Despite my memory of the band's first album being hazy, I have been really enjoying Ceiba over the past few weeks. The mix of old-school and modern prog metal sounds that I remembered from the first album return - with Ceiba perhaps being a bit more expansive overall, being a bit longer to allow the band to stretch out. The 11 songs here clock in at just over an hour, with the short and slow-burning Asunder kicking things off. Not an instrumental scene-setter, as Tejeida does add some spoken word, but it serves a similar purpose - with shimmering synths and atmospheric weather noises creating a dark vibe. Sombre percussion builds up towards Ashes, the first song proper - which roars out of the trap with a fast-paced, heavy riff backed by cold, stabbing synths. There is a barrelling heaviness early on, then, with Sandnes laying into his drums - but soon a more relaxed groove is settled on, with bubbling keyboard textures and more of an extended guitar chug - over which Klemp starts to sing. Klemp's vocals are probably the main link to the more modern prog metal scene, but as mentioned he is a bit more full-bodied than some - which is especially apparent during this song's chorus. The verses mix floaty vocals with the aforementioned groove, whilst the chorus is more powerful - with a subtle keyboard lead backing the vocal melodies, whilst a more old-school hard rock beat allows for a bit more of an anthemic approach. This is a chorus which is easy to latch onto, and the subtle harmony vocals from Gillette and Tejeida boost things further. Structure-wise, this song is less prog than some here - with Gillette's first massive guitar solo following later on, which is shredded and high-octane, before Tejeida responds with one of his own. There are a lot of classic prog tropes on show here, then, and the album gets off to a powerful, heavy start. Beyond the Voice opens slowly, with some atmospheric and effects-heavy clean guitar melodies - and soon some growling synths take over, creating an atmospheric bed for Klemp's early vocals. All of the toughness of the previous song is stripped away early on, but soon the band crash back in - with a Sandnes drum fill, and a slow-moving, juddering riff backs an aching chorus, which Klemp really shines on. The song is not as anthemic as the previous one, but there is a welcome atmosphere and emotional weight here - which is something that Klemp really excels at. His subtle verse vocals, which sit over heavier patterns than they initially did, contrast nicely with his chorus delivery - which again features some fairly busy synth work that later gives way to a knotty guitar solo. The song ends as it began, with gentle synths later fading into the black. Ceased to Be opens with a mechanical, mid-paced riff - setting down a nice groove early on that has something of a hypnotic feel. Once Klemp starts to sing, though, the band drop away - and parts of the first verse are sang against a sparse backing. This changes when Pereria swoops in with a bit of a bass run, and a bass-led groove takes over - somewhat returning to the early feel, albeit a bit sparser and more bass-heavy. It is the first time on the album that the bass really shines, and there is some busy and melodic bass playing throughout this song that sometimes cuts through the dense mix. Structure-wise, too, this song starts to shake things up a bit. The vocal sections are more meandering here, with less of a focus on a verse-chorus structure. Wordless vocal harmonies often cut in to provide something of a hook, whilst Gillette and Tejeida fill in a few gaps with some call-and-response-style backings. This is one of those prog songs that seems to slowly evolve over time. The hooks are more subtle here, but over time they sink in - and I especially enjoy a later instrumental passage that feels more synth-driven, with sparkling melodies that later give way to another big guitar solo. The bass returns later, too, driving a slower, emotive section that Klemp nails - whilst Gillette adds chiming guitar notes in the background.
Broken also opens slowly, with the dark synths of the previous song's closing moments fading into some mournful, clean guitar melodies. These melodies early on are quite simple, gentle ringing out through the gloom - before Klemp starts to sing in a similar manner against them, utilising the lower end of his register. A simple, programmed drum groove soon starts to flesh the song out, but it only adds to the sombre mood - and it takes some slightly more expansive keyboard textures to start to elevate the mood. As Tejeida's playing becomes more prominent, the song feels bigger - with Klemp sounding a little more powerful and the drum machine a little busier. The change is subtle, but it works well - and a soundscape-esque instrumental section later features sparse synth melodies expanding outwards. The song never becomes anything heavier, acting as the first ballad here, with later vocal-led sections continuing the relative gloom - until the drum machine is left to play a couple of bars alone to close things out. Casting Stone feels like the album's centre-piece, being its second longest song at just over nine minutes and sitting in the middle of the tracklist. After the atmospheric nature of the previous number, Casting Stone returns to something much more typically prog metal, with Sandnes' busy, jerky drumming creating a bit of a strange groove early on - over which Gillette lays circular melodies and the rest of the band expand around him. Whilst the off-kilter groove can feel quite fast at times, Klemp generally sings quite slowly throughout, which does end up giving the song a bit of a strange overall feel. The rhythms clash a bit, which does work quite well, and it creates something of an unsettling tone at times - especially when compared to other parts of the song which feature more typical grooves and a more hard-driving feel. This is another song during which Pereria often shines, too. His bass playing leads the way during some of the more straightforward