If you mix The Fall of Troy, Coheed and Cambria and Circa Survive, it probably wouldn’t be a surprise to hear that Equal Vision had snapped up Damiera. While it seems that any band which once listened to Rush is deemed to be prog, there’s a collection of flying time signatures and off-kilter elements which make Damiera dynamic. the layers and textures in each song make ‘M(us)ic’ interesting if nothing else, although their outside influences are quite clear to most people, especially if you’re a fan of the EVR roster.
‘Lessons’, for example, is one of those explosive rock songs which has personality aplenty, while the slower, swirling ‘Ember Eason’ shows the band can do the ‘other’ side of a fast and frenetic genre of music. A bit like Hopesfall managed to do on ‘A-Types’. Damiera are clearly technically proficient and show a maturity beyond their relative youth – I feel album number two will be the one that will either break the shackles of prog-rock, or keep them in amongst the emo-rock pack.