Post-Metal

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    Vestige - Janis (2024)

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    Just when you think you have heard it all, a band like Vestige drops a release like “Janis”. Creating a very unique amalgamation of Post-Metal, Shoegaze, Alternative Metal and a hefty dose of melancholy, this release delivers nearly one hour of captivating music. With influences from bands like Alcest, SOM, Mountaineer, Cult of Luna, Deafheaven, just to name a few, this release is full of emotional swings and dreamy interludes that will captivate any fan of unique and atmospheric music.

    Setting a playful and engaging mood, “Différent” nicely leads into the dream-like opener of “Deviens la Nuit”, which quickly brings crushing riffs alongside dreamy vocals giving that Mountaineer meets Cult of Luna vibe as the harsh vocals come in. A good dosage of Alcest-like shoegaziness comes front and center with “Démence de l' me” and “Océan”, further cementing a very ethereal atmosphere alongside dramatic tempo changes.

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    Glare of the Sun - Tal (2024)

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    Unleashing a hefty dosage of Doom/Post-Metal brilliance, today we have Austrian outfit Glare of the Sun with their latest release “Tal”. Featuring a very well balanced sound that mixes elements of bands like Swallow The Sun and The Ocean, this release delivers nine tracks and nearly one hour of highly emotive and yet crushing music. Highly recommended for fans of bleakness with a dose of heaviness, the music here is both emotive and crushing.

    Opening with the Swallow the Sun-esque “Colossus”, the band unleashes powerful riffs and thunderous harsh vocals. This first track showcases a Doomier side of the band that slowly gets transitioned as other songs like “Rain”, “Äon”, and “Relikt” introduce more layers to the band’s sound like excellent clean vocals, and highly melancholic (and slower) interludes. The mixture of atmospheric elements alongside piercing riffs keeps tracks like “Stonefall” quite balanced and diverse, avoiding falling into formulaic territories.

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    Ellende - Todbringerin (2024)

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    Today we have a very pleasant surprise from Austria’s Ellende, a re-recorded and reinterpreted version of their amazing second release “Todbringer”. With “Todbringerin”, the band takes control of the music behind this release by re-recording it (no studio masters from the original exist) and making it available in all formats for listeners. We are huge fans of the original, and have a physical copy of that release as one of our treasured items on our collection, so we were psyched to hear how the band, eight years after, would take on such an excellent release.

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    Mountaineer - Dawn and All That Follows (2024)

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    Just like clockwork, The Bay Area’s Mountaineer returns after 2 years with their latest opus in melancholy titled “Dawn and All That Follows”. Not on LifeForce records this time, the band unleashes a hefty 50-minute release split into eight highly engaging and very dreamy tracks. For the uninitiated, the band’s mellow sound combines elements of Post-Rock/Post-Metal with some shoegazey influences and highly melancholic clean vocals, creating a very crafty and highly atmospheric release.

    Opening with the devastating “Cradlesong”, the band quickly unleashes their powerful riffs alongside a thick and demoralizing atmosphere, perfectly paced to inflict maximum pain as the mopey clean vocals of Miguel Meza come into play. There are definitely some crafty Doom/Sludge influences in the band’s sound, as tracks like “Hypnos” and “Prism” continue to develop the crushingly melancholic atmosphere, similar to Katatonia, but more ‘alternative’.

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    Vuur & Zijde - Boezem (2024)

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    Dramatically moving away from their original Atmospheric Black/Post-Black Metal sound, today we have enigmatic Dutch outfit Vuur & Zijde and their debut full-length “Boezem”. Featuring members from bands like Laster, Terzij de Horde, and Grey Aura, there is no surprise that the music presented in this release is captivating and truly unique, with seven tracks and nearly 46 minutes of hypnotic music. This release is for fans of bands like Beastmilk/Grave Pleasures with some Wave influences and featuring sultry female vocals.

    Opening with the mysterious “Onbemind”, the band sets a very unique Post-Punk vibe that quickly escalates into fierce guitar riffing and pummeling drumming. One would think that the harsh vocals would follow, but they never really do, instead we get the dreamy clean voice of Famke. This gives the band’s sound a very unique proposition, with heavier passages with more restrained drumming and a very organic and catchy vibe, perfect examples of this are songs like “Zusterzon”, “Omheind”, and “Us”.

