The Ukrainian band's 7th full length finds them leaning further into sludge with an atmospheric crunch that sits somewhere between the Melvins and Mastodon on the opening track of this album. There is ample post-grunge to the riffs as the vocals layer a more introspective melodic sense after the more burly bark the song started with. It feels like most sludge albums are going to get overshadowed by Neurosis this year, so it's a good thing these guys have a more rock side to fall back on and seperate them from keeping up with those Joneses.
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"ZYX" has a more indie rock sound, and it is actually the most intersting of the first three songs. There is a cool groove, subdued vocals that provide a contrast, and nuanced guitar playing, so here's hoping they continue to explore this new direction. They jam a bit at the end of the song. There is more ofa progressive slant to this album. Keyboards play a larger role. Midway into the album, it is even more apparent that they have crossed over into prog. If it worked for Mastodon, these guys took notes. This leads to cleaner guitar tones becoming more abundant as a shift away from the fuzzed guitar tones that were a staple of where they came from. 'Jackal" is the first song where I pick up on any lyrical hints they live somewhere that is being obliterated. The song builds back up into a more dramatic, sweeping build of rocking out.
The strummed 'Window in My Room' feels like a lost alt -rock ballad from the 90s. It ambles along with almost Nick Drake-like folk energy. The album closes with "One More Empty Day". The Nick Drake-like mood of the previous song carries over into this one. The album takes a turn from how it started, with the last two songs leaning into the softer side. Overall, it works I will give this album a 9 as I like some of the newer direction they head, even if the last two songs did not register for me; they are balanced out by superior moments.
6.6
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