Missed Albums Review: Chaos Frame – Entropy

Style: Progressive Metal, Power Metal (clean vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Angra, Pagan’s Mind, Evergrey, Lost Horizon, Blind Guardian
Review by: Sam
Country: US-MN
Release date: June 24, 2022

Long time readers of this blog might remember Matt. He was one of the first five reviewers on the blog, and spent most of that time reviewing power-prog. He also plays guitar in a band, which unsurprisingly is also power prog, and furthermore, is the subject of this review. I (jokingly) promised him I’d shit on his album when it came out, so here goes nothing. This was originally meant to come out in June, but personal circumstances were not kind to me last year and hence this review only comes out now.

Unfortunately for me, there’s little to dunk on with this album. And in all honesty, it’s actually really damn good (damn you, Matt! This is not what we agreed on.). Chaos Frame plays a relatively straightforward brand of power-prog, focusing mostly on the power metal aspect and using the prog to spice it up, similar to how, say, modern Angra would do thing). They carve out their identity by embracing a futuristic sound and a sharp, aggressive riffing style. Spacious, foreboding synths fill up the ambience and the vocals have a reverby style similar to Nils Rue (from Pagan’s Mind) that sounds a bit like an alien. The pixilated cover art fits well in this regard with its foreboding skies and dark shading over the city’s skyline. 

The songwriting on Entropy is super tight. Every song is laden with hooks. Be it the chorus, the main riff, or a cool synth line, there’s always something eye-popping to latch onto. The songs follow a chorus structure but the band always quickly moves from one section onto the next, making the songs very dynamic. There’s tons of tempo and mood shifts in each song happening in quick succession, and a bevy of influences, most notably electronic music, that give a unique identity. Sometimes it’ll sound like a symphonic metal song (“Always Looking Down”), other times you’ll have tremolo riffs and blast beats spicing it up (not gonna spoiler), and the futuristic synths permeate throughout almost the entire thing. It’s all interwoven in a natural way that makes it feel like a core part of their sound rather than a gimmick slapped on top or an avant-garde approach where they flaunt the influences in your face to show you how eclectic they are. In particular, I’d like to highlight the song “Skyscraper” as an example of all that is right with this band. It simply has everything: energetic power metal riffs, grandiose symphonic passages and creative futuristic synth, and the dynamics and unpredictability of prog metal. It’s an absolute monster of a track that is without a doubt a song of the year contender for me.

Something I also appreciate greatly about this album is the serious tone it has. In a genre filled with bands that are a little too self-aware, it’s a breath of fresh air to see a band taking a fully serious approach. The subject matters all come across as deeply personal and introspective. Opener “Entropy, Pt. 1” describes the process of someone coming to terms with growing old and one’s own mortality, “To Reap and Never Sow” seems to be about paying the price for being untrue to yourself, and “Voluntary Extinction” discloses frustrations with humanity’s course for disaster. In general, themes of death, loss, or regret seem present in most of the songs. This is reflected in the music as well. The overall tone is darker and more emotive than is typically seen in power metal, coming (again) from the foreboding synth sounds, and inclusion of slower, breathing parts that let the emotion sink in. Also of note is that, despite plenty of shred, emphasis in their solos lies on the emotional aspect (good job, Matt, and other dude).

However, there are some points of contention with Entropy. First of all, the production is rather muddy and loud. The guitars are overbearing compared to the rest, making singer Dave Brown often sound like he’s having a hard time singing on top of everything. For how dynamic the songs are, I sometimes wish he had more space to sing a little more reservedly. Overall he sounds great, but when he’s belting all the time (though in different ways) it can become a bit tiring. Another point of contention is that as creative as the first five songs are, the last three feel rather predictable. “Always Looking Down” leans in hard on the symphonic aspect, but it doesn’t deliver on its promise by virtue of relatively tame cinematic synth choices and linear structure. Compared to the other epic “Skyscraper” it simply doesn’t cultivate the same emotional spark in me. “The Late Goodbye” is a decent piano ballad, but it could have been better. And the closer “Entropy, Pt. 2” – while a great straightforward power metal song in itself – doesn’t offer much more than that and pacing wise is a bit odd as an album closer in how it suddenly goes for the finale drum solo and a foreboding fade-out. I guess if anything, it leaves me wanting more, so maybe it’s not that bad after all.

I think in the grand scheme of things, Entropy is a great achievement and a proper statement by the band. It improves upon their first two by leaps and bounds. I have some issues with the mixing and find the second half generally less strong than the first, but the overall verdict is a positive one. In a genre where almost every band tends to sound like a variation on the same theme, a more creative, unique act like this is highly appreciated. Now I’m just hoping it won’t take another 7 years before we see Chaos Frame IV appear…

You did good, Matt.

Recommended tracks: The Timepiece Shatters – Entropy, Pt. I, Skyscraper, Solaire, Voluntary Extinction
You may also like: Sentire, Mortanius, Starborn, Judicator
Final verdict: 8/10

Related links: Spotify | Facebook | Metal-Archives page

Label: Pure Steel Records – Website | Facebook

Chaos Frame is:
– Dave Brown (vocals)
– Matt Hodsdon (guitars, bass)
– Andy Xiong (bass)
– Andrew Julkowski (drums)