Metal Underground.com

(Takes headphones off)… When you hear a passage of music that you fall in love on the first listen, it’ll take over your mind, your body and your soul. The only way I can describe it is that it blanks out all your other senses, which in turn is kind of dangerous especially if you’re driving at the time like I was. This was exactly what happened to me when I listened to “Sanctuary,” the opening track to Elder’s latest release, “Reflections of a Floating World,” for the first time.

“Reflections of a Floating World” is an excellent cross pollination of 2015’s “Lore” and 2011’s “Dead Roots Stirring.” There’s a very good reason why there’s only a handful a songs and years pass between albums. They are masterpieces. As per the classic Elder formula, “Reflections of a Floating World” consists of 6 tracks that clock in at just over an hour.

My favorite track without hesitation is the opener, “Sanctuary.” The song is broken down into three passages with the second and third exhibiting some really unique King Crimson with a touch of Rush sound. The second track, “The Falling Veil,” is no slouch either. I hear some Yes in there and even some E.L.O. One of the attributes I love most about Elder is that the band knows how to close a song, they all sound epic!

Elder is one of those bands that has had some nice success via word of mouth for the most part. The group's rise has been steady and genuine and the fan base should grow concurrently based on those attributes. “Reflections of a Floating World” will propel Elder to the elite "prog metal” top, but will it be enough to enlighten other heavy metal genre lovers to give them a chance? It doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things… (Puts headphones back on)… just keep listening.