We had to wait three years for all-new Polyphia material, but now the prog rock outfit is producing the content thick and fast.
Since the band made their surprise return with the acoustic guitar-driven single Playing God, Tim Henson, Scott LePage, Clay Gober and Clay Aeschliman have announced a new album – Remember That You Will Die – dropped the second single, Neurotica, and shared two live playthroughs courtesy of Henson’s YouTube channel.
Now, Henson – who released unplugged solo renditions of both Playing God and Neurotica – has called upon his bandmates for a whole-group playthrough of the latter track, which they performed in the comfort of their studio.
Not much has changed from Henson’s perspective. He still takes up position at the console, though opts for his custom Ibanez electric guitar designed by Nusi Quero – as seen in the Neurotica music video – and makes light work of the track’s lead lines, running through a Neural DSP Quad Cortex.
What the new playthrough clearly demonstrates, though, is Polyphia’s insane live arrangement skills and chemistry. With Henson panned right and LePage – also playing his custom Neurotica Ibanez – panned left, the synchronicity of the pair’s playing is a marvel to behold.
LePage’s guitar is treated to some gain for a range of rhythmic octaves, supporting progressions and extended melodic ideas, while Henson flicks between clean and dirty for some percussive harmonic action.
The passage that follows the 1:38 mark is the height of Henson and LePage’s interaction. For over a minute, the pair double on chordal workouts and rapid-fire leads, with each sporadically tweaking their parts to add greater nuance to the mix. Seeing them execute each exchange really is breathtaking.
Shoutout must also go to Gober and Aeschliman, too, who keep everything ticking over thanks to their expertly timed melodic beats and precise low-end stabs.
Once again, we can’t help but get excited with the ample Polyphia we’ve been getting in recent weeks. In fact, a precedent has now been set that the Texan prog rock quartet will follow up every release with a playthrough of some sorts. A tantalizing prospect, to say the least.
Polyphia’s upcoming album is available to preorder now, though no official release date has been announced. When it arrives, Remember That You Will Die will be the band’s first album since 2018’s New Levels New Devils.
