When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission.<\/i><\/p>\n Credit: Press<\/p>\n Djent<\/a> wasn\u2019t well-known beyond the online communities it grew up in when Prog first encountered TesseracT<\/a> in 2010. As they prepared to release their debut album, One, and embark on their first US tour, they offered an account of a movement that many suspected was a bit geeky \u2013 in an article that also tipped Periphery<\/a>, Chimp Spanner, The Safety Fire<\/a> and Textures<\/a> as ones to watch.<\/p>\n You\u2019ll be forgiven if you haven\u2019t come across TesseracT before. Having formed from what is quite possibly the geekiest musical scene ever \u2013 it was born, raised and still thrives in internet-based communities \u2013 it\u2019s not a stretch to say that the British prog metal quintet is quite a modern phenomenon. The sub-genre in question has a peculiar title: djent.<\/p>\n \u201cBack in 2002 or 2003, the producer-musicians who spawned this new wave of progressive metal began to come together,\u201d says Acle Kahney, TesseractT\u2019s lead guitarist and chief songwriter. \u201cA factor that set the community apart from others is that it had no geographical base. People from all over the world were sharing ideas, recording parts for each other and even jamming live online.<\/p>\n \u201cLike punk came from bars, clubs and rehearsal rooms, this scene started in chatrooms, forums and home studios. It would have been impossible without the internet.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018Djent\u2019 is an onomatopoeic word used to describe the iconic chord that Swedish prog metallers Meshuggah<\/a> made their own over the past two decades. It was via that band\u2019s online forum that Kahney learnt how to play the complex construction. When Meshuggah\u2019s lead guitarist, Fredrik Thordendal, heard some of Kahney\u2019s riffs on another forum and complimented them, it was all the encouragement he needed to forge ahead.<\/p>\n But TesseracT are far from being a tribute act. \u201cThese influences \u2013 you can\u2019t really hear them in the music,\u201d Bassist Amos Williams says. \u201cThey\u2019re just what we like, so it\u2019s fairly subtle. If you ask Meshuggah, they\u2019d say, \u2018Those boys sound nothing like us. It\u2019s a great compliment; to be lumbered in the same class as them is just awesome.\u201d<\/p>\n And what of the band\u2019s name? A tesseract is a complex four-dimensional, cube-like geometric entity that has been used in surrealism and as references to the unknown. Coupled with the online origins of their music, surely here we have the ultimate geek band? \u201cHonestly, man, people assign so much more to the name than what you actually think about when you start things,\u201d Williams says.<\/p>\n \u201cThe reality is we just like music that makes us dance. Yeah, it\u2019s pretty progressive, but it\u2019s not Rush<\/a>, is it? It\u2019s not exactly Dream Theater<\/a>. The virtuosity comes in the details and the subtlety, rather than… over-playing, shall I say.\u201d<\/p>\n TesseracT started out in 2003 in Kahney\u2019s bedroom. What began as an outlet for creativity and experimentation grew and grew as he posted clips of his technically accomplished heavy guitar work on said forums, taking the resulting feedback on board and gradually improving his technique.<\/p>\n Embodying the trans-national vibe of the genre, Frenchman Julien Perier supplied vocals; but the logistical difficulties meant that the band \u2013 also featuring guitarist James Monteith and drummer Jay Postones \u2013 settled on Dan Tompkins as singer in the summer of 2009.<\/p>\n<\/span><\/div>\n