Cell-0

Cell-0 is an instrumental work on which APOCALYPTICA, inviting no vocalist, placed the cello’s tone itself as the lead. The pressure of the low end connects to heavy-metal riffs, and the high melody creates a breadth like classical or film music. After a period centered on vocal songs, it is a record on which the band returned to their origin — instrumental expression. On “Ashes of the Modern World,” “Cell-0” and “Rise,” they advance from quiet tension to dramatic explosion, drawing scenery so large it is hard to believe it is strings alone. Songs like “En Route To Mayhem,” “Scream For the Silent” and “Beyond the Stars” breathe the band’s full playing too. Without relying on lyrics or vocal melody, they build a story with the texture, rhythm and layering of sound. It is a full record on which, the more you listen with focus, the more the expression of the details comes into view.