TESSERACT get cinematic on their livestream debut.

LITE UP STUDIOS, FAREHAM

Progressive metallers offer a monolithic, debut streaming foray

ALTHOUGH DISPELLING ANY myths that the mysterious monoliths being discovered around the globe are some sort of elaborate marketing ploy linked to a poster for tonight’s ‘cinematic experience’, there is a palpable sense of excitement and occasion around Tesseract’s first foray into the world of online gigs. A labour of love promising more than just a live set, the pre-show Q&A has bassist Amos Williams revealing the broader scope, where short theatrical vignettes and all the visual bells and whistles allow this ambitious band’s concepts to

be expanded… although he does humbly ask viewers to leave any expectations at the door.

With the pleasantries done before kick-off, the show carries on uninterrupted for nearly two hours, giving the band a setting and stage with which to produce a spectacle that any number of constraints has prevented them from exploring previously (though members of their families in the acting roles shows that this was still done in-house without the luxuries of a Hollywood budget). But while these presentations add character and a gorgeously edited combo of screens, lights and lasers makes for a sumptuous visual feast, it’s the flawlessly executed aural journey that steals the show.

Built around the Of Matter and Concealing Fate trilogies from Altered State and One respectively, the first half sees Tesseract operating at their tight, percussively absorbing peak despite not having played a show together in over a year. With drummer Jay Postones stranded at home in Texas, Monuments’ Mike Malyan steps up to the stool with aplomb, while Daniel Tompkins, already one of metal’s finest voices, sounds more confident and accomplished than ever before as he injects feeling into the most delicate of melodies.

The second half, meanwhile, is a bevy of surprises and treats, including the live debuts of the more recent Orbital alongside the older Of Energy – Embers. Even though technical demons do derail the stream in the most

2020 of fashions, repeated viewings allow an appreciation of the lengths the band have gone to in creating a real event that’s been worth the wait.

ADAM REES