Boston sextet create progressive metal for the head and the heart.
FORMED WHILE THE core of the band was studying at Berklee College Of Music in Boston, MA, Aviations have been diligent in not letting their theoretical knowledge hinder their ability to write genuinely heartfelt music.
“There’s music that’s for your heart and music that’s for your head, and I think music that has a really good staying power finds a balance of both,” explains pianist Richard Blumenthal. “Music can seem soulless when it’s just a technical exercise, whereas music that’s only for the heart might be a little too simplistic; you don’t need to go back to it dozens of times. I’m probably a little bit more of a cerebral person, but other folks in the band are trying to make sure our music hits you in the heart. That balance is important.”
Guitarists Sam Harchik and Eric Palmer, vocalist Adam Benjamin and drummer James Knoerl pieced together their debut album, The Light Years, during their studies. It was only when Blumenthal (whom Knoerl spotted posting covers of Armenian jazz pianist Tigran Hamasyan on YouTube) and bassist Werner Erkelens joined, that they felt like a cohesive unit.
“One of our strengths is that we’re really good at having a diverse set of influences,” says Knoerl. “We have very eclectic tastes between the six of us and we’re able to work it so it doesn’t sound like it’s shoehorned together.”
Building on the foundation that their stable and wide-ranging tastes afforded them, they’ve come to life on current album, Luminaria. From hook-driven pop to death metal, post-hardcore and classical, they’ve found a way of making their smörgåsbord of styles easily digestible.
“There was a lot of trial and error with this album in terms of trying to find an identi
