Votum – Atmospheric Progressive Metal – Poland
So this afternoon I decided to explore some new progressive rock releases. So I went to New Prog Rock Releases and started looking. First I checked out  from France – Far From Your Sun and their album “In The Beginning… Was The Emotion”,. I gave it a quick listen and thought their music sounded promising but I moved on. The second band was an  “Atmospheric Progressive Metal” band Votum. Their latest release in titled T:Ktonik: I found this album really interesting and ended up listening to the whole album, and followed up with a trip to ProgArchives to find out more about the band!
Votum is a Progressive Metal band formed in  Warsawa, Poland, in 2002 The band originally were a traditional heavy metal band, but after several line-up changes the band’s style started to become more progressive leaning toward atmospheric and experimental.
The band has released four full-length atmospheric albums starting with their  2008 release Time Must Have to Stop. :Ktonik: is the fourth release following Metafiction and Harvest Moon
According to the band, “VOTUM pays the utmost attention to song lyrics which, like the music, function as a sort of a binding material for the compositions. In addition, rich visual setting is provided by Mindfield Art Group and serves as a background for the pieces. The merging of music, lyrics and visual art work, as well as the ensuing emotional expression, have been the key concepts for the creation of the new album. Our main concern is not any particular style of music, but the atmosphere pouring out of it. Read More
As I said I really liked :Ktonik:– here are some comments from a review at ProgArchives from JavaJeff….
Another stellar Votum release. This is darker and heavier than Harvest Moon, but just as good. If you want a great Progressive Metal release this year, do not miss out on :Ktonik: There is a lineup change from the previous release, where they change vocalists and go with Bartosz Sobieraj on this new album. While Maciej Kosinski did a great job on Harvest Moon, Bartosz Sobieraj is showing that he has the chops as well. Standout tracks for me are the first single in “Satellite”, the incredible “Spiral” with the trippy effects, and “Last Word” ending the album on a positive note.Full Review
After listening to :Ktonik:: I listened to Harvest Moon. I must confess that I may like the former lead singer Maciej Kosinski’s vocals better than the current lead Bartosz Sobieraj..but both are excellent!
The band’s line-up is composed of:
Bartosz Sobieraj; vocal
Aleksander Salamonik – guitar
Adam Kaczmarek – guitar
Zbigniew Szatkowski – keyboards
Bartek Turkowski – bass
Adam Lukaszek – drums
So if you like the band’s who have influenced the sound of Votum like Riverside, Porcupine Tree, Pink Floyd and Opeth then you’ll love Votum! So Check Them Out!!