Scale the Summit - The Migration (2013)

As one of the most talented prog metal bands out there, Scale the Summit had a lot riding on them after the incredible "The Collective" which seemed to be the pinnacle of instrumental prog metal. I certainly didn't see how they could top that album, much less move forward in new directions. On "The Migration" they have certainly accomplished the latter, if not the former, and have once again proven themselves as accomplished musicians and made a superb record. The most noticeable way in which StS have progressed as a band is with the inclusion of numerous post-rock elements, the most obvious of which is on the breathtaking "Atlas Novus" (already one of my favorite songs of theirs). Elsewhere on the album, post-rock elements blend nicely with some of the heaviest riffs StS have ever done. A shining example of this is "Oracle" which features beautiful acoustic passages as well as headbangable riffs. Now, post-rock elements may have featured on "The Collective" as well, but not to the extent and not of the same quality as they do here. As you can probably tell, "The Migration" is the band's most diverse record to date. That said, "The Traveler" is probably the song that sounds the most like their early days and therefore "traditional." But it's still great as well even if a bit too long. All in all, this is a phenomenal album that prog fans will probably enjoy immensely. Unless Animals as Leaders pulls off something stupendous (which I don't really doubt will happen to be honest), this will be my instrumental album of the year.

9.5/10