For many of us, heavy metal is both philosophy and creed.
The sheer power and epic grandeur of a heartfelt metal record can move mountains and make us want to live to see another day. For many of us, heavy metal is also a shelter, a home. Matt Smith is no stranger to sensations like these. For more than 20 years, the guitarist-turned-vocalist has been pouring his life’s blood into Theocracy, building a legacy that stretches across four full-length albums, granting him a safe space to breathe and develop his vision. With “Mosaic”, the Athens, Georgia based five-piece delivers their most captivating gospel yet – a tour de force through jubilant power metal and a progressive mastery rarely found in today’s scene. It’s a gem that’ll shine a little light on everything.
“It’s my life’s work”, says Matt Smith of Theocracy.
“All I wanted to do since I was a kid was write songs, so Theocracy existed in my mind for many years before the first album. It’s the vehicle that has taken me all around the world and allowed me to exceed my wildest dreams by getting my songs out, and I am so thankful.” The saga began in 2003 with the release of their self-titled debut. Since then, Theocracy have built a dedicated following, uniting metal fans around the globe with powerful anthems and fabled live shows.
Theocracy is his vessel to communicate with himself and the world around him. No wonder he is very strict with himself when it comes to his output. “There’s too much of everything out there, so more and more I have a merciless internal dialogue with myself when I’m composing: ‘Man, does the world really need this? Will life be a little better, a little worse, or no different if this song exists?’ Because of that”, he says with a smile, “the vast majority of things I start get thrown out. So the songs that do make it are the ones that I really feel are worth hearing.”
They are. Matt (lead and backing vocals), Ernie Topran (drums), Jared Oldham (bass), Jonathan Hinds (guitars/backing vocals) and Taylor Washington (guitars/backing vocals) channel the essence of Stratovarious, Sonata Arctica and Symphony-X, delivering on-brand, bombastic, lightning-fast anthems for a better tomorrow. Make no mistake, however: It’s still a pretty dark album. “It’s about how we can only see the individual scenes of our lives, but lack the perspective to see the overall tapestry those scenes eventually combine to create”, Matt explains. “The good times, the bad times, the things we wish didn’t happen…they are all pieces forming whatever we eventually end up becoming”, the mastermind explains. “So there’s a little psychology, a lot of spirituality, a little nostalgia, and a healthy dose of wistfulness and wonder.” In other words: Heavy metal in a nutshell.
Above all, there’s a criminally high density of epic bangers, skilfully balancing epic power metal, prog magic, eastern influences and some ferocious thrash elements.
“I just don’t think about it”, Matt says of the eclectic nature of “Mosaic”. Written and produced between September 2020 and September 2022 by Matt Smith himself, this fifth album is a true game changer. “Whatever comes naturally is what comes out, and I never think about direction before that. I can see the obvious broad strokes: For example, I think the last album had more of my earliest influences, whereas this one has a more pronounced thrash element in spots. That said, there are always specific musical things I want to accomplish, or things written to make a more complete album. For example, towards the end of the record, I realized we needed a midtempo anthemic track to balance out the experience, which is when I wrote ‘Return to Dust.’”
And then of course there’s “Red Sea”, the breathtaking opus magnum of “Mosaic”, clocking in at just under 20 minutes.
“That one compares and contrasts the ancient story of Moses and the Red Sea with a more personal and modern spiritual parallel. I wrote that song when I was 19, years before the first Theocracy album”, Matt says. Freshly rewritten and fuelled by years of experience, it becomes the centre of attention at the end of a record that’s dominated by a rather grim and yet inevitable theme: “Come to think of it, death is a bit of a common thread, which is funny because that sounds like such a metal cliché,” he grins. “But that probably is a result of things I was going through and observing: losing grandparents and various family members, covid… but also thinking about legacies, what we leave behind, and what it all means.”
From “Red Sea” via anthemic midtempo banger and lead single “Return to Dust” to melodic metal galloper “Mosaic” Theocracy finally become the trailblazing power they have long since aspired to be – a harvester of larger-than-life melodies, thundering riffs and evocative refrains. Maybe we don’t know what it all means after listening to this uplifting beacon. But we sure feel a little less alone out there. And sometimes, that’s just enough.
Matt Smith
-Vocals-
ERNIE TOPRAN
-DRUMS-
JARED OLDHAM
-BASS & BACKING VOCALS-
Jonathan Hinds
-guitars & backing vocals-
Taylor Washington
-guitars & Backing vocals-