Review Summary: The Fall of Troy meets An Endless Sporadic
CHON is a rather unknown instrumental progressive act out of San Diego. Their
Demo 2008 is a self-released effort by the young quintet that proves to be a strong first release for the band, especially given the fact that all the members were between 13-16 years old at this time.
On first listen, it's apparent CHON’s sound is very dependent on the guitars. The guitar never seems to slow down or pause, and is constantly soaring high up on the neck or shifting between melodic chord sections. Don’t be deceived though; although the guitars are the main focus here, there are many more redeeming qualities on this demo upon further listens. It features sporadic drums that utilize the double-bass pedal often, and even a section with ambient keyboards on
Mountains of Creation. There’s also a “breakdown” employed on
Elliptical Illuminations. I use the term breakdown loosely because the cheery guitar tone and chords heard doesn’t sound like your typical Emmure chugfest. It’s a good thing CHON doesn’t have a vocalist though, as I can’t see where vocals would fit in this mix very well at all.
As a whole, this release is cohesive to say the least. Although each song has its own distinct sound and variations, they all fit together easily. Its short run time also gives it a lot of replay value. The music in general is infectiously catchy, often times I find myself humming or tapping a riff from this demo without even knowing it.
Surprisingly, the production value for this demo is excellent given the fact that it’s a home produced effort. The guitar tone is clear, the drums give a very natural holistic sound, but alas, the bass is nowhere to be found on this because it gets drowned out by the guitars.
The only real complaint I have with this is the short run time. Clocking in at just over 10 minutes, it feels like as soon as you begin to really start enjoying the music, it abruptly ends.
Aside the from the lack of length, this first demo from CHON proves the band has a great amount of talent and they could really go somewhere with it if they continue the path they are headed on. I am sure I won't be the only one anxiously awaiting their next release. If nothing else, at least check this out, it’s only ten minutes of your time and I’m sure you won’t regret it.
