Review Summary: a fortuitous tempest to set sail upon
Ostraca’s first release,
deathless, towers high in terms of a first release for Richmond, VA’s post-metal band. Sitting just shy of 30 minutes,
deathless provides an enthralling journey through philosophical and poetic lyrics, contemplative sections, soaring guitar melodies, tight rhythms, d-beats, breakdowns, and piercing feedback. From the opening to close,
deathless captures both attention and the imagination, not letting go for one moment in an imperturbable way.
Some of the more impressive elements of
deathless are the vocals, guitars, back line, and the overall atmosphere. Vocally there is a mix of higher register screams and wails that provide an element of intense emotion. At times there are spoken word passages that give reprieve and draw instantaneous attention to the piece. At other points there are lows matched with these highs, which are pretty dang sick. The guitars inject emo and shoegaze elements into each song -- especially in connection to the more contemplative sections of songs -- contributing heavily to the hazy, descending atmosphere. The feedback is absolutely flooring. The back line -- bass and drums -- provide a solid foundation throughout the starts, stops, and build-ups. These are critical elements of delineation as the album jumps between passages throughout songs frequently. It feels like every song has a part that is fighting to get to the next and that there is a pay off between the calm and the unrelenting. The atmosphere is akin to a forest/ocean before, during, and after a raging wildfire/storm. There are times one could honestly believe they’ve reached the end, but that might just be a brief smouldering or reaching the eye.
If you need a refreshing take on emotive post-metal,
deathless will not disappoint and will keep you curious.
