Recommendation: Mass Culture - Primal | Ephemeral

Band: Mass Culture
Album: Primal | Ephemeral
Label: Self Released
Year: 2018








Tracklist
01. Του Φόβου Η Φωνή
02. The Tower Turned Into Strength
03. Dismantling The Knots
04. Binaural Phase Infection
05. Π
06. Harvest
07. The Lord To The Living One's Mountain
08. What Remains Of Grace
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Mass Culture, formed in 2011, is composed from four individuals, coming from Tripolis-Sparti-Athens, Greece.

Each member has had its own musical path and identity, but having common components and a wide appreciation for the music of bands such as Isis, Neurosis, Cult Of Luna, they decided to start up a band somewhere along those lines.They started, however, experimenting and incorporating further elements into their music, varying from the post-hardcore outfits of Time To Burn and Buried Inside, to the doomy sound of Yob, with a Fall Of Efrafa/ Downfall Of Gaia dark neocrust feel, retaining the ambient/post-metal Omega Massif-like sound and, of course, many more.

Mass Culture released an EP and a split with Fields Of Locust.

In August 2018, their first full length album "Primal | Ephemeral" was released, with the help of Nothing to Harvest records and Sweetohm recordings.

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Recommendation: KATAXNIA - Κρεσέντο Απελπισίας (Crescendo Of Despair)

Band: KATAXNIA
Album: Κρεσέντο Απελπισίας (Crescendo Of Despair)
Label: Self Released
Year: 2018







Tracklist
01. Η Σκόνη Που Έγινε Αρρώστια (Dust That Became Disease)
02. Χθόνιος Τρόμος (Infernal Terror)
03. Σκοτεινιά (Darkness)
04. Γκάλιες (Magpies)
05. Ερωτικό Πρός... (Erotic To...)
06. Βήχας Σα Νύχτα (Soar Throat Like The Night)
07. Εζμαχάλ (Esmahal)
08. Κρεσέντο Απελπισίας (Crescendo Of Despair)
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KATAXNIA is a punk / crust band from Thessaloniki, Greece. Κρεσέντο Απελπισίας (Crescendo Of Despair) is their third album and personally I was surprised that I didn't knew this band in my own city! Okay crust is not one of my favorite genres, but this album is definitely one of the best I've heard! Great production, great melodies and vocals! Don't let the language barrier keep you from listening to this, it's a real gem!

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Album: Morrow - Covenant Of Teeth

Band: Morrow
Album: Covenant Of Teeth
Label: Alerta Antifascista
Year: 2016








Tracklist
01. Fathom
02. The Norr
03. Forgiving Grin
04. Cleaved Fang
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For fans of early Fall Of Efrafa. Brooding, dark and sombre melodic crust in the vein of Ictus and Fall of Efrafa, vast resonant guitars and cello over thundering D-beat, invoking mythologies of remnant cultures amongst the ruins of our civilisation, the earthen liturgy of forests and ice scapes. Morrow are a collective of friends from all over the world, and features guest vocals from members of Masakari, Monachus, Wildspeaker, Archivist and Anopheli.

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Album: Downfall of Gaia - Suffocating In The Swarm Of Cranes

Band: Downfall of Gaia
Album: Suffocating In The Swarm Of Cranes
Label: Metal Blade
Year: 2012









Tracklist
01. [Vulnus]
02. Drowning By Wing Beats
03. In The Rivers Bleak
04. I Fade Away
05. Beneath The Crown Of Cranes
06. Giving Their Heir To The Masses
07. [Asphyxia]
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Downfall of Gaia's sophomore effort features the band's now signature dark atmosphere while effortlessly conveying a sense of hopelessness without quite reaching the desolation that has made Neurosis a household name. This time around though, the German outfit sacrifices a bit of density for a more sustained and thorough album. Reaching almost an hour, Suffocating in the Swarm of Cranes showcases a bit more of a melodic side, like with the beginning of track “I Fade Away”. These almost harmonious moments serve as an incredibly well executed contrast to the dark depths of the remainder of the record while also offering some reprieve before the onslaught progresses yet again. 

The most impressive thing present in the record is the band's reluctance to rush their sound. Too many times has a band found a unique riff or melody only to accelerate headfirst into it, instead of letting yourself ease into it naturally. One of the defining moments in the record is towards the end, during the build up in the beginning of the track “Giving Their Heir to the Masses”. Rather than speed into the crescendo of the climax, the band plays a trick on you and actually slows the pace down to an almost unbearable crawl. As the listener, you can feel the summit of the mountain you've been climbing throughout the album, but it's just out of your grasp. Finally, after what seems like thousands of aeons, the height of your aural enterprise is reached, and made all the sweeter because of the tumultuous journey you experienced to get there. This is entirely indicative of the exploration required to penetrate the shell of this monstrosity. 

Sophomore releases are almost always defined as a maturing point in a young band's career, and Suffocating in the Swarm of Cranes is an incredible example of growth and advancement. The album displays the ensemble becoming more confident in their sound, which only contributes to the overall experience. With the amalgamation of all these elements, and the execution of a band beyond its years, Downfall of Gaia make a huge statement with what could be one of the finest post metal records in recent memory.

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