(written by Islander)

“If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.”

(Isaac Newton, in a letter to Robert Hooke, 5 Feb 1675)

We begin with that famous quotation because it is likely the source of the name that the unconventional international band Seventh Station gave their forthcoming new EP, On Shoulders Of Giants. They chose that name because the five songs on the record honor five great musical artists of the 20th century, many of them classical composers. Standing on those shoulders, Seventh Station have given the compositions their own distinctive twists, transforming the original works into expressions of contemporary metal that are as unorthodox, indeed mind-bending, as Newton’s theories must have seemed when he envisioned them from the shoulders of the giants in his own fields.

At the very end of this admittedly very long feature we’ve included a track-by-track commentary (a fun-loving one) by Seventh Station vocalist Davidavi (“Vidi”) Dolev that sheds light on what inspired each song on the EP and what the band sought to accomplish with each one. Although it’s at the end, you should really read it first if you want want a deeper understanding of what you’re about to hear. Just reading it, without listening, is also kind of a dazzling experience, and undoubtedly will leave adventurous listeners intensely curious about what’s coming. (That was certainly the effect it had on us before we started listening).

But Vidi Dolev‘s comments only hint at what the songs are going to sound like, leaving the door open for someone rash like me to offer up some descriptive verbiage, while humbly acknowledging that there’s really no substitute for listening first-hand. Continue reading »