EARTHSIDE
EARTHSIDE “Let The Truth Speak”
By Iron Sheik
“Let The Truth Speak” by EARTHSIDE is their latest offering arriving eight years after their debut. It is one hour and seventeen minutes of symphonic, progressive rock/metal that is rather ethereal, atmospheric, and cinematic. Avant-garde could apply to them as well. Grand and epic in scope fits what these guys have created as well.
EARTHSIDEis Jamie van Dyck on guitar, backing vocals, programming, additional keyboards, Ben Shanbrom on drums and backing vocals, Frank Sacramone on keyboards, synthesizers, programming, percussion, and additional guitars, and Ryan Griffin on bass and backing vocals who is a skilled flute, saxophone, clarinet, and trombone player as well.
Jamie van Dyck explains "If this work has the ability to reawaken that deep thinking, feeling, and creating part of even a few people who hear it in the midst of the increasingly cynical and vacuous world we live in, then as artists we feel we’ve done our job.”
“Let The Truth Speak” is hypnotic with a majority of long songs and a title track that clocks in just under 11 minutes all featuring soft almost spoken like vocals at times. Could it be we are hearing the 21st century albeit heavier version of PINK FLOYD or even TOOL? The only real difference is in how heavy some of the guitars and vocals are in respect to what PINK FLOYD did. Created by young college educated musicians that have crafted an album of epic proportions, an album that is most definitely a headphones type of album. “Let The Truth Speak” contains great music shifting from the left to right ears like it is swirling around inside your head.
EARTHSIDE has no real lead vocalist, and yet it works well this way. Keeping the emphasis on the musicianship explains why the vocals mostly come across at times as hushed or whispered. In that way any of the vocals are truly background, never up front and center.
Evoking feelings with a touch of deep thought, in our vacuous or cynical world or not, “Let The Truth Speak” creates a sonic landscape of power and longing. I would not say cynical, but the album could create that feeling. Vicarious thinking and living comes to mind. We vs I. EARTHSIDEs “Let The Truth Speak” is a thinking man's musical journey. Intelligent. Well thought out. Epic. An aural adventure. A job well done and a feat accomplished.