Band: Grant the Sun | Album: Voyage | Genre: Post-metal | Bandcamp
I liked this band’s 2019 EP, Sylvain, so when I saw they were putting out a full-length release, I made sure to put it on my docket. The music here is heavy and moody, occasionally with vocals. Guitar lines are both gritty and expansive, and there are a lot of wonderful textural contrasts. I’m not sure there are enough ideas here to warrant a full album, but this would have made a pretty decent long EP if they trimmed off a couple songs. The playing is great, and I’m especially fond of the guitar tones they chose. But post-metal is simply a genre where songs can quite easily start sounding too similar to one another for me.
Score: 73/100
Artist: Bobby Lee | Album: Endless Skyways | Genre: Krautrock, Americana | Bandcamp
This record is full of dreamy, floating guitar lines and airy, otherworldly atmospheres. The influences of acts like Neu! and Hawkwind are evident, but the occasional twang of slide guitar or folky acoustic strum helps keep this album in fairly unique territory. The blend of country, psychedelia, and krautrock is pulled off very well here.
Score: 77/100
Band: Mouth | Album: Getaway | Genre: Progressive rock | Bandcamp
Following the rather disappointing Floating, Getaway is a return to what I like to hear from this German act. The sidelong title track is an enjoyable opus with a rich variety of colors and textures. Side two doesn’t have anything nearly as ambitious, but the music is solid, nonetheless. It swirls in psychedelic ways, and there are plenty of fun passages. It ranges from hard-rocking to dreamy, and the band demonstrates a knack for good riffs and hooks.
Score: 82/100
Band: Nepal Napalm | Album: A Hate Supreme | Genre: Progressive metal | Bandcamp
This Spanish trio plays an experimental variety of metal that is often harsh and abrasive, though gentler moments of folk and Middle Eastern music slip in on occasion as well. There are plenty of irregular rhythms and wacked-out riffs. The title track, though slow to get going, sees some engaging electronic experimentation, and the closing cut features some strongly Floydian flavors.
Score: 79/100
Band: Oiapok | Album: OisoLün | Genre: Progressive rock, Jazz rock | Bandcamp
Oiapok is the latest French band to call upon the Magmatic tradition of giving your jazzy rock album a nonsense, Kobaian-looking title. It isn’t zeuhl, but it’s zeuhl-adjacent. The music is fairly light and often bouncy and sprightly. Brass and idiophones are deployed well alongside more conventional rock instrumentation. There’s a certain tropical vibe to much of this album, and it lends a breezy atmosphere. Some songs can meander or drag on, but this is an enjoyable release.
Score: 78/100
Artist: Vonn Zandus | Album: Unimortal | Genre: Progressive rock, Progressive electronic | Bandcamp
This instrumental release is full of high-energy music fueled by lush synth tones. The songwriting is inventive and engaging. Zandus’s musicianship is often flashy, but it never crosses over into the realm of self-indulgence. I get hints of Mike Oldfield and Frank Zappa throughout this record, with the latter comparison being especially reinforced with the frequent use of marimba. The mood is quite sunny overall, and I’m a big fan of the way the many synth tones interact with one another.
Score: 81/100