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    Botanist - Paleobotany (2024)

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    We always had a love and hate relationship with Botanist and their music since their earlier more ‘experimental’ release. While totally flamed them on their first albums, we have grown to actually like them as their later stuff has been more structured and genre-bending. In “Paleobotany”, the band unleashes ten tracks and nearly forty five minutes of quite interesting and complex music, ranging from Post-Metal/Rock elements to Progressive Metal/Rock passages, to darker and more experimental efforts.

    The release opens with the dreamy “Aristolochia”, a piece that has a certain Katatonia-esque sound, with proggy and Post Rock-ish elements, something we didn’t quite expect from the band, but we totally dig it. The dramatic clean vocal arrangements make tracks like “When Forest Turned to Coal” and its Black Metal riffs, “Magnolia” and its moody madness, have a very lively and engaging nature, as well as an interesting interplay with the growls and the melodic nature of the dulcimer.

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    Demande À La Poussière - Kintsugi (2024)

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    Hailing from France, today we have a pretty interesting outfit with Demande À La Poussière and their mysterious Blackened Post-Metal/Sludge music. In “Kintsugi”, the band unleashes eleven crushing tracks filled with crafty tempo changes, ripping riffs, and punishing vocals. Mixing elements from outfits like The Ocean, Downfall of Gaia, and sludgier outfits, the band creates a very piercing and unnerving unique style.

    The band starts building a thunderous momentum with the crushing riffs of “Inapte”, masterfully crafting a very unnerving and yet immersive atmosphere, as it transitions to “Kintsugi” and “ La Parabole des Aveugles”, two tracks that showcase the band’s Sludginess. Weaving back and forth between hypnotic dreaminess and punishing dissonance, “Ichinawa” is our favorite track in this release thanks to its engaging tempo changes.

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    Suldusk - Anthesis (2024)

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    Hailing from Australia, today we have Suldusk and their sophomore release “Anthesis”. Marking a transition from a Folk sound to Dark Folk with Blackgaze, Progressive and even some Doom influences, this release unleashes nine tracks of sublime music filled with raw emotion and mystery. For fans of more modern Post-Black Metal releases with a melancholic edge, this release will certainly catch many by surprise and take the scene by storm.

    Opening with the solemn “Astraeus”, the band quickly changes gears with the brutal initial onslaughts of “Verdalet”. Once the band settles in more melancholic territories, their stylistic duality is masterfully revealed. Emily Highfield’s vocals are just the right amount of sweet and mysterious to carry a very lush instrumentation including dramatic violins and intricate guitar melodies.

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    Olhava - Sacrifice (2024)

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    Perfectly balancing fragility and raw aggression, today we have Olhava and their latest opus “Sacrifice”. Featuring members of Trna, this duo unleashes eight tracks clocking in at nearly 87 minutes of music. Filled with magical soundscapes and crafty songwriting ideas, this album is highly intoxicating. Recommended for fans of bands like An Autumn for Crippled Children, Heretoir, Show Me a Dinosaur, etc. this release is quite dreamy and hypnotic.

    Opening with the sixteen minute “Forever With You”, the band sets a very atmospheric and immersive mood with lush keyboards alongside a wall of distortion. Setting the mood between the album’s longer tracks, we have a number of enigmatic atmospheric instrumentals called “Ageless River VI-IX”. These tracks provide a nice and varied transition between the more cathartic and crushing pieces.

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    Heretoir - Nightsphere (2023)

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    Unleashing one of the best Post-Black Metal releases of 2023, today we have Heretoir and their crushing third full-length release “Nightsphere”. Showing great promise with their earlier “Wastelands” EP, this release delivers on that promise clocking in at 42 minutes and five masterful tracks. Filled with dreamy and bleak soundscapes, this release will please any fan of the genre and the band.

    Opening with the dramatic “Sanctum - Nightsphere Part I”, we get an elegant piece oozing melancholy thanks to its lush vocal arrangements (both harsh and clean) and its very crafty pace. For those looking for more typical pieces, “Twilight of the Machines” has that mid-tempo brilliance the band is known for, with blistering onslaughts mixed in between atmospheric passages. The band’s weeping lead guitars are to die for, and this release provides plenty of them.

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