Review Summary: Out of the bedroom and into the Ballou
Ben Sharp, most readily recognized by his moniker Cloudkicker, has a carved a deep inky crevasse in the progressive metal archives. Emerging onto the scene with his 2008 release The Discovery, Cloudkicker Sharply ascended to prominence with his hypnotic instrumental riffage and emotive evocations. With a steady release of (mostly) well-received albums, weaving and winding his way to the 2020 swan song Solitude, Ben amassed a significant cult following. This was all the more impressive given Cloudkicker was an entirely solo affair. Yet, as Solitude foreshadowed, Ben began to publicly express dissatisfaction in the creative isolationism of the one-man-army approach to music production. Though slow in death, the seemingly endless road of riff writing, MIDI drum clicks, velocity tweaking, mixing, listening, and mixing again, came to an eventual end.
Cloudkicker was no more.
A question lingered; was this the creative end-of-the-line for a dude with the competing interests of a career and family? Or was it simply the signalling of a weary captain in search of a co-pilot?
Cloudkicker’s 2014 live album, in partnership with prog metal titans Intronaut, demonstrated the force multiplier that hired help made in bringing Ben’s music to life. Therein lay the waypoint for Mr Sharp, and cued the entry of legendary Gospel drummer Vinny Roseboom. Despite being a more than competent digital drummer, Ben found a creative partnership in Vinny that patched many of the creative holes developed over a decade of working alone. Together, Ben and Vinny quietly formed The Supervoid Choral Ensemble and released a self-titled three track EP in 2023 – promised as a mere tasting paddle of the keg to come.
Progressing to 2024, The Supervoid Choral Ensemble teased a session at eminent producer Kurt Ballou’s GodCity Studio. Shortly thereafter, Live From the Downwhen Terminus, the duo’s first full length venture, came to life. Confusingly, Live From the Downwhen Terminus is not a live album. Less confusingly, the album absolutely shreds. Free from the gravitational pull of production labour, Ben spreads the full span of his wings once more and delivers a half-hour barrage of his trademark odd time-signature riffage and atmospheric gliding. The creative reinvigoration is palpable on this record, accentuated perfectly by Vinny’s frenetic skin slapping. Live From the Downwhen Terminus is everything you would expect from a top-of-the-pile Cloudkicker record, but benefits monstrously from not being Cloudkicker at all.
Though admittedly marred by a somewhat short run time – perhaps not the worst flaw to fall victim to as a new act – The Supervoid Choral Ensemble deliver an exciting first hors d'oeuvre of prog to come. Through creative partnership, and a delegation of production duties to a third party, Ben breaks through the clouds to deliver some of his finest work to date, and, most importantly, in a way that feels both sustainable and fresh.
