When Indianapolis-based progressive metal project Pentrilox announced "Apotheosis: The New Frontier", I genuinely didn't expect to be handed a literal digital antidepressant. But here we are. Operating entirely out of their in-house production studio, this independent outfit utterly rejects the exhausted, dystopian sci-fi tropes we've all been choking on lately. Instead, they’ve engineered a massive, heavy sonic blueprint for celestial optimism. https://open.spotify.com/album/1lXMirFmYCFLZ8CJ8LJGfi?si=oXWz-hzbSV-i2MNymOiwDA The physical force of...

Shrouded Day, the brainchild of Omaha-based flutist and keyboardist Dan M., returns with the 15th Anniversary Edition of "Legend of the Shadow-Touched." An album, and a hefty one at that, boasting 17 instrumental tracks that promise—and largely deliver—a journey into the slightly peculiar intersection of Tangerine Dream and...Jethro Tull? https://open.spotify.com/album/2NcQYI1T9FolykjnzQ8fh2?si=vluXdPMlQf-tuRO6WCw63g The core of "Legend of the Shadow-Touched" revolves around themes of alienation and personal growth. But...