11 Sep 2006 // A review by Shade
Hard, raw and dark. The impressive sound that is Agent will leave you feeling satisfied, but you will still want to hear more.

Agent have fast-become my favourite NZ band and after playing their new album 'Expand/Contract' back-to-back for the last few weeks, I cannot wait to see their new songs performed live. Agent's music has improved so much since they first started and it is evident that this album has had a lot of thought put into it.

The bass is so impressive, words cannot even begin to describe it. Matt is definitely the most talented bassist I have ever come across and his talent is being put to the best possible use. The bass at the start of 'Crave' almost leaves you breathless and proves that Matt knows how to use his instrument to its full potential. If you want to hear what bass should sound like, 'Expand/Contract' is the album for you. It is very easy to see why Matt won the award for Best Bassist and Best Instrumentalist at 2005's World Battle of the Bands.

The bass and guitar work together in complete harmony, each instrument supporting the other. You can almost see the hours of practise reverberating off the walls during every song.

The lyrics and vocals are so unique - at home in the world of Rock and sitting on the edge of Metal, Jimi has well and truly shown the door to the ordinary. His love for music creeps out from each word and the lyrics express so much more than just the words behind them. Not afraid to experiment, Jimi is definitely the driving force behind Agent.

Agent would not be complete without drummer Zane Read. 2005 World Battle of the Band's Best Drummer, Zane adds his own individual style to Agent with his hard-hitting and thrashing beats. The perfect compliment to Jimi's vocals - when you hear Zane's drumming you have no choice but to move your body along with the beat. Even when I find myself singing along to a song by another band, I can still hear Zane's drums thumping out another Agent tune in the back of my mind.

With all three members playing their instruments you have the sound that is Agent, and this is a sound which you definitely should not miss out on. This is one album that deserves so much more than just 5 stars.

Temples on Mars is a London based progressive rock band. Originally formed in New Zealand (NZ) under the name Agent, the band relocated to London in 2008. Featuring James Donaldson on vocals and guitar, Daz Carikas on bass, Gerald Gill on guitars, and Dean Gibb on drums, Temples on Mars produces accessible, progressive tinged, rock music.

To date, Temples on Mars have headlined their own NZ tours and UK shows, featured at UK Rock festivals, released two EP’s, plus two full length albums: Expand/Contract which was given 5/5 stars by NZ’s leading music magazine Rip It Up and NZ Musician magazine, making a name for them in their native NZ, and their second album Kingdom of Fear, which created a buzz in the prog-rock scene in the UK and Europe earning the band a 2014 UK progressive music award nomination.

After relocating to London, Temples on Mars quickly became regulars on the live music scene and have shared the stage with numerous UK bands including Skindred, Devil Sold His Soul, Black Peaks, InMe and I Am Giant to name a few. Temples on Mars subsequently teamed up with long time friend and producer Paul Matthews of I Am Giant fame (whose production credits also include OpShop, Blindspott, Stylus and Six60). With Matthews, Temples on Mars began work on their second full length album Kingdom of Fear which was released world wide in December 2013. Kingdom of Fear was mastered by Tom Coyne (Karnivool, Dead Letter Circus, I Am Giant) of Sterling Sound in New York.

Visit the muzic.net.nz Profile for Temples on Mars

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