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The Paradox Twin — Silence from Signals
(White Star, 2021, CD / DL)

by Jon Davis, Published 2023-07-30

Silence from Signals Cover art

While we’re on the subject of current British progressive rock bands with female lead vocals (see Cairo), another entry is The Paradox Twin, which actually shares a drummer with Cairo. And barring the details of vocal tone and guitar style, the two bands are very similar in sound. Dense keyboard chords, soaring vocal melodies, a little infusion of metal power, all the same checkboxes are ticked. I’d say The Paradox Twin presents a bit more of an edge than Cairo, with some use of dissonance to heighten the tension. “Wake Vortex” is a good example. This song has a wide dynamic range, from powerful rock to quieter sections, and there’s a little bit of chaos at times, with guitar feedback. And they also touch on one of Nirvana’s tricks, those little breaks at the end of the chorus of “Smells Like Teen Spirit” where the band drops out and the guitar wails out a note that seems not to fit? Yeah, The Paradox Twin does that, though in all honesty, the context is pretty different here. On the softer tracks, this band favors acoustic guitar over keyboards for the backing, as on “Sea of Tranquility.” And while both bands utilize male vocals (here it’s Danny Sorell) in addition to the female (Nicole Johnson), Sorrel gets more time here. My tastes run towards more avant-leaning music, but for a mainstream prog band, The Paradox Twin has enough variety in their sound, and enough imagination in their chord progressions (not to mention a little crazy distortion) to be appealing. For fans of the genre, The Paradox Twin should be a no-brainer.

Filed under: New releases, 2021 releases

Related artist(s): The Paradox Twin

More info
http://white-star-records.com/store/the_paradox_twin_-_silence_from_signals

 

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