Awesome Science sees Leeds band Humanfly stretching out and bringing their more spatial psych elements front and centre. Sure, the crushing riff-worship that made 2010’s Darker Later such a beautiful prospect is still in evidence, on The Armour Of Science most notably, but a new healthy and measured embracing of their love of King Crimson abounds.
Opening with the subdued Golden Arrows, the band immediately set out their stall. Beautiful delayed guitar lines weave as John Sutcliffe’s sparse Peter Gabriel-esque vocals swim in and out. The skittering intro to A Majestic Story heralds a band who’ve found a diverting offshoot to their previous path. The Apple That Never Fell lopes out of the gate like The Mars Volta at their most menacing, clambering into frenzied bursts before again settling into spiralling grooves.
This is an album that recalls, at times, everyone from Floyd, Mastodon and Minus The Bear to Voivod, often within a single song. Then there’s the production; powerful and organic, but never feeling contrived, complementing the songs perfectly. Awesome is right.
