Halo Stereo Lead The Invisible War

Tennessee rock veterans Halo Stereo have been kicking around for a fair amount of time. Over the course of their career they've released two rather masterful prog-metal masterpieces, gotten more press than the president, toured, been on TV, radio, etc and yet they remain unsigned. The fact that this is really true is amazing when you consider how talented and how on top of their game Halo Stereo actually are. Hopefully, their latest self released album, The Invisible War will do the trick.

Sounding something like older Muse mixed with bits of Radiohead and enough metallic guitars to make any kid want to mosh his heart out, Halo Stereo are like the best of both the metal and indie worlds. The Invisible Waris an uber-complex record that probably has more riffs per minute than most bands have on entire records. It's really quite crazy to think how much music this band actually plays in each song without losing a sense of the song.

This is a band that while technically brilliant never forgets that a song should still have something for your brain to latch on to. They know how to write the big rock and roll song and they cram that knowledge into just about every one of the tracks on The Invisible War. From the soaring chorus and driving bass line of the title track to the radio ready power ballad, "Dig Up My Past," this is a record that perfectly balances the progressive side of the band with the band's more song based side. It's an impressive effort and the fact that they called in the big guns in the form of producer Rick Beato to hone their sound to a sharp point should really help them take the next step.

Complex, intricate, and packed with more music then your ears can probably handle, The Invisible War is a fantastic listen that's intensely entertaining. Halo Stereo have done an amazing job of making technically progressive music sound easy here and if this record doesn't get them signed there's truly no justice in the world. If you like your music crunchy and elaborate you'll love Halo Stereo.