Legacy
Legacy gives Ihlo's progressive metal a clear sense of scale. Heavy guitar patterns sit alongside bright synthesizers and expansive clean singing, with songs that build patiently towards their strongest moments. The influences are recognisable, particularly the melodic side of modern progressive metal, but the electronic detail gives the band an identity worth exploring.
Wraith establishes the approach through a restrained electronic opening that grows into much heavier playing. Andy Robison's voice helps connect those different levels of intensity. His melodies give the songs a human focus, while the guitars and drums provide the weight beneath them. The music is intricate without constantly changing direction simply to demonstrate that it can.
Source makes especially effective use of electronic texture before the guitars take over. Mute develops from a quieter setting into a much more forceful closing passage. These contrasts give Legacy some of its strongest character: the softer sections feel connected to the heavy material, rather than being separate breaks placed between riffs.
The album is not equally convincing throughout its length. Some earlier passages lean on familiar patterns and seem to wait for the next large chorus, rather than adding enough interest of their own. The careful build-ups can also require more patience than the songs immediately repay. A little more concentration would have made the complete record stronger.
The last two pieces give that patience a considerable reward. Legacy and Signals both develop towards powerful conclusions, with the band allowing the tension to grow before the release arrives. The interaction between melody, rhythm and electronic atmosphere is particularly effective here. These songs show how far Ihlo can take an arrangement when the quieter details and larger gestures have a common purpose.
There is enough quality in those endings to make the uneven stretches worth accepting. Legacy is an ambitious and often moving record for listeners who enjoy clear vocals, electronic colour and heavy progressive rock. It does not reinvent that combination, but it offers a persuasive version of it. The title track and Signals are the strongest reasons to get acquainted.
