{"id":100206,"date":"2025-09-12T09:00:27","date_gmt":"2025-09-12T08:00:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/?p=100206"},"modified":"2025-09-11T21:13:55","modified_gmt":"2025-09-11T20:13:55","slug":"review-between-the-buried-and-me-the-blue-nowhere","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/review-between-the-buried-and-me-the-blue-nowhere\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Between The Buried And Me – The Blue Nowhere"},"content":{"rendered":"

When it comes to modern progressive metal,\u00a0Between\u00a0the Buried and Me<\/strong> (BtBaM) is one of the names to consider among the best in the genre. Critically acclaimed records, ‘Colors’<\/em> and ‘The Great Misdirect’<\/em>, lead their extensive catalogue. While\u00a0‘Colors’<\/em>‘ thematic sequel in 2021 honed in on expansive songs with plenty of texture. Their eleventh album,\u00a0‘The Blue Nowhere,’<\/em> is a new beginning in a variety of ways for the North Carolina band. It’s their first record\u00a0on InsideOut<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0Music<\/strong>, as well as their first as a quartet following the departure of shamed guitarist Dustie Waring.<\/p>\n

Conceptually,\u00a0‘The Blue Nowhere’<\/em> sees vocalist and keyboardist Tommy Rogers take us on an adventure through a psychological hotel. It’s paired with a dizzying, expansive sound palette that is equally rich as it is occasionally weird. After all, this is a prog band. Take the eight-minute-long opener, ‘Things We Tell Ourselves In The Dark,’\u00a0<\/em>as an example. Funky guitars wrap themselves around complex tempos before radiantly providing a soaring chorus. Its cocktail of sounds has flashes of space-y synth clashing with riveting, metallic guitars, and an array of twists and turns in its pacing. It’s a colourful introduction that is soon contrasted by the\u00a0industrial ‘God Terror’<\/em>. Here, Rogers’ angsty vocals are complemented by sharp guitars with\u00a0dark electronica seeping through, creating a hallucination into madness.<\/p>\n

The narrative descent continues on ‘Absent Thereafter’<\/em>. Much like ‘Things We Tell Ourselves\u2026’<\/em>, the extent of genre-blending is utilised but never forced. Rushing with Blake Richardson’s frantic drum work and guitarist Paul Waggoner’s riveting display, it hints at a sense of stability as Rogers’ confessional words sing\u00a0“In space, in space, I fear tomorrow”<\/em>. It momentarily brings a sense of peace, before crashing down with an impressive bluegrass guitar solo. Throw in some Vegas show-style horns in its final minutes, and you’re left with a disorienting but delightful number.<\/p>\n