Ekoa – Imago

Just a week after I received it, and four spins later, hereby I want to introduce you to another metal band hailing from Poland and city of Kraków. Moniker for the band is Ekoa, a quartet consisting of international members; Tom Aurel (vocals & bass), Paweł Staszewski (lead guitar), Sergio Barbero (drums) and Kamil Kowalczyk (rhythm guitar). The band was founded in 2020, and released their debut EP named Chrysalis two years later under this constellation. In June 2024 a new guitarist, Davide Corda joined the band, replacing Kamil Kowalczyk.

Since its formation the band has been known for creating strong and individual style of music, but if I’m to describe it a bit closer, I would call it a mix of progressive & groove metal and some elements of metalcore. That’s exactly what we can hear on their debut full-length released past summer. It’s entitled Imago and it contains ten tracks mixing various progressive and metal elements into something quite new and unforgettable. On their debut EP their lyrics were dealing with psychological and philosophical, but also the subjects of society and struggle in general. This time it’s more focuces and concentrated on human-centered lyrics that delve into some philosophical themes.

Despite of Imago being the first full-length record in band’s career, it showcases the extreme technical proficiency of all four band members, usually using some unorthodox harmonies as well as complex rhythms with frequent & intense breaks and numerous changes. When it gets paired with the use of slow breakdowns, some intense passages conducive to moshing, and heavy guitar riffs & double bass drumming (mostly from metalcore) and with additional thick and heavy guitar riffs (mostly from groove metal), then we get a perfect mix of the abovementioned progressive/groove metal and metalcore. I’m also a big fan of the (occassional) big and pompous symphonic arrangements, as well as the mature song-writing by the band. Imago is an example of high-quality, painstaking and clean production. Thus, Imago is coherent, varied, listenable and a plesant sound for my ears.

As I don’t have any particular tracks that I confidently prefer to others, I’ll not go every track through, but “Delegation of Thoughts” (see video below) is definitely worthy of your attention! The same applies for the whole record, as Imago is an album which will stay in your ears indefinitely. Notably recommended for fans of Dream Theater, Opeth, Voivod, Pain of Salvation, Enslaved, Tool and similar acts.

Ekoa plans to tour Europe and the US, bringing their new music and unforgettable performances to a wider audience, so make sure to catch them in a town near you, but first visit their page https://ekoa.bandcamp.com/album/chrysalis where you can get some band’ merchandize.