New Hampshire quintet Gravehaven are a prog rock meets post punk troupe along the likes of Cave In or Dredg whose latest seven-track affair is an overwhelming effort chock full of bells and whistles. But don’t let the band’s adventurous overtones a la Rush or Muse deter you, as CALICO contains just as many memorable moments (“If You Can, When You Can”) as it does superfluous shredding. Resonating with a Mars Volta meets Protest the Hero versus Coheed and Cambria ripple, there’s a slew of excessive musical interplay featured on this disc (“Burning Dollars”), almost as much as the amount of intriguing songwriting twists and turns (“Lunatic”) which require repeated listens to fully absorb. Cranially complex yet not completely incomprehensible, Gravehaven have presented a weighty album laden with rhythmic shifts and far away soundscapes yet still bring home an air of catchiness to satisfy all fronts. www.gravehaven.com -Mike SOS
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Beautiful and intriguing album. 9/10. Will be looking forward to the next.