THE PARALLAX METHOD is a three piece, instrumental Prog Rock act based out of the United Kingdom. This is their debut EP, and contains five tracks.

The brief "Welcome One and Owl" leads off the album. It has a short and quiet little keyboard melody with what can be best described as some door slamming in the background, sounding more abstract than anything. "Honey I Shrunk the Squid" has a jovial main guitar riff that isn't overly distorted and works well in unison with the bass. The "start and stop" staccato type of rhythm we often hear in Prog music is definitely present. I also find that the use of more minor than major chords keep it more mysterious. By contrast, "Can Mango Take me Higher" is a little more reserved with a back and forth between a quiet acoustic melody and a thicker instrumental section. I still find the overall sound to be fairly dark in nature however, almost angry at times.

"Radagash the Brown," an ode to the eccentric wizard in Middle Earth, sounds just at it should when you conjure images of this particular Istari. Is has an odd and unconventional sound and rhythm, with a main riff that borders on discord. I did however fancy the change that happened just after the half way point which featured more harmonies. Closing the EP is the song "Owlgarhythm." The staccato rhythm remains present and there is a lot done in unison again. Solidifying my earlier impressions, that darkness element is again strong here.

If the song titles don't clue you in to this not being your average run of the mill rock music, the songs themselves definitely do. The musicianship is definitely strong but I found myself longing for more tender moments of melody, or some crescendo peaks that really hit you hard. I believe that would be my only bit of constructive criticism.