The Origin of Consciousness is the fifth full-length studio album by progressive rock

Progressive rock

Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...

 band Amphoteric

Amphoteric (band)

Amphoteric is a progressive rock band from Monterey, California. The band is composed of vocalist/guitarist Hart Hancock, bassist Bryan Blair, and drummer Craig Brown.-1996-1999:...

.

It is noticeably heavier than any of their previous albums, incorporating elements of progressive metal

Progressive metal

Progressive metal is a subgenre of heavy metal originating in the United Kingdom and North America in the late 1980s...

 and even death metal

Death metal

Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....

. This is the first album to feature guitarist Hart Hancock as lead singer. It was released in 2004 through Underground Music/Sony

Sony

, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....

.

Fans consider this album to be the band's masterpiece. It is also their best selling album, with more than 175,000 units sold.

Track listing

1. "I Whisper" – 4:12 (Hancock)
2. "Bleak" – 5:02 (Hancock)
3. "Breaking the Silence" – 4:59 (Hancock, Blair)
4. "For My Demons" (instrumental) – 3:50 (Hancock, Blair, Brown)
5. "Twilight" – 6:55 (Hancock)
6. "Ashes You Leave" – 14:34 (Hancock, Blair, Brown)
7. "*I. Sorrow"
8. "*II. Destiny"
9. "*III. ...Alone"
10. "The Origin of Consciousness" (instrumental) – 5:53 (Blair, Hancock)
11. "Carpenters Fate" – 5:23 (Thompson, Hancock)
12. "Disappear" – 12:26 (Hancock)
13. "Ghost" – 7:51 (Hancock, Blair)

Personnel

• Hart Hancock – vocals, guitar
  Guitar
  The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
  
  , keyboard
  Keyboard instrument
  A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
  
  s, piano
  Piano
  The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
  
  
• Bryan Blair – bass
  Bass guitar
  The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
  
  
• Craig Brown – drum
  Drum
  The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
  
  s
• Megan Sallabedra - vocals on "Ashes You Leave" and "Carpenters Fate"

Chart performance

Billboard Top Internet Albums:

• The Origin of Consciousness - #43