Beneath the Sky

Detail: Guitarist Jeff Nelson realizes that Beneath the Sky has evolved more rapidly than most local bands. In the years since BTS first came together, the band has recorded a pair of EPs, established an out-of-town presence, hired management, signed with a major indie label and recorded their debut album.

Beneath the Sky is generating a lot of buzz in Death Metal circles. The band's shredding guitar riffs, triphammer drumming and often doom-laden lyrics are above average for the genre, but it's BTS's subtle use of melody, occasional glimmers of lyrical hope and redemption and an almost Prog-like intricacy that has Death Metal tastemakers paying attention.

"We didn't want to sound like everybody else," says Nelson. "We all like heavy bands and bands where they're heavily into singing. We threw the keys in there ... a lot of Heavy Metal bands don't have keys. We just wanted to create something different. It's worked out well."