Any (nerd) in touch with Prog Magazine or any other progressive-centered media outlet has heard of Godsticks' edgy and metallic rock attitude. They'll be happy to hear that the Caerdydd quartet recently released their seventh full-length album, "VOiD." It's got competition, though: Godsticks' 2023 album, "This is What a Winner Looks Like," is regarded as the band's magnum opus, and to follow it up, they promise that "VOiD"  is their darkest, heaviest, and most uncompromising album yet.

And so it's... not? First off, it's not really dark. Unlike the album cover, "VOiD" is quite a colorful album that constantly plays around with different textures. Synesthetes will have a field day with the constant switching of angular, progressive fabrics. Fun electronic elements glitch in and out during"Hold Back" and "Can't Withstand," plus some cool atmosphere takes the wheel with longer tracks, such as "Master Of A Plan" and the latter of the previously mentioned pieces. Even though Gavin and Darran's guitars and Francis' bass add oomph to most tracks, it's not that dark. It's not necessarily that heavy, either. I didn't expect, like, progressive death metal, but between Darran's perpetual cleans and the abundance of slower, ballad-like tracks, I feel like the album's descriptor was a tad misleading. The two-track suite near the end of the project exemplifies Godsticks' melodic side--A side I wasn't expecting to hear much of. Finally, I'm not sure if you should label your prog record "uncompromising." I thought progressive genres were supposed to be flexible and malleable?

I am not one to dislike clean progressive metal. I can live without gutturals and extreme distortion. Hell, my pathway to metal as a whole was from music like this. Sadly, I've acclimated to heavier genres, and I expect bands like Godsticks to really BRING it. They may not have brought something dark and heavy, but it's cleaner and tighter than a [CENSORED]. Revisiting the instrumentation, I've come to really appreciate it. Godsticks clearly understands how to adapt to different moods, whether that be lightly drumming along to ballads or shredding and soaring during the more frantic tracks. "Born Again" features an ephemeral dosage of cello, which was fun, but altogether, "VOiD" was just an okay album by a band that promised a lot more.