Which isn’t to say that Citizen Rising doesn’t rock. This may be a more nuanced approach to the genre, but keeping it real – and heavy – is clearly important to these guys. The album kicks to life with the ironically titled opener “Encore,” a cut that sets the template for much of Who Amongst the Angels. As singer Jody Eastman’s vocals shift from primal scream to smooth seduction, the band follows suit. Propulsive beats ease into quiet codas and back again, as Eastman urges his listeners to “invoke the parody / witness the pleasures of progression.”

Eastman doubles on keyboards on several cuts, including the infectious “The Good Life,” a sardonic ode to status seeking (“Some stay, some crawl away / I thought I knew you better / But you want the good life”). An electronic influence flows throughout, adding a chilly grace to songs like the eerie “If Bullets Could Pray” (“Licking the barrel of a wounded gun / Pulling the trigger with a loaded song”). The album’s centerpiece, the nearly eight-minute “The Apology,” takes the band in a stately, cinematic direction, packing a whole LP’s worth of musical styles into an eight-minute track while maintaining a rough edge that keeps things just this side of slick.

Alex Ball and Pat Sanchez’s clean, articulate guitar licks drive a big, powerful sound that often ranges from a bang to a whisper within the span of a single song. The full-bodied rhythm section of bassist Brian Lacy and drummer Matt Jacen churns beneath every track, creating a heavy, intricate style that leavens a dark metal vibe with dashes of prog and art rock. This is a group that’s not shy about showcasing its members’ musical versatility, but Who Amongst the Angels never veers into show-off territory. It’s rare to find one band that invokes thoughts of Pantera, Rush and Radiohead, but Citizen Rising pulls off that tricky trifecta.