Cynic Focus CD

Chuck Schuldiner's Death got pretty clinical with the odd time signature, and Atheist got pretty busy with their complex arrangements, but Florida's Cynic simply threw the progressive metal playbook out the window. Their only official recording, 1993's ground breaking Focus, meshed metal and jazz on an unprecedented scale, and explored the creative possibilities of this strange musical hybrid to a degree which has yet to be equaled. For Cynic, the traditional framework of death metal songwriting served as a mere foundation over which the band would take flight, yielding moments of mind-blowing diversity and inspiration (and, occasionally, dumbfounded confusion) on multi-faceted tracks like "Veil of the Maya," "I'm But a Wave To...," and "Textures." Never mind the contrast of time traveling proportions created by their dual vocalists, clashing stone age-style death grunts with robotic computer-processed melodies (the later, a clear influence on digi-metallers Fear Factory). And yet, as suggested by its title, their stunning sonic collages were uncommonly focused and concise, avoiding the time transgressions of most progressive metal to achieve even greater impact. Simply put, Focus remains a wholly original and widely respected release amongst the small progressive metal community, many of whom still regard it as the ultimate statement in the genre. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia

Chuck Schuldiner's Death got pretty clinical with the odd time signature, and Atheist got pretty busy with their complex arrangements, but Florida's Cynic simply threw the progressive metal playbook out the window. Their only official recording, 1993's groundbreaking Focus, meshed metal and jazz on an unprecedented scale, and explored the creative possibilities of this strange musical hybrid to a degree which has yet to be equaled. For Cynic, the traditional framework of death metal songwriting served as a mere foundation over which the band would take flight, yielding moments of mind-blowing diversity and inspiration (and, occasionally, dumbfounded confusion) on multifaceted tracks like "Veil of the Maya," "I'm but a Wave To...," and "Textures." Never mind the contrast of time-traveling proportions created by their dual vocalists, clashing stone-age-style death grunts with robotic computer-processed melodies (the latter a clear influence on digi-metallers Fear Factory). And yet, as suggested by its title, their stunning sonic collages were uncommonly focused and concise, avoiding the time transgressions of most progressive metal to achieve even greater impact. Simply put, Focus remains a wholly original and widely respected release among the small progressive metal community, many of whom still regard it as the ultimate statement in the genre. [This version of the album includes bonus material.] ~ Eduardo Rivadavia

1993 Reissue W/ 6 Bonus Tracks

Includes six bonus tracks.

Cynic: Sean Malone (bass guitar); Paul Masvidal, Jason Gobel, Sean Reinert.

Personnel: Paul Masvidal (vocals, guitar, guitar synthesizer); Aruna Abrams (vocals, keyboards); Steve Gruden, Tony Teegarden, Sonia Otey (vocals); Jason Gobel (guitar, guitar synthesizer); Sean Reinert (keyboards, drums, electronic drums); Sean Malone (Chapman stick).

Audio Mixer: Scott Burns .

Audio Remixer: John Hiler.

Liner Note Authors: Paul Masvidal; Cynic; Ula Gehret.

Recording information: Morrisound Recording, Tampa, FL.

Photographers: Paul Masvidal; Jason Gobel; Sean Reinert; Christopher Russell; Theresa Blauch.

Cynic: Paul Masvidal (vocals, guitar); Jason Gobel (guitar); Shawn Malone Choy (bass); Sean Reinert (drums).