ASCENSION OF THE WATCHERS
Numinosum
13th Planet Records 2008
www.thewatchers.org

Genre
Alternative / experimental

The Good
The dark and haunting opening instrumental track "Ascendant" acts as a preview for the twisted tale that awaits you. "Evading" exploits acoustic guitars and experimental tones to their darkest potential. Vocalist Burton C. Bell is a hell of a lot more melodic than his Fear Factory days. He still has that ominous tone to his delivery. Remember the sound a record made when no music played? That was always creepy. "Canon for My Beloved" uses that sound to sandwich it's powerful insides. "Moonshine" breaks out of the sadness and sorrow with more of an upbeat acoustic tone. "On the River" feels like the alien attack is soon upon us. The trippy groove reminds me of some of the avant-garde rock pieces from the 60s and 70s. Simon and Garfunkel's"Sounds of Silence" never sounded so eerie or so good for that matter.

The Bad
I wish I could understand what Bell is saying in the songs. They are just so faded and soft. I mean, it fits the music perfectly, but it's a little frustrating.

The Verdict
Don't expect Fear Factory. Bell channels his inner Porcupine Tree with his Ascension of the Watchers project. The tale is haunting and dark and most likely about alien invasions of some type. At times you don't know where the story is going to take you, but overall it's an adventure trying to put the pieces together. You have to hand it to Bell for having the balls to try something completely different than what he is used to. His Ascension of the Watchers sound seems to suit him well and he manages to create a homage to the twisted and trippy deep albums of the 60s and 70s.

Rating: out of 5

--George Dionne