Formed during their college days in 2011 and coming at you from Yeovil, Apherium soon forged a sturdy bond and quickly put out their debut album ‘The Cycle’ the following year. The album was a steep learning curve for the quartet, yet they soon discovered how to better cultivate their sound and reflect on their song writing. The melodic metallers reshaped their set during 2013 and began to spread their wings racking up a series of successful shows in London, Midlands, South Wales and throughout the South West. The band then bunkered down in preparation for their new EP, entitled ‘Neoteric’, which is slated for a reboot this September and is rammed with sonic sledgehammer fists- in-the-air choruses and explosive rhythms that promise to melt your ears.
British rock and metal appears to be heading into a golden period. Bands like Biffy Clyro and Bring Me the Horizon are making the step up to become globetrotting megastars and following in their wake is a new wave of bands hoping to make a similar impact. One of those bands comes in the form of Apherium.
Formed in Yeovil in 2011, this four piece have already got one album to their name, 2012’s ‘Clear‘. Their latest 5 track EP ‘Neoteric’ sees them taking a lot of influence from a variety of British heavyweights. Opener ‘New Light’ is reminiscent of Funeral for a Friend at their most melodic, while ‘Silver Tongues’ shows a delicacy in the clean vocals that contrasts nicely with some of the more metallic riffs and comes to a close in an epic twisting fashion that Biffy Clyro would be proud of.
This contrast between the melodic and the metal is something that is seen throughout these five songs. Closer ‘Rise Again’ goes from a juddering riff to sections that have an element of airiness to them, as they drift into the hook filled choruses. Apherium appear to have a good sense of how the contrast allows for individual elements to stand out better and have taken good advantage of that on ‘Neoteric’.
It’s clear that this is a band who are brimming with potential and ‘Neoteric’ is making sure it shows that off. With catchy riffs and big choruses, there is nothing stopping Apherium from kicking off in a big way. Yet, there is no denying that they still feel like a band truly trying to find their own voice. It’s an EP where the influences come in thick and fast and there is an element of spot the band. However, at this stage in their career there really isn’t anything wrong with that and there is enough in the basic core of this music to suggest Apherium would be perfectly capable of making the step up in the near future.