sections, whilst some melodic basslines often helps to link up the different sections. Later in the song, there are some much more straight ahead metallic grooves, with Sandnes enjoying laying into his double bass drums and Gillette chugging along in a much thrashier manner. This is often contrasted with stranger sections, though, including splashing synth bursts and odd sound effects - but Gillette's later guitar solo really showcases that Petrucci influence, with a furious shredded section that then gives way to something much more soaringly melodic. It is one of the album's best instrumental moments in my opinion, cementing Gillette as one of the finest prog guitarists at the moment. The song later closes with a powerful climax, too, including some rare, flashy synth runs from Tejeida, and some of Klemp's best vocals. See Myself immediately sounds heavier, opening with a darker riff and a much more typically metallic drum groove. There are certainly shades of Dream Theater's heavier output here, although Klemp's vocals have some effects added to them to create a bit of a distorted sound - sitting nicely alongside the tougher riffing. This is also one of two songs here that sees Gillette featured a bit more vocally, and he sings the pre-chorus sections - as well as, I think, throwing in a few shouted gang vocal-type additions. This brief vocal diversity helps to shake things up, especially given the song's relentless tougher sound - albeit the chorus does feel like a bit of a light in the dark, with the vocal effects stripped away and more of a synth presence. A blistering, lengthy instrumental section later features some very busy soloing from both Gillette and Tejeida - with the later channelling his inner Derek Sherinian at times with some of the album's most growling synth runs.
Parting the Waves Inside opens slowly following the relentless heaviness of the previous number - with distant piano melodies rumbling away behind some subtle synths, over which Klemp starts to sing in an emotional manner. This fairly warm opening is welcome following the recent heaviness, and the song drifts along in this manner for a while - but the rest of the band do soon crash in with a mid-paced and somewhat tough riff. The song never feels as heavy as the previous one, though, and there is always an atmospheric vibe retained. Even when Gillette is laying down one of his juddering and groovy riffs, the smooth synths always remain - and there is something pleasingly flowing about the overall approach taken here. There are strong ballad vibes despite the heavier sections, and Gillette's riffing is often pretty melodic despite it adding an overall edge. There are some brighter synth melodies at times, too, adding a strange, summery feel in spots - whilst Gillette's riffing later morphs into something of a solo, showing him do something a bit different before a proper solo section takes over led by Tejeida. This song feels very much like Tejeida's overall, with his keyboard playing ever-present and the stand-out factor - despite some more emotive vocals from Klemp. Night of Veils is a shorter track sat among these longer back-end pieces, which opens again with piano and Klemp's plaintive vocals. After the ballad vibes of the previous number, this acts as a proper ballad - with shimmering vocals and focus on the piano melodies - although Gillette does add some slow-burning, David Gilmour-esque guitar leads later on, which morph into a solo to close things out. Alone also opens slowly, with Gillette's clean guitar and vocals - the timbre of his delivery changing things up compared to how the section would feel with Klemp singing. When the drums kick in, though, Klemp takes back over, the change immediately noticeable, but the two later sing together in a powerful manner during the dense and emotive chorus. The vocal diversity is welcome, and it suits the slow-moving, doomy, emotive power of the piece - which lacks in big riffs. A sombre drum beat, cold synths, and clean guitar melodies generally make up the song here - with the vocal back-and-forth then the standout feature, as Gillette takes the lead elsewhere, too. A lengthy guitar solo does shake up the formula, though, elevating the song further, before a final vocal coda closes things out. The album then comes to a close with As Long as We Last, the longest song here at just over 10 minutes. Opening with clean guitar melodies and a distant drum groove, there is almost a bit of a Marillion vibe early on - with Klemp's voice channelling Steve Hogarth's a little. This soon changes when things get a little heavier, with Gillette changing tack - adding riffy guitar leads under Klemp's delivery, whilst the bass rumbles away. This is a song that changes up a lot during its runtime, but it strangely never feels that urgent nor overtly busy or proggy. There is a natural evolution throughout, with slow-burning sections often returning - and even the more expansive section retaining a similar groove, which really allows the vocals and Gillette's later guitar solo to really pop. If Casting Stone is the album's lengthy prog metal bombast piece, then As Long as We Last is more prog rock and atmospheric - leaving the high-octane metal behind for something more enveloping and emotive overall, despite some virtuoso moments. It is one of the true growers of the album due to it being less metallic, even if the standout moments are up there with the album's core approach. It ends things well, with the album overall being a real success and one that I keep enjoying more each time I hear it. There is a lot to like here for prog metal fans of all persuasions and I can only see my opinion of it improving as I hear it more. Temic have the ability to be a big name on the scene if they can get the busy schedules to make the band work - and I hope for more of this in the future.
The album was released on 2nd October 2026 via Season of Mist. Below is the band's promotional video for Ceased to Be.
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