IHLO - Legacy Progressive Voyages Review PV019

IHLO – Legacy Progressive Voyages Review PV019

IHLO Review – Legacy

One might be forgiven for forgetting (or not really knowing) who IHLO is. After all, it was 2019 when we last had a “new”release from them with their debut, ‘Union’. But don’t let the time that has gone by fool you into thinking that IHLO has been dormant; there has been no ‘hiatus’. Their newest album, ‘Legacy’, has been 5 years in the making, and the result could hardly be better.

Hailed as a band who can effectively mix progressive metal with electronic/synth driven styles and can be both melodic and blistering, IHLO’s sophomore effort, due to be released August 29, 2025, showcases a band who have grown by leaps and bounds since 2019. If ‘Union’ presented a band whose influences were obviously evident in their music; ‘Legacy’ makes the presence of those influences far more subtle; the band is truly finding a voice of its own, and is establishing their own unique sound in the progressive metal scene.

So…. Join me, won’t you? Let’s take a track-by-track journey through ‘Legacy’, and delve into IHLO’s lament for a world where profit and the almighty dollar speak louder than words in the realms of technology.

‘Wraith’ – our trip begins with an “80’s synth” feel, and moves to a tribal beat on the toms…. Setting up an absolute onslaught when the band fully kicks in. Ghosts of Haken and Periphery (musically) and Leprous (vocally) roam here…. But the sound is distinctly IHLO. The clean vocals play extremely well over the pounding wash of the battery of instruments. Lots of excellent mood and tone on this track, with some superb vocal harmonizations toward the end, propel you ever-forward. A crushingly excellent way to open the listener’s journey.

‘Replica’ – a brief slow down here sets a pensive tone; a caught breath; which drops into an excellent, clean groove crescendoing to a pounding chorus and then careening into an absolutely CRUSHING bridge section that will melt your face. Then, as abruptly as it arrived, the crush departs and the song settles back into a more traditional heavy rock pace. IHLO then brings the heavy back to send the track crashing to a conclusion.

‘Source’ – a wealth of cacophonous ambient sounds welcome the listener to the 3rd track of the record. We are treated to a slow musical build which arrives at another chorus that showcases more excellent vocal harmonies that soar over the guitars. The synths here are subtle, but keep the track’s momentum…. Leading to another POWER bridge (have I mentioned yet that IHLO are establishing themselves as masters of the heavy bridge? No? Well now I have.). In a unique twist, the song ends as the bridge section ends…. A bridge to nowhere…. Or is it?

‘Empire’ - ….we move directly into a more strait-laced beat that sees the drums and guitars ferry us through verses to a chorus dominated by the synths and their repeated rhythmic refrains. This is one of the more straight-forward songs on the record, and may lack a bit in the originality as compared to its predecessors, but it is still highly enjoyable…. And gives us yet ANOTHER crushing bridge (I told y’all so!), which flows into more great vocal harmonies. The song picks up steam with a great guitar solo and anthemic, soaring conclusion.

‘Storm’ – this track, very short and precise, begins broodingly and (surprise surprise) with extremely awesome vocal harmonization, before building into a brief mid-tempo swing. Falling away quickly, computer-generated sounds and synths carry the listener quickly out and away….. this is definitely the album’s “deep breath”; an aptly placed respite.

‘Mute’ – this is the slowest track on the album to this point in the journey; clean guitars play gentle notes over simple drums with a more traditional mid-rock verse/chorus feel. After the relentless pounding of the first half; doubtless IHLO felt we were in need of a slow-down. Nevertheless… the bridge (not crushing here, but a definite uptick in volume and power from the rest of the song) builds the feel of the track through its chord progressions. We then turn back to atmospheric synths and subtle, somewhat muffled drum beats; and then a WALL of sounds hit us square in the jaw…. Nothing technical; just powerful and not expected given where the track had appeared to be headed.

‘Cenotaph’ – one of the strongest tracks on the record, the band opens with continuance of the clean verses, but now gives us fire in the maelstrom of sounds from the choruses. And here we have yet another CRUSHING BRIDGE…. This one playing on both power and a Meshuggah-like polyrhythmic technical skill that will have the head spinning with glee. We are then pushed through a really cool synth/computer-driven rhythm, which the band slowly and effectively builds upon to rise back to a power chord structure that will give you goosebumps at its peak.

‘Haar’ – some of the more beautiful and anthemic power-chord progressions present themselves on this track, and…. (I know you’re surprised)…. ANOTHER killer (but shorter) bridge section to pulverize you, before letting you go to fall into the sea (literally…. There are ocean sounds here) and then sailing you away on the refrain of the chorus. There are few prog metal bands that can play metal with the level of anthemic beauty as IHLO, and this track is evidence of that.

‘Legacy’ – the title track begins with a syncopated drum rhythm which plays over the soft synths and beautiful voice…. But we can feel the build here; it’s subtle and (a little too) ponderous, but definitely there. And when it DOES present itself, it is, again, a beauty to behold…. The synth sounds playing over the vocal harmonies before the guitars finally kick in with their sonic attack. Just when you think the wall of sounds can’t build any higher, it does…. IHLO have proven themselves to be masters of the “Sonic shift”; taking anthems and power-chord structures higher and higher as the tracks build. We then conclude with a slow wash away on waves…. Into the final (and longest) track on the album;

‘Signals’ – at 10:01 in length, the record’s finale, after the album’s general bombastic and rhythmic assault on the senses, offers a subtler, softer, almost pop-rockish conclusion (do not perceive this as a bad thing…. It works very well). The metal aspects of the music that we’ve heard throughout the record are not present here; rather, the track thoughtfully and beautifully carries us home on sea waves and a simple piano postlude and, as furiously as ‘Wraith’ opened the door, ‘Signals’’s close is both gentle and thoughtful.

IHLO’s ‘Legacy’ is progressive metal at its finest, ladies and gentlemen, and is the result of 5 years well-spent in honing the band’s skills where song-craft is concerned. It takes something very special to “wow” me in this particular sub-genre of prog, but IHLO has hit that mark. They are extremely adept at effectively blending electronic and metal styles (and consistently clean and beautiful vocal performances) in such a way that, rather than being in competition with one another, they are an absolute complement to each other. That is a difficult balance to find, and in finding it, IHLO has crafted a sound that is unique to them. This is a top progressive rock release for 2025, and will be a crucial addition to any prog rock aficionado’s collection.

To find out more about IHLO, and to pre-order ‘Legacy’, visit their Bandcamp page here:

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