Ezra Brooks
Tales From The Ezra Brooks Cycle
Arcane, obscure and utterly mandatory heavy metal from Smoulder's S. Vincent! Tales from the Ezra Brooks Cycle blends classic heavy metal with a sci-fi saga centered on Ezra Brooks, a time traveler hunted for crimes she has yet to commit after discovering a mysterious amulet beneath Antarctica. The pursuit and acquisition of the obscure helped drive Smolder guitarist and co-founding member S. Vincent to start his side project, Ezra Brooks. Vincent probably like a lot of ushas been known to go down the proverbial rabbit hole in search of the most cult and forgotten metal bands he can find. From these finds, he has summoned an otherworldly, not-at-all-strange brew of traditional metal in the vein of stalwarts like Brocas Helm, Slough Feg and Tales of Medusa. Yet for all the endless searching and devotion to the underground, Ezra Brooks is a singular body of work, unafraid of adventure and exploration. Both guide the project's first proper studio album, Tales from the Ezra Brooks Cycle. Vincent wrote and recorded the album entirely himself, with help from Tucker Thomasson (Throne of Iron) of Megadungeon Recording for re-amping/mixing and Andrew Lee (Ripped to Shreds, Houkago Grind Time) for the final mastering touch. Tales from the Ezra Brooks Cycle has had a particularly long gestation periodVincent finished writing the songs in 2021, then started committing them to to the digital realm in 2022 before finalizing the mix and master earlier this year. Following several well-received demos, splits, and the 2017 Target EP, Tales from the Ezra Brooks Cycle finds Vincent pushing himself like never before. It translates via his invigorating, high-class, if not complex, riffage, blended with his imitable vocals and a barrage of spiraling guitar solos. It is the full (and rare) collision of traditional, proto-metal forebears with galactic, futuristic space-age metal. Tales from the Ezra Brooks Cycle is not a concept album in a traditional senseonly "Secrets of the Obzidion Cauldron Breathing the Zilvor Mist of Understanding" and "The Jet Moons of Drakzon" are connected. However, all the album's cuts take place in the world Vincent created and focus on a rogue traveler, Ezra Brooks, who was framed for crimes she has yet to commit after discovering a mysterious amulet hidden beneath Antarctica that grants her timetravel powers.