Sonus Umbra - "Spiritual Vertigo" Review

Artist: Sonus Umbra

Title: Spiritual Vertigo

Produced by: John Grant, Luis Nasser & Jeff Laramee

Label/ Date: The Sound of Shadows/ 2003

official Sonus Umbra website

Tracks:

1. Bone Machines

2. Fool's Arcadia

3. Man Of Anger And Light

4. Fascinoma

5. Self Erosion

6. Amnesia Junkies Pt. 1 (Pax Americana)

7. Amnesia Junkies Pt. 2 (Pax Israelica)

8. Timequake

9. Rust In My Sleep

10. Snakes & Ladders

11. Hidden Track

The Review:

Sonus Umbra’s music is very progressive, combining the elements of rock and jazz.There’s also a quirky side to the band, especially with the vocals of Andres Aullet. The guitar playing on Spiritual Vertigo was never in your face like most modern progressive rock bands. The rhythm section of Luis Nasser (bass, keyboards, acoustic guitars) and Jeff Laramee (drums, vocals). Especially with Luis, who is a fine multi-instrumentalist (and a good friend that I met at Baja Prog this year). I only wished Sonus Umbra had a chance to play. If you get a chance, go see them at ROSfest and buy Spiritual Vertigo while you’re there.

Unlike most prog bands, Sonus Umbra stays under the 10 minute mark with the exception of their “epic” (nearly 11 minutes) closer “Snakes And Ladders,” which has an interesting dedication in the liner notes. After a brief silence, there’s a hidden track. I recommend you listen to it carefully on headphones with the volume up to get the whole effect of the ending moments on the cd. I won’t tell you the meanings of this CD, but it does have a strong spiritual message hence the the title “Spiritual Vertigo”. They steer away from the religious side though, in case you aren’t into preachy music. You may want to have several listens to get into Sonus Umbra. They’re unlike any other band, and that’s a refreshing thing. Highly recommended!!

~Ron for ProgNaut.com [April 13th, 2004]

Band Members:

Andres Aullet - Lead vocals

Ricardo Gomez - Lead guitars

Jeff Laramee - Drums, vocals

Luis Nasser - Bass, keyboards, Acoustic & crunch guitars, Odd vocals

with special guests:

Lisa Francis - Vocals

John Grant - Additional lead guitars