E.P. Review: Mountain Caller - Chronicle: Prologue
Reviewed by Paul Hutchings
A couple of minutes into ‘Something Stirred Beneath the Rubble’, the nine-minute opener on this three track E.P. from instrumental trio Mountain Caller and it was impossible not to be moved. Creating stories through sound, Mountain Caller have something about them.
With their debut album released a mere eight months ago, ‘Chronicle: Prologue’ provides the conceptual prequel to ‘Chronicle I: The Truthseeker’. That debut was well received. It’s not hard to see why. Mountain Caller combine dynamic, widescreen elements, gentle, calming segments and crashing, swirling soundscapes which whip the emotions into a frenzied, cavernous maelstrom.
The three songs here, ‘Beyond This Black Horizon’ and ‘Stripped of All But Purpose’ are the other two, blend the mastery of Tool, the herculean Sabbath riffs and the originality and panache of Mastodon in one raging cauldron of riffs, thumping bass lines and deep, dark percussion.
This E.P. leads the listener directly to the events of ‘The Truthseeker’. The Protagonist wakes under the debris of a fallen city, before setting forth on a great voyage. A battle ensues before she finds herself regaining consciousness on an unnamed shoreline.
Recorded at the same time as the debut album, ‘Chronicle: Prologue’ provides fans with recordings of some of their earliest material. A combination of heavy and light, the expansive, organic and progressive style is a breath of fresh air from much of the stale, repetitive music that seems to be churned out at present. Mountain Caller play the Jagermeister Stage at Bloodstock in just over a month. I’d suggest they might well be worth checking out.
