Aghora is a heavy, jazz influenced prog metal band
that shares both influences and band members with the founders of jazz metal,
Cynic.
Aghora began in 1995 as a project of guitarist
Santiago Dobles and bassist Andy DeLuca (Symphony X) at Berklee music school in
Boston. The band later relocated to Miami and added vocalist Danishta Rivero,
Dobles' sister, and guitarist Charlie Eckendahl. Dobles recruited friend Sean
Reinert, the drummer for Cynic, to complete the lineup. Aghora recorded and
released a three song demo in 1998.
The music is similar in
foundation to Cynic, but feels more like a logical extension of
the concepts Cynic presented. The music is a mixture of heavy
sections and clean, jazz influenced passages, in equal measure.
They are linked well into coherent songs with smooth use of odd
meters. The riffing is dense and heavy on low 7 string guitars,
but the bass guitar is mixed high, framing the guitar into more
of a background context. This unusual mix highlights the
unusually melodic style of Aghora's metal very well. The guitar
solos are crunchy and smooth, bringing the lead guitar into the
forefront over the backing rhythm for short melodic highlights.
The ethereal female vocals by Rivero blend
perfectly with the clean jazzy breaks and add a lush contrast to the chugging
riffs. In addition, occasional piano sounds add light melodic texture.
Reinert's drumming as always is fantastic.
Since the 1998 demo, bassist DeLuca has left
the band and has been replaced, at least temporarily, by Sean Malone, bassist for
Cynic. Sessions for an unreleased 1999 demo and a full album have been
completed, and sound clips are available on the Aghora home page. The band is
shopping the record to labels, and hopefully will find one to release the
record early in 2000.
Fans of Cynic and their jazz/metal
exploration should definitely check out Aghora.
Aghora Home Page:
http://www.doblesproductions.org/
Note: This review is Copyright 1999 by Scott H. Andrews and may not be
reprinted or used in public, like posted on a home page, without permission.
back to my Reviews Page.