Today, it is common for some people to make comparisons and label a band’s musical work, a useless thing to try to explain in a shorter way. It’s the dumbest thing one can do, because ‘anything Metal’ isn’t enough to depicts what a band is musically showing, and labels can’t do it. The best to do is to leave the comfort zones and sail into unknown waters for yourself, or in other words, to hear and take your own conclusions. And it’s the best to do when hearing to what “Challenger”, the third full-length of the Canadian quartet UTILITY PROVIDER. Produced by the own quartet, they had the hands of Nick Bergeron (as recording engineer at Starport Studios, Langley B.C.) and Michael Kraushaar (who did the mixing and mastering at Little Red Studios, Vancouver B.C.), the sound quality is good, allowing people to understand what they are expressing on the songs, but with a clear level of aggressive and filthy distortion.

It’s very good, besides some instrumental tunes could be worked in a better way. And what very good artwork of Shayne Gold for the cover. The band’s music could be labeled as Progressive Metal in an ample sense, because the technical outfit is clear, but influences of Modern Metal tendencies, Groove Metal and others can be clearly heard. It’s melodic and technically complex, but aggressive and nasty as well, in a way that’s not a sin to side their work with acts as STRAPPING YOUNG LADS/DEVIN TOWNSEND, GOJIRA, MASTODON, PANTERA (on its more aggressive parts), and some traces of Alternative Rock in the vein of ALICE IN CHAINS can be found as well. Again: it’s too ample for two or three words define, so deal with it when listening, and you won’t regret the experience.

Intense and transpiring versatility, “Challenger” sounds refreshing and a different experience in a time when copying others is the tendency. The instrumental piece “Broken Ghost Touches” is the right prelude to what is shown on “Humans” (dynamical and complex tempos are heard with minimalistic guitar riffs and arrangements), “Challenger” (intense and showing an ample set of emotions, the vocals are really sounding great on this one), “Social Murder” (a modern and abrasive Groove is heard on the instrumental lines, and what good technical appeal on bass guitar and drums), “Killer Instinct”, “Northern Storm”, “You Know She’s Metal” (a heavier song with very good instrumental technique, with many brutal and aggressive), “Loudest Voices”, “Skin & Bones” (another song that blends together aggressiveness and skilled technique), “Independent Soul” (an introspective and ethereal moment with many lysergic elements from Progressive Rock), “Scabs” and “Controversy in Everything” are moments hard to ignore and full of energy. Even being Progressive Metal, it’s a release easy to like.

“Challenger” is really a challenge to those used on formulas full of cliches, but for those with courage, UTILITY PROVIDER is a very good name, indeed.