Style: Progressive Metal, Progressive Death Metal (Mixed Vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Cynic, Rivers of Nihil, Opeth, Persefone
Country: Czechia
Release date: 27 August 2026

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Prog metal is a pretty goofy genre for the most part. Lyrics often range from fantastical to nonsensical, and the conviction with which many of the genre’s largest bands sing corny lines is a big part of the charm. Of course, not every band is so inclined, and weighty concepts can make good use of the genre’s varied sonic range to reach massive catharsis. For instance, The Reticent’s Alzheimer’s-themed album The Oubliette is crushing—to the extent that despite its excellence, few people ever return to the record with regularity. The third album of Czech prog metal group Mindwork, Adrift, also explores Alzheimer’s: heavy stuff. Do they reach the emotional depths of The Reticent’s modern classic?

Although out of practice with releasing new material—besides a short EP in 2021, fourteen years have passed since music from Mindwork—the band are in top form. They don’t veil their various influences, but they also rarely sound like pastiche, tastefully mixing several distinct styles of progressive death metal. Like half of all prog metal bands since 1999, including The Reticent, Mindwork is massively influenced by Opeth—“The Branches and the Wind” is the most derivative track on the record, basically a direct ripoff of Blackwater Park’s “Patterns in the Ivy,” and many of the riffs have an Åkerfeldt-like swing. The Opethian style is also the end of the extent to which Mindwork and The Reticent are similar sonically. The latter borrows the moodiness of Porcupine Tree to complete their sound, while Mindwork are much more energetic, channeling the shreddy riffs and solos of Persefone on tracks like “Breach the Cosmos” and “The Party’s Over.” Honestly, except for the frail acoustic-ballad closer, “Stars,” Adrift fails to be an emotional affair, which is a bit strange given the concept but forgivable overall since the performances and songwriting stand up on their own.

When Mindwork play around with intricate rhythms in dynamic riffs, Adrift feels exciting. The start-and-stop in the back half of “The Great Deception of Mind” is a thinking man’s headbanger like lots of great prog—the band even throw in some scorching tremolos to close out the track. “Breach the Cosmos” and “A Moment of Clarity” both feature stellar drumming, injecting the jazziness of Haken and Cynic—the vocoder in “A Moment of Clarity” makes that latter influence crystal clear. The bass joins the fun, too, with highlights including the bass in counterpoint with the tasteful guitar solo in the middle of “The Great Deception of the Mind” and the phat tech death tone under the blast beats that open “Mess from Now On”—that track gives big Exist vibes, with a sci-fi atmosphere, meaty bass, and strong harsh vocals. Mindwork jump all around the prog spectrum.

While many of the comparisons are positive, they also draw influence from some bad sources. I’m all for mixed vocals in my prog death, but the clean vocals on Adrift are mediocre at best and straight-up bad at times, with a paltry timbre and poor enunciation. I appreciate the dynamic shift they bring, but they’re not up to par with the fantastic instrumentalists. By far the worst offense Mindwork commits, though, is not one but TWO smooth jazz sax solos, the single worst cliché in prog. All momentum is killed in the middle of “Mess from Now On”—what would have been the highlight track—when the song stops suddenly for a two-minute-long sax section. It’s corny, clichéd, and doesn’t add anything to the record. The first track with the sax (“The Great Deception of Mind”) was eyeroll-inducing enough before Mindwork ruined their could-have-been best song. 

Even two decades into their career, Mindwork are excellent performers, with riffs and solos any prog fan would love even if they feel wholly detached from the record’s concept. The most to-the-point prog metal tracks—“Breach the Cosmos” and “A Moment of Clarity”—are bangers, but among a pointless opening instrumental, Opeth-worship acoustic interlude, lame ballad closer, and two songs with pointless saxophone, Adrift never reaches its full potential. That’s a bummer—although the music could stand to be a little more glum given the concept.

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Recommended tracks: Breach the Cosmos, A Moment of Clarity, The Party’s Over
You may also like: Exist, Wait, Fractal Universe, The Reticent, Coma Control
Final verdict: 6/10

Related links: Bandcamp | Facebook | Instagram

Label: Independent

Mindwork is:
– Martin Schuster (vocals, rhythm guitars, guitar leads tracks 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, and piano in track 7)
– Dominik Vozobule (bass)
– Filip Kittnar (drums)
– Jiří Rambousek (guitar leads in tracks 4, 6, and 8)
– Martin Plachý – (saxophone in tracks 2 and 8)