Album Review: In Thrall To Heresy

Formed in 2012, Shepherds of Cassini features Omar Al-Hashimi on drums,  Felix Lun on electric violin, Vitesh Bava on bass, and vocalist Brendan Zwaan on triple-duties with guitar and keyboards. Having released their eponymous debut LP and Helios Forsaken in 2013 and 2015, respectively, the primarily Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland-based psychedelic progressive metal icons have returned with new music at long last. 

I recall seeing these gentlemen perform flawlessly well over ten years ago at various venues, including the late and great King’s Arms. Rest in peace.

So now picture my surprise when I read that Shepherds of Cassini had regrouped and have a new record in the wings! In a brief conversation with drum-maestro Omar, he pointed out that though a member now lives in Melbourne, his child has grown up, and that allows the group more time to collectively compose new releases.

Needless to say, I leapt at the chance to get this new LP over my eardrums.

We enter the album, In Thrall to Heresy, to a delicate blend of violin, picked guitar notes and bass chords. Usurper then wastes no time in bringing forth Brendan’s heavy muted chords and stern vocals, combined with Omar’s trudging drumbeats and Vitesh’s fuzz-laden bass. In ways typical of prog-metal, and indeed, in true Shepherds of Cassini fashion, the time signatures change multiple times in its eleven minute-span but never losing drive nor compromising on intricacies. All cylinders are firing; creativity is brimming. Then, with even more gusto than the opening wave of riffs, Usurper punches and bounds to a dramatic close.

The clarity and depth of Opeth’s Mikael Akerfeldt could be heard in Brendan Zwaan’s vocals, while also resembling the melodic qualities of Steven Wilson, best known as the primary songwriter of Hertfordshire, England’s Porcupine Tree. A broad employment of vocal effects can be heard- Interestingly, Slough features similar vocal effects, bass tone and song structures to a lot of what I’ve heard by Porcupine Tree. And to my surprise, there’s even a notable use of a talk box in the last third of Slough. It’s not something you hear a lot of these days!

The titan-sized drumbeat of Vestibule bears echoes of Led Zeppelin’s When the Levee Breaks. There are vast stretches of synth chords, moving the listener through space and time, as raspy, other-worldly sound effects evoke tension. Then, as a likely tribute to Atlanta, Georgia prog-metal icons Mastodon, Red Veil boasts the hefty polyrhythm drums-and-guitar work along with some Brent Hinds-like barked vocals. The nearly-seven minute riff odyssey all concludes in a whirlpool of beastly riffs, chilling synth effects and unrelenting drum work. My brain genuinely felt dizzy on every occasion I listened to this particular piece.

If Red Veil was Homer’s Odyssey then the album’s second-to-last track Abyss would be the most monumental and epic piece ever composed. Okay fine, that’s hyperbole, but Abyss definitely knocks it way out of the park. All the member’s collective prowess’s are put on display here: Felix’s Eastern-influenced violin solos, at times modified to sound like an electric cello, illustrating the passages of this journey. Vitesh’s bass picked arpeggios ring beautifully, and the violin creates and increases tension, while Brendan’s vocals shift between clean soarings to almost-black metal-esque howls. With the last passage serving as the LP’s final act, everything shifts down multiple gears to a grinding, doom-laden crescendo, leaving you in awe of the sheer force on display.

Saving the most bittersweet and emotive for last, Threnody serves as the perfect alleviative to that apocalyptic of Abyss. This instrumental bears a deeply moving violin solo by Felix, propped by heavy-hearted bass strums. A more solemn way to conclude a record could not be asked for.

Kiwi prog-metal hasn’t sounded this good for quite some time, and I’m stoked that Shepherds of Cassini are back to carry this torch. In Thrall to Heresy delivers a strong message that the quartet have not lost their integrity, force nor sharpness.

Also apparently intact is their ability to combine their collective influences and strengths to create songs that cohesively form an epic, moving and engaging record. Let it never be said that their works all sound similar; the use of different instruments, different arrangements, and different aural textures all change up from piece to piece, serving up an epic listening journey from the first second to the last.

In my conversation with Omar, there were hints of Shepherds of Cassini possibly performing live in Aotearoa (and Australia) again soon, so – You heard it here first! Keep an eye on their Facebook and Instagram, and pre-save In Thrall to Heresy, and listen to their back catalogue on Spotify, Bandcamp, Apple Music, YouTube.