Nascent - Nascent

Year of Release: 2006
Label: Heraclitus Records
Catalog Number: n/a
Format: CD
Total Time: 48:22:00

Have you ever pulled up multiple websites at a time and were uncertain of overlapping sounds? This can happen when MySpace and Winamp clash. To a degree, that?s how this band comes across at first.

For starters, Nascent strictly features hushed voices. The associated doggerel isn't even listed in the liner notes, because it's purely aesthetic in nature and doesn't offer any sort of conceptual context to the listener. You won't find the thematic depth of Genesis in these lyrics; still their music is arguably Progressive Rock. It's kind of a mixture between Sleepytime Gorilla Museum and Kopecky. In other words, the focus is primarily on fiddly instruments and their abrupt changes in tempo.

With such a bourgeoning name, they're mistakenly hopeful that the average person will understand their erratic habits. However, the convoluted music becomes engaging once you've accepted their ambiguity and are all right with their lack of predictability. As submersion in the medium will prove, the patient listener will eventually get the hang of their accessible avant-garde.

And there are many unexpected twists and turns. Some might actually be better categorized as blind curves. "Without Virgil," for instance, goes off on a tangent that could easily play surrogate to one of Journey's rousing training montages. Alternatively, "Synesthesia" is like an abridged version of OSI's "The Thing That Never Was."

Case studies aside, I for one wasn't moved by their initial sales pitch but sometimes you just need to give a group a chance. Once you get to know them ? you fill in the rest.

[This Nascent is from Boston, Massachusetts and not to be confused with the Madison, Wisconsin group of the same name. -ed.]


Tracklisting:
Suburban Mornings (8:09) / Beyond Logic (7:38) / Without Virgil (10:07) / Synesthesia (9:07) / Heraclitus Was Right (10:07) / Swallowed By The Sea (3:14)

Musicians:
Jeff Briggs - guitars, bass, keyboards, vocals
Libor Hadrava - drums

Guests:
Thomas Hanslowe - bass (2-4)
Justin Francis - electric piano

Discography:
Nascent (2006)

Genre: Progressive Rock

Origin US

Added: February 16th 2009
Reviewer: Joshua "Prawg Dawg" Turner
Score:
Artist website: www.nascentband.com
Hits: 5439
Language: english