutrille 1:01 15. Rauschmitte 5:22 16. Klingensaal 0:50 17. Endgegner 3:39 18. Ätzung 0:41 19. Thronfolge 3:09 20. Ein Abdruck vom Messer im Herzen 4:55 21. Herzkammer 0:53 Line-up: Markus Reuter - guitars, loops, sounds Alexander Paul Dowerk - guitars Asaf Sirkis - drums, percussion, vocals Prolusion. Germany based band Tonnen Von Hall was established back in 2022 or thereabouts, and the threesome consisting of Marks Reuter, Alexander Paul Dowerk and Asaf Sirkis has been developing the style and sound of this new formation ever since. The results of that process first came to light on an EP released towards the end of 2024. A few months later the band have now released their debut album ...
Read more

Thirteen of Everything - 2023 - Time and Other Delusions

Image
(68:22; Basement Avatar Records) Track list: 1. Timeline 8:57 2. Alternate Life 12:02 3. Where the Time Goes 5:32 4. The Penultimate Flight of Armando the Pigeon 7:11 5. The King of Istanbul 10:35 6. Warmth and Darkness 7:32 7. Count All the Days 16.33 Line-up: Brett Cosby - guitars Mick Peters - Chapman stick, bass, pedals, vocals Ted Thomas - drums, percussion, vocals Bob Villwock - keyboards with: Thad Miller - keyboards Prolusion. US band Thirteen of Everything has been a going concern for a bit over 20 years, releasing their initial demo back in 2002 with official albums following in 2005 and 2019 respectively. Following what has been a brief pause between albums for this band they are now preparing to launch their third studio album "Time and Other Delusions", which will be released on US label Basement Avatar Records. Analysis. In terms of the different variations one can find in the progressive rock universe, Thirteen of Everything resides safely inside the symphonic ...
Read more

Deaton Lemay Project - 2022 - The Fifth Element

Image
(63:04; Deaton Lemay Project) Track list: 1. The Great Awakening 5:32 2. A Different Place in Time 7:24 3. Dragonfly 3:35 4. The Nightmare 4:28 5. Exordium 6:24 - Elements of Life Suite 6. Overture 4:43 7. Fire 6:10 8. Water 6:11 9. Air 4:19 10. Earth 6:53 11. Music 7:25 Line-up: Roby Deaton - keyboards, guitars, vocals Craig LeMay - drums, percussion with: Hadi Kiani - vocals Ehsan Imani - guitars Josh Mark Raj - guitars John Haddad - bass Charles Berthoud - bass Liza Evans - violin Prolusion. US band DEATON LEMAY PROJECT started out officially back in 2018, following a 25 year long period of gestation. They released their debut album "Day After Yesterday" in 2019, and following what I suspect has been a rather busy planning and recording period during the years of the pandemic the creative twosome of Deaton and Lemay are back with their second album "The Fifth Element" at the start of 2022. Analysis. While the fifth element apparently used to be defined as aether ...
Read more