Level 2 (Last Chance to Reason album)

Level 2 is the second full-length album by metal band, Last Chance to Reason. It was released in 2011 through Prosthetic Records and is their first release since leaving Tribunal.

Level 2
Studio album by
ReleasedApril 12, 2011
Recorded2010
StudioMother Brain Studios, Augusta, Maine
The Basement Studios, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Genre
Length43:50
LabelProsthetic
Producer
  • Jamie King
  • Last Chance to Reason
Last Chance to Reason chronology
Lvl. 1
(2007)
Level 2
(2011)
Level 3
(2013)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[2]

Background

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Teaming up with producer Jamie King (Between the Buried and Me, The Human Abstract), the band set out to create a modern take on the classic progressive concept album. Drawing influence from the 1970s prog of King Crimson and Yes, composers Steve Reich and Schoenberg as well as prog-metal masters Opeth, Dream Theater, Between the Buried and Me and Cynic, LCTR's Level 2 takes the band in awe-inspiring new directions.

Set in a Tron-like virtual world, the album's concept revolves around the relationship between man and technology, our move from physical reality to virtual spaces and what these changes mean to our lives and our art. The lyrics are expressed from the point of view of an artificial intelligence facing the violent reality of a videogame world.

Not content to simply release the piece as a musical endeavor, LCTR has teamed up with acclaimed indie developer Tom Vine and pixel artist Francis Coulombe to create a fully interactive version of the album in which the story unfolds through LCTR's thematic riffs, stirring vocal hooks and progressive virtuosity while the player blasts his way through viscous gameplay inspired by classics such as R-Type, Contra, and Super Metroid.[3] However, there has only been a demo released so far, which is the full level of “Upload Complete".

Track listing

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No.TitleLength
1."Upload Complete"5:32
2."Coded to Fail"2:56
3."Taking Control"1:29
4."Temp Files"3:36
5."Programmed for Battle"4:34
6."Portal"5:12
7."The Parabolic"2:44
8."The Linear"6:30
9."The Prototype"5:34
10."Apotheosis"5:43
Total length:43:40

Personnel

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Last Chance to Reason
  • Michael Lessard – vocals
  • AJ Harvey – guitars, additional engineering
  • Evan Haines – guitars
  • Chris Corey – bass
  • Brian Palmer – keyboards, additional engineering
  • Evan Sammons – drums, lyrics
Additional personnel
  • Jamie King – engineering, mixing, mastering, production
  • Eric Arena, Evan Sammons, Noah Cole, Tom Waterhouse – additional engineering
  • Joshua Andrew Belanger – artwork

References

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  1. ^ "Last Chance to Reason - Level 2 (album review)". Sputnikmusic. April 4, 2013. Retrieved December 15, 2023.
  2. ^ William Ruhlmann. "Level 2 - Last Chance to Reason". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved August 6, 2013.
  3. ^ "Prosthetic Records | Official Website". prostheticrecords.com. Archived from the original on 2011-04-10.