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Written by James Blake
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Insight into the Solo Career of the Math Rock Band's Drummer
Zach Hill, drummer for math rock band Hella and solo artist, packs a punch on the drums. His unique drum setup and style of playing make his talent even more incredible.
It's true: Zach Hill as a solo artist isn't very different from Zach Hill as the drummer of Hella. His “wail on everything in sight” style comes with him, as does his ability to change time signatures as easily as breathing.
But despite all this, his 2008 solo album, Astrological Straits, shows what Hella would be like if Hill had complete control. It's not entirely a bad or good thing, but it allows fans of Hill to enjoy a new release from a member of Hella and to experience a variation and even sort of a throwback on Hella's ever-progressing sound.
Hill's Drumming Style and Sound
In Hella, Hill created his signature style early on. Before Hella added vocals and personnel, Hill put out beats that seemed impossible to do with a single bass pedal which clearly drove the band. But as Hella expanded from guitar and drums to add synthesizers, bass, and vocals, Hill refused to take the background. With his distinct style and help from guitarist Spencer Seim, Hella's sound has continued to evolve instead of changing, but Hill's influence over the band was never entirely made clear.
Astrological Straights starts out with “Iambic Strays”, which gives listeners a very accurate style of Hill's musical style. The drumming patterns change often and are at breakneck speed over spacey synthesizers and distorted vocals, which seem dead slow in comparison. Hill seems to have been influenced by record label's founder, Mike Patton of Ipecac Records. Patton's noise-rock side, as revealed in the collaboration with Slayer drummer Dave Lombard Fantômas, relies on similar quick changes and synthesized effects.
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Written by Aaron Grossman
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Bringing old school Progressive Rock and Metal to a new generation.
With a dark, atmospheric ode to the apocalypse, Three tip their hats to 70's rock giants like Rush, Yes, and Genesis, while maintaining a style all their own.
Sometimes you can tell a lot about a band from whom they tour with. For example, Three have toured with Porcupine Tree, Coheed & Cambria, and Scorpions. As one might expect from this resume, they sound like a more progressive and more metal version of Coheed - who themselves are both more Progressive and more Metal than most people give them credit for.
That being said, it does a disservice to the band to imply they're Coheed copycats. True, vocalist Joey Eppard is one of many young progressive vocalists trying to emulate Geddy Lee, but he's so much smoother about it than his contemporaries.
While C&C have been incorporating more and more classic rock influences into their work and "The End is Begun" makes some grabs at modern accessibility, let's make no mistake - Coheed & Cambria are a thoroughly modern band, while Three are old school, 70's progressive rock.
Scions of Prog
As proof, the band draws their influences from the titans of the 70s. "The Word is Born of Flame" provides an intro in the vein of Jethro Tull, before it launches into bombastic Black Sabbath style theatrics. Yes makes itself known throughout the album, as does Rush on tracks like "Battle Cry" and the acoustic ballad "Been to the Future." Meanwhile the first single, "All That Remains" is a soulful slice of mid-era Genesis, peppered with the same noodley Steve Hacket style riffs that once made Iron Maiden's Steve Harris say, "Hey, that's a pretty cool sound."
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