I found a new genre. Sublime Progressive Rock is its name and Nebula Nine adorned themselves with it. Already the word ‘sublime’ should melt on your tongue like that Café de Paris served on a perfect steak in a French 5-star eatery. Dreams of otherworldly rock delights that will surely dethrone the long-defunct Genesis of times long gone. Or others, such as Yes, Jethro Tull, Gentle Giant, King Crimson, the list goes on and on. So, have we just found funny bones with egos larger than the Indian subcontinent? Or is Nebula Nine‘s The Last Sky Piercer worth every grain of salt they’re throwing at us? The battle of old prog geezers vs. new-age sublimists is on. Huge expectations on the chopping block.
For those unfamiliar with the term Sky Piercer, it is a spaceship – and I quote – “…that will carry us out into the uncharted eternity of the universe.” A ship that the remnants of humanity are to embark to sail out to planets unknown. A bit like Major Tom, only at a larger scale. Savvy? In other words, the little blurb comes with a mighty XXXL-sized theme that could easily cover a galaxy in an epos of a space oddity on at least two disks. Stuff Arjen Lucassen usually embarks on. The equally oversized promo piece spoke of an “…astonishing piece…” that would cater to listeners who “…long for music of substance and depth…” to be swept “…beyond the boundaries of the mundane world.” In other words, music for connoisseurs, less so for the unwashed masses. Oh boy, gotta believe in yerselves, right?
And indeed, hints of Ayreon-ish shenanigans beckon us together with scratchy references to the old masters of the ’70s. Echoes of pig-headed modern acts such Seven, Nines, and Tens or – again – Old Man Wizard oddly bounce off those space rocks the folks of Nebula Nine so bravely evoke. And those come in elaborate and almost transcendental rock patterns that contain as much weedy psych as they pay homage to oldish prog. In other words, The Last Sky Piercer indeed delivers prog rock that’s as barebone as it is intricate.
Yet, for XXS-sized EPs like this one, the band’s rhetoric probably was a tad overblown. The first two tracks – Sky Piercer and Terminal – kinda aimlessly meander about the soundscape. Even Terminal‘s excursion into psych land couldn’t quite win us over either. And it is only at the end of the orientally tainted Blood Red Eyes that suddenly some real bite and a truly sublime bridge gone double solo appear out of nowhere. Probably to make up for the boring rest of the track. Who knows, right? Now, Maroons knocked it out into the park comparatively. The RMR crew indulged in some pretty snazzy groove, tasty ambients drunk on emotive clears, and solid riffing these guys suddenly produced through some osmosis by progression toward the end. And we should have had more of that. Much more.
You guessed it. The RMR crew wasn’t necessarily thrilled with The Last Sky Piercer. It is just too uneven to make an important dent over here. Basing your story on a sturdy theme is a good thing. But the rock on offer surely wasn’t – and I quote again – “…a phenomenal achievement…”, as the band so succinctly put it. Instead, they produced some dime-a-dozen prog/psych piece that, despite its short length, still leaves room for some self-editing. An EP of four tracks must be strong, to the point, and full of powerful prog wares. There is no room for error, or this thing will fail.
Label: Self-Released | Web: Official Band Site
Release Date: 28 February 2025