Tesseract

TesseracT is a progressive metal band from Reading, UK, that uses math metal, djent, ambient and technical metal elements in their music. TesseracT started out back in 2003 as an archetypal djent band in then-teenage Acle Kahney's bedroom. What started as an outlet for creativity and experimentation grew and Kahney posted clips of his technically heavy guitar work on forums such as Sevenstring.org, taking the feedback on board and gradually improving his technique. It was in this way that a community of bedroom producer-musicians were spawned and this new wave of progressive music was created, along with names such as Misha Mansoor (Periphery), Paul Ortiz (Chimp Spanner) and John Browne (Monuments), who was a bandmate of Kahney's in Fellsilent.

The word 'djent' is an onomatopoeia for a heavily palm-muted, distorted guitar chord. It was coined by Meshuggah guitarist Fredrik Thordendal, though generally made popular by Mansoor on the band's online forum and it was there that Kahney originally learned the technique. When Thordendal heard and commented on some of Kahney's riffs, it was all the encouragement he needed to forge ahead.

Embodying the international vibe of the genre, Frenchman Juilien Perier initially supplied vocals but the logistical difficulties meant that he could not join the band permanently. The line-up was completed by Jay Postones on Drums, James Monteith on Guitar and Amos Williams on Bass. Monteith and Williams brought along with them the vocalist of their previous band 209, Abisola Obasanya. TesseracT released a three-track demo with Obasanya on vocals. In 2009, the band parted ways with Obasanya and chose Dan Tompkins (SkyHarbor, In Colour, ex-First Signs of Frost, Piano) to take over vocal duties.

TesseracT's long-awaited debut album 'One' was released on September 12th 2011 with Tompkins on vocals.

On August 20th 2011, rumours began spreading that vocalist Daniel Tompkins had left the band, as TesseracT were seen performing with a different vocalist during a gig at the Crauford Arms in Milton Keynes. This was confirmed by the band on the 23rd, citing personal reasons for Daniel's departure. TesseracT introduced their new singer as Elliot Coleman (Zelliack, Of Man Not of Machine, ex-Sky Eats Airplane, ex-Of Legends). Daniel remains on good terms with his former band mates and stated that he enjoyed his time as TesseracT's vocalist. Elliot stated later that he would not move permanently to the UK and that joining TesseracT would not affect his other current projects.

TesseracT released one EP in with Coleman entitled 'Perspective' (released on May 22nd 2012, primarily featuring acoustic renditions of tracks from the band's debut album) before he too announced his departure from the band.

TesseracT announced in September 2012 that Coleman would be replaced by Ashe Austin O'Hara (Voices From the Fuselage, Nebulae). The band's second album 'Altered State' was released on May 27th 2013.

Vocalist Daniel Tompkins returned to the band in June 2014, replacing Austin on the band’s live album ‘Odyssey/Scala’. Following Tompkins’s return, TesseracT have released two full length studio albums: Polaris in September 2015 and Sonder in April 2018.



Music
As stated in the band's official biography: "Fans will often focus on the quintet's time signatures and musical complexity, but TesseracT are far from an exclusionary exercise in tech/extreme prog metal pomposity. They fully embrace their experimental, prog sensibility without excessive indulgence or pretentiousness; delivering atmospheric, metallic songs that stir strong emotions and evoke powerful mental images. All of which, they argue, is at the core surprisingly simple".

2. Tesseract is a modern jazz quintet based out of Toronto, Canada. Alto Saxophonist Edwin Sheard, Tenor Saxophonist Leland Whitty, Guitarist Patrick O’Reilly, Bassist Julian Anderson-Bowes, and Drummer Derek Gray began playing together while studying at Humber College. They have continued this collaboration and can be seen regularly performing at venues across Toronto. Tesseract's debut CD, "Impossible Images", was released on February 29, 2012.

3. Tesseract is a democratically run jazz ensemble, formed in 2011, featuring the composing and playing talents of bassist Chris Hyson, saxophonist Matt Anderson, pianist Sam Leak and drummer Chris Draper.