Artist: THOUGHT CHAMBER
Album: ANGULAR PERCEPTIONS (CD)

Year: 2007
Media type: CD

On their debut release ‘Angular Perceptions’, American newcomers Thought Chamber have crafted a technically brilliant progressive metal album which will excite fans of the genre. Listeners will recognise the familiar vocals of Enchant front man Ted Leonard fronting the band..

In a world where it’s hard to find anything original, in which nothing and nobody is really innovative, newcomers Thought Chamber manage to draw attention right from the start with their debut album “Angular Perceptions”. Their intelligent brand of progressive metal is highly complex while showing great variation. At the same time, it sounds like a coherent collection of songs. Performing guitar, keyboards and vocals (on the track “Balance of One”), band leader Michael Harris (Arch Rival) talks about the group’s ambitions, “Thought Chamber’s vision is to create material that is as original as possible. We like to include elements of funk and groove into our sound so it has to sound tight. In my mind these elements are often missing from many of the bands in this genre. We feel it’s really important to create a big dynamic. In order to achieve an inimitable sound for the band, we like to arrange the music a little differently. For instance, instead of having just one guy play all the solos, we’ll distribute them between a few of the guys. This way, we manage to create a kind of ensemble playing within the group”.

Thought Chamber was founded by Harris, who had released the album “Sketches From the Thought Chamber” back in 2001. He made contact via the internet with Enchant vocalist Ted Leonard and managed to secure his involvement in the band. Harris wrote the songs for “Angular Perceptions” over a period of time between 2001 and 2004 at his home in Dallas. The instrumental numbers “Mr. Qwinkle’s Therapy” and “Accidently On Purpose” were written together with drummer Rob Stankiewicz and bassist Derek Blakley. The band is completed by keyboard player Bobby Williamson. Harris sent the material to Leonard at his home in California who then added his vocal parts there. “Ted’s voice is full of emotion and his amazing range fits perfectly in Thought Chamber, not to mention his strong stage presence” Harris explains.

Besides three instrumental pieces, there are seven strong vocal numbers on “Angular Perceptions”, which showcase the band’s exceptional skills. Thematically the songs deal with such topics as mythological phenomena and the ancient Egyptian belief of rebirth (“Transmigration Of Souls”) or an imaginary place in heaven where famous people from human history are gathered (“A Legend’s Avalon”). Harris is especially proud of two particular tracks on the album, “’Sacred Treasure’ is a perfect vehicle for the biggest strengths within the band, Ted’s great voice, big dynamics and the feeling for strong melodies and ensemble playing, while ‘A Mind Beyond’ combines classical touches with great melody and a progressive instrumental middle section that ends in a mesmerising piano outro”.

TRACKLIST:

01. Premonition
02. Sacred Treasure
03. A Legend‘s Avalon
04. Balance Of One
05. Nr. Qwinkle‘s Therapy
06. Transmigration Of Souls
07. God Of Oblique
08. Silent Shore
09. Accidently On Purpose
10. A Mind Beyond

LINE-UP:

Ted Leonard - Vocals
Michael Harris - Guitar, Keyboards, Lead vocals on track 4
Rob Stankiewicz - Drums
Derek Blakely - Bass
Bobby Williamson - Keyboards