Rise - Seer ( free download )

Rise are a 2 man band consisting of Gunter Rivera on guitar,bass,drums and keyboards and Jurgen Rivera on vocals. They have a album up on Pure Volume for free download and you will find the link at the bottom of this review. Not the easiest band to review as they mixed everything from Progressive Rock,Psych,Psychedelic,Stoner to classic 70's Hard Rock and Metal.On the album you will find no filler as its all good material but i will mention a few highlights."Dogs" is one of those tracks that has the Classic Rock tag written all over it,sliding guitar riffs,pounding drums and even dog howls to complete the atmosphere. Like all songs on here, its beautifully constructed and played but it also totally rocks. The guitar work is a feature on this track along with every track really, it moves and swings with a 70's groove that is very accessible but still not too commercial. Title track "Seer" has a early 70's Psych groove with a vocal sound that wouldn't sound out of place on a James Gang record. "Sun" is a acoustic driven song, kind of bluesy but short and sweet."Desert" starts off with a kick ass riff and has a sound that reminds you of something and yet sounds like nothing you have ever heard before. That is the beauty of these songs, you feel like you have heard this before somewhere but try and think of something to compare it to and it leaves you confused and lost. While "Desert" starts off in a traditional rocking manner, it has a acoustic outro that really deserves to go on much longer. "Earth X" is another keeper, it gets on its way with some epic Pink Floydish riffing and retains a certain ambiance right to the end of the song. If there is a band that would benefit from longer songs its this one, most of the tracks seems to finish without completing their journey. Hardly a big deal i know but i would have like the tracks to be longer as some of it has a feeling of being a little underdone in places. Things get a bit Psychedelic on "Artfarm" with its ambient intro before moving into a real moody section, sad desperation is the feeling i got while listening to this. Its mellow but a real dramatic piece of music. On "Blind" things get a bit Progressive and they make full use of all their instrumental prowess creating a sound that is full and once again dramatic.The other big standout track is "King", more of a traditional Hard Rock but with a killer guitar line that has a immediate hook to it. I must point out for my readers that this is not Doom Metal and its not really Stoner Rock even though they have some of those elements but its a style of groove based 70's Rock that us Stoner types can appreciate. By the sound of things a lot of work has gone into these songs with the amount of instrumentation that goes on within the tracks. Nicely produced with every instrumental clear and strong in the mix. At times the vocals sound a little buried but the dude's voice is real powerful so that makes up for it. Surprising something like this is made available for free but i am not complaining. This is quality old-school rock that should find a audience within the Stoner/Psych crowd, grab a download and check it out. 9/10

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