Demians is the brainchild of Frenchman Nicolas Chapel. He sings and plays all instruments on the album. A one man band is very common in black metal, but not the norm in progressive metal. Chapel has put together a full band to play live shows.
Building An Empire is Demians' debut. It's complex with a lot of depth and texture, but also has enough hooks and emotion to really draw in the listener. The songs are very diverse. There's a lot of acoustic guitars and introspective sections along with more intense and bombastic parts.
Chapel's vocals are diverse as well. He sings with a lot of emotion, and his lower range is very expressive. He also shows some range and power. Building An Empire, as with many progressive CDs, is a grower. You'll appreciate and understand it a little more with each listen.
(released May 20, 2008 on Inside Out Music)
