The Mercury Tree: Difference between revisions

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====2014-2016====

With the release of the ''Countenance'' LP, Ben Spees made use of microtonality for the first time, making use of quartertones on the second song, "Vestigial"<ref name=":0" />. This LP had elements of jazz in songs like "Mazz Jathy" and "Jazz Hands of Doom". "False Meaning" introduced and made use of quartal harmony, and along with "Pitchless Tone", "Vestigial", "Otoliths", "To Serve Man" and "Artifacture" featured screams, having a heavier tone. The keyboard timbre found in their earlier stuff was no longer present from then on. Working in a trio, Spees heavily relied on the usage of looping pedals to replicate layered sounds which he was interested in. Spees commented the following: "''This was another step deeper into complexity, with even more layering, and improved production. This was also the introduction of Oliver contributing vocals – he has a very distinctive voice and the ability to produce a wide range of textures. On this album, Connor also started to make more use of space in his drum parts; while still intense, they were a bit more judicious compared to the more shreddy/busy parts featured on Freeze.''"<ref name=":2" />

"Vesuvius" was a song originally written for ''Countenance'', but it was ultimately removed from the final production.

The band showcased its most progressive release which wasn't exclusively microtonal in their album ''Permutations.'' The members were inspired by more avant-prog bands, as they were aiming for a weirder sound,<ref name=":1" /> by utilizing stranger [[Scale|scales]], time signatures and more advanced polyrhythms<ref name=":2" />. The musical evolution is most evident in "Exhume the Worst" and "Placeholder" which utilize the heavier aspect of Countenance, while displaying jazz-influenced harmony, especially in the latter. This release also contains the first fully microtonal Mercury Tree song, "Ether/Ore" which is in the [[Carlos Alpha|carlos alpha]] tuning, alongside prominent microtonality on "Symptoms" and "Permutations". This album represents a cornerstone for their rhythmic experimentation, with "Unintelligible" being a prime example.

@@ Line 55: / Line 55: @@
 ====2014-2016====
 With the release of the ''Countenance'' LP, Ben Spees made use of microtonality for the first time, making use of quartertones on the second song, "Vestigial"<ref name=":0" />. This LP had elements of jazz in songs like "Mazz Jathy" and "Jazz Hands of Doom". "False Meaning" introduced and made use of quartal harmony, and along with "Pitchless Tone", "Vestigial", "Otoliths", "To Serve Man" and "Artifacture" featured screams, having a heavier tone. The keyboard timbre found in their earlier stuff was no longer present from then on. Working in a trio, Spees heavily relied on the usage of looping pedals to replicate layered sounds which he was interested in. Spees commented the following: "''This was another step deeper into complexity, with even more layering, and improved production. This was also the introduction of Oliver contributing vocals – he has a very distinctive voice and the ability to produce a wide range of textures. On this album, Connor also started to make more use of space in his drum parts; while still intense, they were a bit more judicious compared to the more shreddy/busy parts featured on Freeze.''"<ref name=":2" />
+"Vesuvius" was a song originally written for ''Countenance'', but it was ultimately removed from the final production.
 The band showcased its most progressive release which wasn't exclusively microtonal in their album ''Permutations.'' The members were inspired by more avant-prog bands, as they were aiming for a weirder sound,<ref name=":1" /> by utilizing stranger [[Scale|scales]], time signatures and more advanced polyrhythms<ref name=":2" />. The musical evolution is most evident in "Exhume the Worst" and "Placeholder" which utilize the heavier aspect of Countenance, while displaying jazz-influenced harmony, especially in the latter. This release also contains the first fully microtonal Mercury Tree song, "Ether/Ore" which is in the [[Carlos Alpha|carlos alpha]] tuning, alongside prominent microtonality on "Symptoms" and "Permutations". This album represents a cornerstone for their rhythmic experimentation, with "Unintelligible" being a prime example.