Band: Elder | Album: Through Zero | Genre: Progressive rock, Heavy psych | Year: 2026
From: Berlin, Germany | Label: Blues Funeral
I’ve found Elder’s work to be a bit inconsistent over their last few releases. After the stellar Lore and Reflections of a Floating World, Omens was spotty and failed to deliver on the band’s promise of change. The Gold and Silver Sessions were an interesting (if unnecessary) foray into krautrock. ELDOVAR was a neat collaboration album; and while I liked Innate Passage, it’s not a record I’ve found myself returning to. Last year’s EP was also a bit of a split decision from me, with one good-but-not-exactly-memorable song and one fantastic one.
Across the span of these last few releases, I’ve sensed that Elder has had a desire to more fully embrace progressive rock, but they’ve had a hard time escaping some of the songwriting tricks and patterns they’ve long utilized.
Through Zero, Elder’s seventh (or eighth or ninth, depending on how one counts splits/collaborations) full-length album, is their greatest success since 2017’s Reflections. On this record, they’ve fully embraced progressive rock while also maintaining their unique voice. Synthesizers and other keyboards are integrated more fully here than anywhere else in their discography. Their classic heavy psych stylings are still prominent and an integral part of their music, but they’re supported by a greater diversity of sounds. Literal textures and tones, as well as melodies and songwriting styles, are more varied on this record than they’ve been before.
The album begins with “Sigil to Ruin”. As the song slowly fades in, the lead guitar line makes allusions to the Canterbury sound, immediately making this unique within Elder’s body of work. It’s still firmly rooted in their heavy psych/post-rock tendencies, but it’s nice to hear them genuinely expand their palette of influences. The opening verse is understated, but the guitar parts underpinning it are complex and jazzy. In the song’s second half, things get a bit heavier but still somewhat restrained by Elder’s standards.
The final stretch of the song sees synthesizers come to the front of things, channeling early krautrock and space rock like on last year’s “Dream State Return”. Elder has dabbled in krautrock before, but this is their most successful and distinctive venture into it. It’s not until the final minute of the song that the band fully unloads with their usual heaviness, and keeping it until the climax like that helps this stand out when compared to other works they’ve done.
“Capture/Release” has another quiet introduction, this time with some more electronic touches. When the guitar comes in, it’s rather jangly and light, reminding me of certain math rock bands I’ve heard. It doesn’t take long for Elder to crank things up, though, with distorted guitars and synthesizers harmonizing in a unique way. Guitars and keys come in alternating heavy and light waves, encapsulating this song’s contrasting title well.
Up next is the album’s title track. Heavily flanged guitar leads the way on the most obvious callback to Elder’s stoner metal roots yet. But those stoner roots are combined with progressive rock’s technicality and uncommon rhythms. The opening verse is rather mellow in comparison, with broad, echoing clean guitar lines. Elder smoothly transitions to heavier, more intense riffs, supported by some synth lines that channel acts like Camel and Yes more than Tangerine Dream or early Kraftwerk. The song’s closing passage is classic Elder, with majestic soloing and triumphal chord progressions.
The opening of “Strata” sees Elder going full post-rock, with a ringing, atmospheric bassline and airy, abstract guitar passages. This composition features another excellent and naturalistic build-up in intensity. Riffs are complex and powerful, with a strong sense of upward momentum. I love the textures that the band constructs in this song. Layers of heavily-affected guitar lines and synthesizers overlap, morph, swell, and bloom beautifully. Near the end, there’s even a dash of acoustic guitar which lends some beautiful contrast.
“Sight Unseen” provides a much-appreciated bit of respite in its opening. Airy keyboard and guitar lines float dreamily, and a calm but steady drum pattern provides some direction. Cosmic synthesizer arpeggios eventually come to the lead as fuzzy guitar licks add some nice grit. The drumming becomes more insistent, and the bass subtly growths beneath the synths before the band explodes into heavy psychedelic majesty.
The album ends on “Blighted Age”. It’s another mellow moment on the album, with acoustic guitar, electric piano, and mild electronic embellishments supporting some downcast-sounding vocals. After such a powerful, intense record, this is an occasion where ending on a mellower moment works really well.
Through Zero is Elder’s best release in at least nine years, if not ever. The sound presented here is still unmistakably them, but it demonstrates a real evolution in their sound. Keyboards add a lot of depth and variance to the sound, and the songwriting is both fresh and original.
Score: 95/100
The Elite Extremophile 