As many of you may well be aware, Prog Rock and Metal is boundless in creative potential; the sheer breadth of its musical pool may leave certain bands stranded on the same island, unaware compiling their sounds so that they all sound too similar, however weeded out by the sound of a vocalist, the presence of bass solos or the inclusion of 20 minute songs. However, it is inevitable that a long-time listener of Prog will eventually find, along the way, that gem that stands out. Italy's CHAOS VENTURE is one such band, who record and perform self-proclaimed "space alien metal". The music is spacey like HAWKWIND and PINK FLOYD; the music is alien, like the soundtrack from a sci-fi movie; metal? In parts, sure. But it's impossible to categorize this band as simply as 'metal'; it goes above and beyond.

Let us begin; upon listening to "Out", one might immediately think, "Oh, look; another progressive psychedelic Stoner / Doom Rock band". I would contend that they would be pleasantly surprised, as I was. The mixing is crystal clear, and every part of the track can be heard in perfect individuality, yet all fit seamlessly into what is really a beautiful song. In terms of musicianship, it is relatively simple; the main 'riff' is a simple repeated chug, but overlaid are intelligent use of synths, atmospheric guitar melodies and the odd smattering of spacey vocals from guest singer, Kevin Moore. Astonishingly, the next track, "Pulsar", is essentially completely different. It begins with a riff constructed in a similar fashion to the previous, but with much more prominent bass in the mix played with a delicious amount of growl, a greater presence of sci-fi-like synths, and a much more upbeat and complex riff pattern. In addition, there is an utterly beautiful guitar solo performed that while length, is technical and soulful, and never grows stale. Uniquely, the track contains no vocals; in fact, most of the tracks on this record contain very little vocals at all, aside from a few airy lyrics and voiceovers that more so, if anything, add to the incredibly deep atmosphere.

"Plato Act" is another I would wish to touch on, since it is even different again, and contains an even greater array of technical riffage, and an even more virtuosic guitar solo, that is capped off by the same solo played on a keyboard, adding a unique dualistic effect. There is also a greater vocal presence on this song, which is just what it needed. "Sons of Nibiru" actually stood out to me above the rest, because it instantly reminded me of A PERFECT CIRCLE with the razor-knuckled punch of riffs found on their album "Mer de Noms", and vocals that remind me of Maynard himself. This track is an example of why the bass tracking is one of my favorite things about this band; played with a pick, the added clarity and growl cuts in through the guitar and ever-present synth, and adds a very organic feel to what would otherwise sound like an extremely electronic and industrial band. Of course, as I had hoped, we also find a length track, running at over 9 minutes, called "Monster HD". This is pretty typical of a Progressive Rock track, containing a very long introduction constructed of a wide array of effects that sound flows into a groovy and catchy drum, guitar and bass interplay. When the distorted guitars come in, the song takes a much heavier and darker turn; or so I thought, since this was whisked away on a beautiful-sounding acoustic passage.

A lot of the bands that are my personal favorites do, admittedly, sound quite similar, as I touched on before; maybe that's why they have congregated into my playlist. But perhaps one of the things I enjoy so much about Rock and Metal, especially, is the moment of serendipity that occurs when something fresh and unique comes my way, such as in CHAOS VENTURE. All in all, the only other thing I could have helped for was an extra helping of the vocals, which were quickly growing on me.