Richard How, multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger, and in all effect a one-man Sci-Fi Metal band, brings us his first Full-length album under the moniker “Epoch of Chirality”. Like a long-lost soundtrack to 80’s tabletop “Xevious” brought up to date with spacious and crisp production and modern instrumentation, “Nucleosynthesis” is a bit of good old-fashioned fun, but with a serious and heavy side.
Don’t bother looking for the lyric sheet; it’s too difficult to mic-up a spaceman’s helmet so this is a purely instrumental album. The overt sonic landscape set out before the listener is clear enough to not need a Libretto anyhow. And it appears Outer Space is not just populated by Pentatonic Westerners; there are distinctly Eastern tonalities used to great effect on a number of occasions across the album.
The layering of electronic sounds with their organic counterparts is quite simply dazzling; live instruments are allowed space in the mix to have a vibrancy and “life”. The guitar parts are mainly chugging riffs to add weight to the synth driven melodic lines, but on occasion break into sweep arpeggios and semi-shredded solos that make you wonder why he doesn’t do it more often. There aren’t too many other Metal songs that start with a solo xylophone, for that matter there aren’t many with harmonised trumpets backed with heavily reverbed piano building to a wash of sweep arpeggios either!
If there is a downside, the album does have the overall impression of a soundtrack to an epic Sci-Fi movie, and sadly if you didn’t see the film, the emotional impact isn’t as intense, and one or two moments play it a bit safe tonally, but that’s all there is to fault. Thoroughly enjoyed listening through this debut, and will keep an eye out for more from this Sci-Fi Metal pioneer in the future
