StarGazer - 'A Great Work Of Ages'

An excellent progressive death metal album with dynamic songs.

A Great Work of Ages is the eagerly awaited new full-length album, and first since 2005, from Australia’s StarGazer. Although a well-regarded album, I found the songwriting on The Scream that Tore Across the Sky, StarGazer’s debut full-length, to be inadequate. Certainly, the musicianship of StarGazer was excellent, but, in my opinion, those amongst us that are not musicians will become rapidly bored by virtuosity that isn’t backed up by good songwriting; hence, my lack of interest in the album.

Immediately, the songwriting on A Great Work of Ages stands out from its predecessor. StarGazer very nicely balance moments of straight ahead death/ thrash metal with fast riffs and near blasts, along with quiet moments of melody, free form jazz, and time signature changes. My immediate impression is that bands such as Rush and latter period Death heavily influence StarGazer.

Right off the bat, the album’s opener, “Red Antlered Radiant,” typifies StarGazer’s sound with fast riffing, speed, gruff vocals, and a slower tempo towards the song’s conclusion. Shining throughout the song, however, is the excellent work of bassist Damon Good, who quickly emerges as an integral part of StarGazer’s progressive approach for the remainder of the album.

Plenty of quiet, introspective moments appear on A Great Work of Ages. There’s a nice interlude of quiet guitar and bass, almost a work of free form jazz, within “Pypes of Psychosomatis” before the track finishes off with some slower riffs and melody. Further introspection is treated with the quiet opening of “Chase for the Serpentsong,” another highlight that soon segues into a faster tempo of riffs.

Given the fluid nature of A Great Work of Ages, poor songwriting could result in a disjointed mess, but StarGazer have obviously matured into a cohesive band with songs that are dynamic and interesting. In short, if you have found yourself to be disappointed by the recent work from more popular progressive acts such as Cynic and Pestilence, then look no further than A Great Work of Ages.

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