Tempting Time
Animals as Leaders
"Tempting Time" from Animals as Leaders' debut album introduced many listeners to Tosin Abasi's singular compositional voice. Opening with a solo eight-string guitar melody that is simultaneously alien and emotionally warm, the track builds into dense polyrhythmic interplay before dissolving back into moments of searching, lyrical playing. What makes this piece remarkable is its emotional arc — it doesn't simply demonstrate technical prowess but uses complexity to express genuine longing. The clean tones have a pristine, almost glassy quality, while the heavier sections deploy the band's signature thumb-tapping technique to create impossible-seeming bass and chord combinations. Garstka's drumming here is particularly conversational, responding to rather than simply supporting the guitars. For progressive metal enthusiasts discovering the band, this track serves as both an origin point and a declaration — proof that technique without soul is meaningless, and that Abasi has both.
medium
2000s
spacious, layered, melodic
United States
Progressive Metal, Djent. Instrumental Progressive Metal. longing, searching. Opens with alien warmth in solo guitar, builds into dense polyrhythmic intensity, then dissolves back into lyrical searching — a journey from yearning through complexity back to vulnerability.. energy 7. medium. danceability 2. valence 4. production: clean glassy tones, thumb-tapping technique, conversational drums, pristine mix. texture: spacious, layered, melodic. acousticness 3. era: 2000s. United States. For progressive metal enthusiasts discovering the genre's emotional depth for the first time.