Style: Progressive Metal (Mixed Vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Cynic, Between the Buried and Me, The Human Abstract, Persefone
Country: Brazil
Release date: 20 February 2026

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As a genre term, ‘progressive metal’ casts such a wide net nowadays that it’s rarely an adequate descriptor on its own. Opeth are just as much of a progressive metal band as Between the Buried and Me, yet their musical identities could hardly be more distinct. More often than not, the moniker of “progressive” is attached to some other, more precise genre in an attempt to comprehensively describe the sound of whatever music it’s labeling (progressive death metal, progressive metalcore, progressive power metal, etc.). Such increasingly specific language is useful, sure, but can quickly lead to a slippery slope of inane over-descriptiveness, ultimately defeating the purpose.

Abstracted lie at the bottom of this slippery slope, squirming in the discomfort of vague comparison. Hiraeth pulls from a wide range of influences within the progressive metal pantheon: zany, playful BTBAM-esque exploration lends a sense of scope; bass-led melodies and jazz fusion chord voicings recall the stylings of Cynic and Exvivious; and an intensely technical and cinematic performance brings to mind Persefone or The HAARP Machine. Juggling so many distinct influences is challenging enough on its own, but Abstracted manages to marry the resulting textures and techniques wholly within their particular brand of prog.

In this sense, “Axis” works both as an album opener and a general thesis of sound. The track starts with arpeggiated guitar outlining inverted chord voicings within which a flowing lead bass melody swims, followed by a unison run leading to an intense bout of syncopation. In the next moment, it all falls away to shimmering piano and a clean tone guitar which set the stage for Rosano Pedro Matiussi’s clean singing. Hiraeth has been playing for just over thirty seconds at this point, a clear indicator that the listener is going to need to pay attention just to keep up. “Axis” takes an equal thirty-second breather to introduce one of its main melodic ideas before marching right back into odd time signatures, harsh vocals, and heavy syncopation.

What follows is fifty minutes of really busy songwriting. Abstracted’s style of, uh, progressive technical death jazz thrash metal(core) is immediately fun and cerebral, but sometimes becomes cluttered at the expense of pacing. The songs have clear structures, but so much happens in each section that the listener must choose between merely going with the flow and allowing themselves to enjoy the momentum of each track, or exerting the hyper-focus such detailed compositions demand, losing sight of the bigger picture in the process. Taking a step back, the same problem presents itself within the structure of Hiraeth as a whole: each song is so densely packed with interesting ideas that simply finding a foothold within the scaffolding of the album proves to be a challenge. A bit of restraint would go a long way, as antithetical as it may seem to Abstracted’s compositional conceit.  

Thankfully, the quality of ideas is high enough to justify the repeated listens required to parse such dense songwriting. Each member’s performance is polished and professional while preserving a gripping physicality. José Consani and Leonardo Brito inject modern djent techniques into their more traditional progressive metal guitar riffcraft, enhancing their rhythmic and textural variety without overpowering the core compositional voice. Drummer Fernando Pollon never misses a beat, switching from frantic blasts and double bass to intricate syncopated grooves on a dime. I particularly enjoy the subtle Brazilian rhythmic inflection that shines through some of the tom fills, adding yet another layer to Hiraeth’s sound (“Requiem”, “The Barren Grave of God”).

Hiraeth is the definition of ‘a grower’. Even after close to a dozen hours of focused listening, I’m still making new structural connections, charting new rhythmic patterns, and getting new melodies stuck in my head. At this point, I’m just waiting for Hiraeth’s overarching structure to clarify itself as a whole in my mind’s eye (ear), a process that’s taking longer than normal due to the sheer density of each composition. Abstracted have crafted an experience which deserves all of the attention it demands, one that defies easy categorization while paradoxically (or perhaps logically) embodying pure progressive metal.

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Recommended tracks: Axis, Sirens, The Barren Grave of God
You may also like: Exivious, Exist, The HAARP Machine, Kadinja
Final verdict: 7/10

Related links: Bandcamp | Facebook | Instagram

Label: M-Theory Audio

Abstracted is:
– Riverton Alves (bass)
– Rosano Pedro Matiussi (vocals)
– Carol Lynn (keyboards)
– Fernando Pollon (drums)
– José Consani (guitar)
– Leonardo Brito (guitar)