Review by J.C. on March 26, 2026.

I’m really glad the members of this Polish progressive metal/metalcore band invited me to hear their new album. At first, I wasn’t sure how to approach reviewing it—this is complex music, and not a style I usually feel confident writing about—but I’ll do my best to capture the experience.

The album leans heavily into modern progressive metal, with only traces of metalcore. Despite its relatively short runtime of just over 30 minutes, it feels expansive, almost like an interstellar journey. The songs are fast and densely packed, yet never overwhelming, thanks to thoughtful arrangements and strong melodic sensibilities.

The guitar work is a clear highlight. The tone is warm and inviting, the riffs draw from melodic death metal, and the rhythms are consistently varied. Dual-guitar sections appear at times, and the solos are outstanding—so much so that riffs often blur seamlessly into lead passages. The abundance of intricate shred sections is impressive, both in length and execution, making you wonder how they were conceived and performed. Melodically, the album remains engaging throughout, blending familiar theoretical frameworks with enough variation, occasional classical touches, and subtle dissonance to avoid stagnation.

The drumming may or may not be programmed, but it fits the music well. While not overly complex, the patterns evolve with each section. Faster, climactic moments bring an energetic lift, while atmospheric passages pull back effectively. In more restrained sections, there’s a bit more variety, even giving the impression of layered percussion at times.

Vocals, bass, and keyboards play more supporting roles. The album is largely instrumental, with occasional melodic death metal growls that lock in well with the guitar rhythms. The bass sits slightly beneath the surface but adds weight to the overall sound. Keyboards are used tastefully—enhancing atmosphere with either symphonic textures or subtle electronic elements, depending on the mood.

Structurally, the compositions are inventive and fluid. Whether short or extended, the tracks feature numerous shifts and transitions that feel surprising but never disjointed. The non-linear, multi-part arrangements are handled with care, sometimes revisiting specific sections in a way that reinforces cohesion.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this album. It brings to mind bands like The Arbitrary and Crypt Of Somnia, though the level of arrangement and technical execution here often feels even more refined. While not every aspect surpasses those influences, certain elements certainly do. If you’re looking for a modern progressive metal album that stands out from the crowd, this is absolutely worth your time.

Rating: 9.1 out of 10

Review by Lawrence Stillman on March 25, 2026.

So, the last time I reviewed something for this project, I left a comment about the metalcore elements for the 2021 album, which can detract from the listening experience. That's gone now, which made the entire listening experience really good this time around.

The intro was pretty misleading; however, I was led to believe that I was going to listen to another shred album where it's just technical guitar wankery from start to end. Glad I sat through the first song because the songs after it are anything but. While the riffs and synths are nothing out of the ordinary for a space-themed prog album, it is still pretty enjoyable to listen to despite the speed and complexity of the music contained. The seemingly random start-stop element of the previous albums did make a return, but the composer did a good job of making it seem more integrated and less jarring for the listener.

The highlights of the album are definitely the middle 3 songs that span 9 minutes each. If you've read my previous reviews, you know that I'm a sucker for long, elaborate, and expansive songs (as long as they don't overstay their welcome with repetition). The riffs and songwriting patterns for these songs do not repeat themselves in the songs at all, which leaves the listener wondering what might come next, and of course, the riffs themselves do not disappoint. Discernible and enjoyable riffs left and right, while the hyper technical guitar playing is put to good use here. With the long song durations being put to the test here, it's important to keep the listener entertained throughout the entire song, and I'd have to say the composer did a good job of doing that here, as I have never skipped the songs forward even once while I'm listening to them.

The synths are also a highlight here; they are the ones giving the album its distinct space feeling sound that complements the fast and technical guitars and blasting drums, and sometimes it takes over the guitars to be the main soundscape, which is also a joy to listen to. The drums here sound obviously programmed, but considering the fast speeds and alien nature of the album's sound, I don't think it would sound out of place, considering that having the drums sound organic would clash with the concept of the album.

Overall, enjoyed the album a lot, but it's not one I would listen to on a regular basis, as the music can be pretty fatiguing to sit through on occasion. Looking forward to future albums.

Highlights: 'Event Horizon Rebirth'

Rating: 8.6 out of 10

Review by Raphaël on December 15, 2025.

Chaos Over Cosmos, the project of Polish musician extraordinaire Rafał Bowman, just released their fourth full length and it's an independent release once again. Now full disclosure, Rafał reached out to me for a review, and he also seems like a genuinely cool guy and a fellow leftist. There, now that my bias has been exposed, let us continue. This time he went and got the vocal talents of Taha Mohsin, after the tragic passing of his last vocalist, KC Lyon, rest in power and if anyone feels distress with dark thoughts, never hesitate to speak to someone, life can be tough, as a severely disabled man, trust me I know, but life can be wonderful too, often, it's the small things, like a new Chaos Over Cosmos album for example.

Anyhow, on to the album! As is tradition, the album begins with an instrumental, wasting no time to show you what the album will offer, when you press play, a few synth notes, a quick fade in and boom, as a supernova exploding, the solo hits instantly at max light speed (side note, I might use space analogies again, it's the vibe of the album). What I find interesting about this song is how complete it is, alternating between fast soloing, meaty melodeath riffs, with proggy, djent breakdowns thrown in the middle, it opens this album perfectly. Next is "When The Void Laughs" beginning with a one-minute solo, giving us a preview of his talent to go at inhuman speeds but never forgetting the melody. The new singer has a deep death metal growl, contrasting very well with the bright guitars. The rest of the song flows smoothly, never forgetting the melody and atmospheres with those spacey synths. Next is "Event Horizon Rebirth" and it draws you with a gorgeous melody that's emotional but still, in a pro "look at how fast I can go" kind of way. And that ladies, boys and nbs, is why I fucking love prog! Other highlights in the song would be the sometimes-syncopated rhythm, changing things up nicely and the oh so satisfying breakdowns that are also short bursts of solos. On "The Cosmo-Agony - Requiem", the last complete song (yes it's short for an album but the songs are fairy long, about 9 minutes, so the album is still 34 minutes long, which is pretty much perfect length), he shows his ability to go slower when it suits the melody better but fear not, it's still filed with dizzying speeds, the kind that makes you feel at the event horizon being sucked at the infinite gravity point.

The albums end with a short synth outro, giving you time to meditate on what you just lived through, 34 minutes of delicious prog and melodeath, with the most epic soloing you'll ever hear. The only negative I could think of is the drums that are probably programmed but honestly, it kind of pairs well with the sci-fi, spacy vibes of the record so it's hardly even a negative. What a fun album to close out the year, done by a truly talented musician, if you've never heard of Chaos Over Cosmos and you love prog, what are you doing?

Rating: 8.2 out of 10