Liminal Phase - Liminal Phase

Based out of Minneapolis, MN Liminal Phase have arrived on the scene with their self-titled debut album. The album is a diverse and eclectic mix of prog-rock, psychedelic, and West African influences that when melded together, create a dynamic and deep effort that introduces a band that can't possibly be confined to one genre, and have their own unique identity to build upon and call their own.

After a brief intro, the song segues way into the first track, "Quantum Entanglement", a track featuring calm and ambient piano rhythms, which are handled eloquently by DeVon Gray who also handles occasionally bassoon and flute duties as well. The song is a ensemble effort that brings together each members' individual talents and translates into a well bodied mixture that is a bold and artistic statement right up front. "Mugabe's Blues" is a melodic, upbeat tune that blends in various West African influences reminiscent of Vampire Weekend and feature outstanding guitar rhythms from Adam Levy and allows the band to let loose and be who they are, immensely talented musicians who just generally love to perform music and think outside of the box while doing it. "3 Etudes (Soul Stir/Band of Poughkeepsies/Sahel Satie)" is an epic, sprawling 10 minute track that requires a great deal of thought and concentration to fully grasp and appreciate the musical elements that are on display here, from African inspired rhythms to lightly tuned guitar rhythms heard faintly in the background and gentle keyboard strokes that make this track one of the most musically deep and cohesive tracks we've heard so far on the disc.

We dive into the second half of the disc with my favorite song off the disc, "Loose Change", an ambient, calm mannered track that features jazz inspired rhythm syncopation that will have you grooving along as the song progresses and shows off the band's versatility and their ability to dabble in other genres seamlessly without much difficulty transitioning whatsoever. "Rhapsody (Intro/Driving/Wandering/Grinderbox/LeadZap/Wandering/Stax/Break/In Slendro)" is an expansive effort, clocking in at just over 13 minutes and takes us on a journey throughout the confines of the musical universe with elements of keyboards and drums helping us make sense of this long and worthwhile journey that will leave you in wonder and amazement after this song has ended at just how much musical ground you've covered in a span of time. We get ready to close out the disc on "QE Appendix ii", a distorted, ominous tune that gives you a brief shot of light instrumentation that really captures the intensity that lays in between musical interludes as it transitions over into the next track and the disc's closing song, "Crow Wing" that features a dazzling acoustic guitar arrangement that brings a sense of finality to the album and allows us to see how far we've come musically on this long yet immensely entertaining effort that is a great album to listen to if you're looking for a break from the ordinary. A great number of upstart bands these days are trying new methods to capture the attention of the listener, whether it'd be dabbling in genres that only handfuls of people listen to or not having to rely on the use of vocals to put a focus on the instrumentation at hand to get the band's message across to the listener clearly and accurately. Liminal Phase are doing just that, and are among those acts that are beginning to usher in a new age of musical intensity that hasn't been heard of before.

All in all, a fantastic and well constructed effort from Liminal Phase, who have a full grasp of what music both feels and sounds like at the same time, while giving the listener some lasting memories and impressions that will leave them coming back for more.

                                                                                                                               Album Score: 4/5

Track Listing:

1. Fanfare
2. Quantum Entanglement
3. And the Robots Made Love
4. Mugabe's Blues
5. 3 Etudes (Soul Stir/Band of Poughkeepsies/Sahel Satie)
6. Quantum Entanglement Appendix 1
7. Loose Change
8. Rhapsody (Intro/Driving/Wandering/Grinderbox/LeadZap/Wandering/Stax/Break/In Slendro)
9. And the Robots Made God
10. QE Appendix ii
11. Crow Wing  

You can look for this album on Spotify for your listening pleasure at: Liminal Phase – Liminal Phase