STEPHEN TARANTO
australian guitarist Stephen taranto mixes djent, jazz and film scores, and waxes lyrical about his diverse scene.
While Plini’s been putting Australian progressive metal on the world music map along with his touring buddies The Helix Nebula, the band’s ‘forgotten’ member has been busy writing a stunning solo EP.
“With the rest of my band touring the world with Plini, the timing was right for me to put my own music out,” says The Helix Nebula’s other guitarist, the flashy yet tasteful shred maestro Stephen Taranto. “I’d started to amass a bit of a following on social media so it made sense; it filled the void with Helix not being very active.”
Rich in imagination and driven by emotions rather than indulgent guitar acrobatics, Permanence’s creativity flourished through its independence. “Some of these ideas would’ ve never made it onto a Helix record,” says Taranto. “I was writing solo, so if I wanted a Hans Zimmer string section or two minutes of shred I could do it. I’ve always been an unconventional songwriter – sometimes I’ll start from the end of a song and work backwards – so I really enjoyed having freedom to write whatever I wanted.”
The project received a boost from Animals As
Leaders guitarist Tosin Abasi whose instrument company, Abasi Concepts endorsed Taranto.
“We met at [musician trade show] NAMM and everything just sort of happened,” Taranto recalls, “I think anyone would have been pretty silly to say ‘no’ in that situation. He’s been really, really supportive. It feels like a match made in heaven.”
Galvanised by the endorsement, Permanence is helping fly the flag for Aussie prog metal; a flag Taranto has plenty of help brandishing.
“It’s really come to fruition over the past few years with Plini, I Built The Sky, Caligula’s Horse and Ne Obliviscaris,” he says. “And the cool thing about it is that they’re all so diverse. No one’s getting bogged down trying to be an ‘Oz prog’ band; they’re all under the progressive umbrella but doing their own thing.” Taranto’s uniqueness, which hinges off ricocheting djent rhythms, sweeping synths, jazz dreamscapes and cinematic orchestral twists makes another splendid addition to Australia’s impressive prog metal heritage. POW
“If I wanted a Hans Zimmer string section or two minutes of shred I could do it.”