If you follow the link you can read the first two installments including an interview with guitarist Michael Wilton as he discusses not being pleased with the initial mix of the record. Can you imagine now, 20 years later & as legendary as the work has become, that Wilton was originally unhappy? Wild.

But to me, even more intriguing is the 800 lb. gorilla in the room that I’m curious if they will bring up, that being how instrumental departed guitarist Chris DeGarmo was in the creation of this opus. He co-wrote roughly half the songs including “I Don’t Believe in Love” and mega-hit “Eyes of a Stranger”, and frankly - was sorely lacking in the “Mindcrime II” album that came out in 2006. I’ll be surprised if he gets his due credit.

Still, it’s a great album that I’ve had the luxury of seeing performed live on three occasions - the first being the epic tour where Queensryche opened for Metallica (who were promoting “And Justice For All”). That double bill was probably one of the 5 greatest shows I’ve ever seen and the tour shirt listing both bands is the crown jewel of my sizable t-shirt collection.

The band was founded by veteran musician/composer Adam Smith, who handles vocals & guitar while accompanied on bass by longtime associate J. Alex Conley and percussionist Jeremy Spears.  Their songs fuse together the band members varied influences and interests into cerebral mutations of impressive musicianship and emotional capriciousness, reminiscent of legendary forerunners Opeth, a sludgier Anathema or perhaps a more cleanly vocaled variant of Chuck Schuldiner’s pioneering Death.  

Upon reviewing the disc, my first thoughts concerned the difficulty in anticipating how the melodies would unfold.   The time changes are many and each song seems to consist of multiple hooks and/or movements such that a lesser band would’ve tried to churn them into individual (and more tedious) pieces.  Interestingly, Deadsea chooses to ignore status quo and produce more erratic yet technically sophisticated entries that weave an aural web that is both intriguing and complicated.  Smitty’s guitar work is admirable, at times crunchy and fast, other times more careful and emotive.  Vocally, he tends to follow the more difficult path of actually SINGING and proving his range rather than relying on throaty growls and indiscernable gibbering - not that there isn’t a little bit of that as well.  Lyrically he sings of common themes - mysticism, vengeance and death, but chooses his phrasing effectively and avoids unnecessary wordiness.  His colleagues in crime Conley & Spears play tightly and like Smith avoid repetition and cliche by challenging themselves with parts made intentionally more ambitious.

My favorite pieces are the aforementioned opus ‘Frozen Rivers’, which despite it’s length offers a wide range of rhythmic variation and textured instrumentation, as well as the thrashy ‘Coming Home’, the powerful ‘Killing Faith (Crying Death) and the haunting instrumental ‘The Morning Frost’.

For a ‘local’ act, this is first rate material presented professionally and as adeptly as anything out there.  After repeat plays, I still find something new to standout with each listen and myself more and more impressed by the effort.

You can hear them yourself on their myspace page or purchase the CD at the band’s official homepage www.deadsearising.com.

The disc is inspired by the book of the same name by C.S. Lewis and is a musical retelling of the story of Job from the Old Testament. Lewis is even quoted on the back of the cd case, in case there was any lingering doubt. However, the band’s approach is accessible whatever your religious orientation as they’re not preachy but instead focus on emotion and the well. . . spiritual. This is a thinking man’s band, make no mistake, and if you’re hoping to just ‘rock out’ - you’ll be missing their point entirely. Rather, you’d be better served to put on your headphones, relax in a chair and let the songs play.

Torman Maxt (and I can find nothing to explain what the name is about) consists of the brothers Massaro - Tony on guitar & vocals, Dominic on bass & keyboards and Vincent on drums. Musically, they’re a tight, incredibly talented trio owing much to Geddy Lee and co. while still striking out with a sound that’s really all their own, and somewhat difficult to describe.

Like the two earlier albums “Just Talking About the Universe. . .so far” & “The Foolishness of God”, “Problem of Pain part I” is broken down into segments that each tell a portion of the story. Chapter One (”Prologue”) starts off with the intriguing electronic/guitar jam instrumental “Overture”, which for all the world reminds me of ‘Come Sail Away’ by Styx - and I mean that as a good thing. Many layered guitar parts and a nice energy level make this one hard not to groove along with. Next is “Job’s Song” which also features some excellent riffs and has Tony channeling a nasally Geddy Lee. This one will haunt your mind after you’ve heard it a time or two, so be warned.
The next chapter (”Job’s First Test”) starts with “The Angel’s First Song”, a happy little ditty featuring a nice multi-vocal arrangement and some good acoustic work. Following that is my favorite song on the cd, “Satan’s First Song” (surprised?). Don’t let the slower intro fool you, this song gets to jamming and is probably the best showcase for how well the brothers play as a cohesive unit. There is also an unusual bridge in the middle with strange guitar echos and a sinister bassline.
Chapter 3 (”Job’s First Response”) starts off with “Job’s Initial Shock”, another one of my favorites - what can I say, I’m a sucker for the minor key stuff. Like ‘Satan’s First Song” before it, this has some really great fretwork as well as an infectious drum beat. Next, “Job’s Resolve” has a more 70’s classic rock sound and a pretty catchy chorus.
“Job’s Commitment” and the following chapter (”Job’s Second Test”), consisting of the songs “The Angel’s Second Song” & “Satan’s Second Song”, are intentionally remniscent of the earlier “Job’s Song”, “The Angel’s First Song” and “Satan’s First Song”. There are minor variations both musically and lyrically (different intros, or no creepy echoes as in “Satan’s Second Song”) but one does get a strong sense of deja vu’ that might be considered a drawback. It does, however underline the repetition of the second set of tests to which Job was subjected - a kind of “here we go again” in the story.
Chapter five (”Job’s Second Response”) begins with “Job’s Contemplation”, a nice albeit short, instrumental interlude. Then we have “Job’s Second Response”, wherein Job explains why he will not curse God’s name despite the challenges before him. This song starts out with a dual guitar intro but transitions midway into a softer acoustic piece which reminds me of early rock opera (and Tony’s voice reminds me of actor/songwriter Richard O’brien’s here, for some reason). “Job’s Wife” follows, a slower paced piece sung from the perspective of . . .you guessed it, Job’s wife as she questions her husband’s blind loyalty. Lastly is “A Great Silence”, a slow starting jammer that at first echoes influences by Jesus Christ Superstar and Alex Lifeson, then stops on a dime, morphing into a somber Vangelis-like electronic finale (excellently played by Dominic).

In fact, many of the songs seem to have two halves, and one can be misled by the tone in the first only to find something totally new in the second. This is so much the case that the entire disc bears repeat listenings to appreciate the subtle, complicated structure that has been crafted around well written and thoughtful lyrics.
I have to commend Torman Maxt for taking a different approach to a story where it would be easy to fall into cliche’. On the contrary, what is presented is a professionally produced journey into the testing of faith that defies easy categorization, or dismissal. Without wearing religion on their sleeves, the band takes their rock and roll message and makes it palatible for larger consumption. And they’re not hurting C.S. Lewis’ sales either - I just ordered the book off of Amazon!
I look forward to hearing part II. . .and you should too! But in the meantime, to hear a sample of Torman Maxt for yourself, I encourage you to go their homepage (www.tormanmaxt.com) or their myspace (myspace.com/tormanmaxt) and indulge.